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Tiana's Bayou Adventure

Tiana's Bayou Adventure is a log flume attraction at Magic Kingdom and upcoming at Disneyland. It is based on Disney's 2009 film The Princess and the Frog. The ride experience begins with an outdoor float-through that leads to indoor dark ride segments, with a climactic steep drop followed by an indoor finale. The drop is 52.5 feet (16.0 meters). The attraction opened on June 28, 2024 at Magic Kingdom and is scheduled to open later in 2024 at Disneyland. It is a retheme of Splash Mountain.

Development

In June 2020, it was announced that the Splash Mountain attraction themed to Disney's 1946 film Song of the South at Disneyland and Magic Kingdom, would be rethemed based on the 2009 film The Princess and the Frog. Disney stated that the development of the project began in 2019, prior to the online petitions that were circulated during the George Floyd protests. There had been renewed scrutiny of Song of the South, which is "rarely aired or shown" in the U.S. due to its controversial aspects. It has been considered by critics as portraying African Americans as stereotypes, making them appear content with plantation life in the post-Civil War South. At the time of the film's release, the NAACP protested its subject matter. The Disney Imagineers based Splash Mountain on the animated portions of the film, which the company felt at the time would leave them unaffected by these issues.

The New York Times reported that Disney executives had privately discussed removing the attraction's Song of the South theme for at least five years, before putting into development a theme based on The Princess and the Frog. The project is being led by Imagineer Senior Creative Producer Charita Carter while Splash Mountain Imagineer Tony Baxter returned as a creative advisor.

In August 2021, new artwork and details for the retheme were revealed. In July 2022, during the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans, Disney announced that the new ride would be called Tiana's Bayou Adventure, setting an opening date of "late 2024" at both parks.

At the D23 Expo in September 2022, it was announced that Anika Noni Rose, Bruno Campos, Michael-Leon Wooley, and Jenifer Lewis would be reprising their roles from the film for the attraction.

In December 2022, new artwork was unveiled and it was announced that the Magic Kingdom version of Splash Mountain would close on January 23, 2023. In April 2023, it was announced that Tiana's Bayou Adventure would include "dozens" of "entirely new audio-animatronics figures" and that the Disneyland version of Splash Mountain would close on May 31, 2023. In addition to Audio-Animatronics, the ride features animation of fireflies provided by Walt Disney Animation Studios. In February 2024, a preview video of a Tiana Audio-Animatronics figure was released. This was followed in April 2024 by the release of an in-depth video showcasing several of the other Audio-Animatronics figures. In total, there are 48 Audio-Animatronics figures in the attraction.

Since the setting of Tiana's Bayou Adventure is New Orleans, which is a flat city, the attraction's elevation is explained by having it take place on a salt dome. The Imagineers took inspiration from the Avery Island salt dome in Louisiana. In addition, the new characters for the ride were designed by Imagineer Laura West, while Eric Goldberg, who animated Louis in the film, was consulted for the character's inclusion.

To prepare for the attraction, the Imagineering team took several research trips to Louisiana, visiting locations such as the French Market and bayous, consulted with cultural institutions, chefs, academics, musicians, and also experienced Mardi Gras in New Orleans. The Imagineers also commissioned New Orleans artist Sharika Mahdi to create four paintings, each with a different theme, to serve as inspiration for the attraction.

The attraction's music was provided by Grammy award-winning New Orleans musicians PJ Morton and Terence Blanchard. Morton wrote a song, "Special Spice", while Blanchard provided the queue music. Blanchard previously provided Louis' trumpet playing in the film. Morton and Blanchard also utilized music from the film, composed by Randy Newman.

The attraction's queue includes a mural designed by Louisiana artist Malaika Favorite. In addition, the exterior of the attraction includes a weathervane crafted by Louisiana blacksmiths Darryl Reeves and Karina Roca.

On May 12, 2024, during Disney Night on American Idol, it was announced that Tiana's Bayou Adventure would open at Magic Kingdom on June 28, 2024.

In June 2024, on the subject of the ride's final drop, Carter stated: "One of the things that we thought about was that this particular flume configuration has always been a rite-of-passage type attraction for young kids, [...] when you think about Tiana [...] she's inviting and welcoming and wanting everyone to participate, we thought by celebrating [the drop] and making it a fun challenge, we were opening it up to a wider audience." Imagineer Carmen Smith stated that they wanted people to feel a sense of celebration with the drop instead of a sense of apprehension, "It is a rite of passage, but you're going to this moment, to this place, to be at a party."

Attraction

The attraction is set a year after the events of The Princess and the Frog. To help her community, Tiana has created an employee-owned food cooperative called Tiana's Foods, built on a salt dome that she has purchased. On the day that guests visit, it is Carnival season and Tiana is hosting a celebration for the people of New Orleans. She realizes that due to a mix-up, her celebration is missing a band and needs the guests' help to find one, as they join her and Louis on a trip to the bayou to search for musical critters.