The “UP! A Great Bird Adventure” show at Disney’s Animal Kingdom is expected to receive additional changes in September after additional mediocre reviews from guests. The news, as reported by WDWMagic, states that the show will be reworked during a week-long period September 8th through September 14th before reopening September 15, 2019.
This story should sound familiar as the show was previously modified in April 2019 after poor reviews. Overall reception of the show hasn’t been too positive ever since characters from Up! were introduced in April 2018.
We attended a performance in July 2019 and while we thoroughly enjoyed the incredible birds and their various behaviors, the show’s dialogue and characters led to some serious pacing issues. The inclusion of the Up! characters Russell and Dug didn’t add anything to the show. It took a considerable amount of time before any of the birds, who are the real stars of the show, even made an appearance.
During the July 2019 show, we saw large numbers of guests heading for the exit before any of the most impressive bird behaviors, including the flight demonstrations and the talking / singing demonstration. Those behaviors are seriously impressive and are well worth seeing, but they are unfortunately hidden beneath a cheesy story that lingers far too long.
Hopefully this next wave of changes transforms Animal Kingdom’s bird show back into a must-see event.
