‘DWTS’ Channels a Disneyland Deep Cut for Disney Night Set

Dancing With The Stars’ “Disney Week” episode kicked off with a surprising tribute to an old Disneyland favorite. Host Tyra Banks walked onto the ballroom with decorations inspired by the beloved Main Street Electrical Parade, with the snail float dancing across the floor. Banks thanked the Disney Parks team for the decorations, which brought a little bit of Disneyland into viewers’ homes while the real park in Anaheim remains closed.

The original Main Street Electrical Parade began in 1972 and continued through 1996. It has only been brought back for two limited runs ever since, first in 2017 and again in 2019. In 2001, the parade moved to Disney California Adventure as Disney’s Electrical Parade and closed in 2010. The parade also had a run at Magic Kingdom in Disney World in Florida from 1977 to 1991, 1999 to 2001and 2010 to 2016. The only place in the world you can still see a version of the parade is Tokyo Disneyland, where the “DreamLights” version opened in 2001.

While Disney World is open for guests, the Disneyland resort remains closed during the coronavirus pandemic. Recently, Disney Park officials began growing impatient with California Gov. Gavin Newsom. During a press conference on Tuesday, Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences & Products Josh D’Amaro insisted the parks were ready to re-open after being closed for six months. D’Amaro said about 80,000 people in the Anaheim area rely on the parks for employment.

“The longer we wait, the more devastating the impact will be to the Orange County and Anaheim communities, and the tens of thousands of people who rely on us for employment,” D’Amaro said, reports KRON4. “We are ready, and more importantly, it’s time.”

Newsom said theme park guidelines would be released “very, very shortly.” All theme parks in California, including Universal Studios Hollywood, Six Flags Magic Mountain, and Knott’s Berry Farm, have all been closed since mid-March.

On Monday, a group of California state legislators sent a letter to Newsom, demanding guidelines for theme parks be released. “Many indoor facilities are already operating safely at reduced capacities, with face covering and physical distancing requirements, and with heightened hygiene practices,” the letter reads, reports Deadline. “Logic would suggest that since theme parks are controlled venues operating predominantly outdoors, that they too could reopen with similar health and safety protocol.”