Videopolis Theatre

Take flight to the island at the top of the world!

Take a break from the action with a chance to enjoy some popular Disney and Pixar animated shorts on the big screen at CinéDisney, or dig into a snack at Café Hyperion before your dirigible flight departure is called!

After an illustrious first fifteen years of productions, the curtain looks to have come down on Videopolis Theatre, at least for the time being. Beginning life in 1992 as the beating heart of Discoveryland, it was imagined as a vast theatre entertainment complex which would present the hyperactive, high-tech (and very hip) Rock Shock show during the day before turning into a huge discotheque at night.

The Legend of the Lion King (2004 - 2009)

Soon enough the venue was pulled into the turmoil of the park's poor early finances, its original production cancelled after just one year and replaced by an immensely popular and well-marketed stage show version of Beauty and the Beast, the animation which was meant to have seen its very own, permanent theatre attraction built in Fantasyland.

In 2004, the stage was again in the spotlight, hosting another big-budget stage show with The Legend of the Lion King, a truly stunning 30-minute musical adaptation of the film utilising countless special effects and a sensational cast of Broadway-quality vocal talent. Alas, such a large and widely promoted show caused major headaches in the small, 400-seat venue, with a temporary Fastpass-style system seeing guests camping out hours for tickets.

As interest began to wain, it was decided the expensive show was no longer cost-effective for the comparitively small venue. In January 2009, the cast bowed out with their final roar.

After several years of inactivity, only hosting Disney short films and occasional live music performances, the stage suddenly sprung back to popularity with the launch of Jedi Training Academy. The rockwork of The Lion King now largely forms the basis of this Star Wars-like landscape, with several new stage setpieces.

Current Productions

  • No regular productions

Past Productions

  • Jedi Training Academy (2015 – 2017)
  • The Legend of the Lion King (2004 – 2009)
  • Mickey's ShowTime (2003 – 2004)
  • Minnie's Birthday Surprise (2002 – 2003)
  • Mulan - La Legende (1998 – 2002)
  • Disney Magic Forever (1998)
  • Disney Classics - The Music and the Magic (1998 – 1998)
  • Beauty and the Beast (1993 – 1996)
  • Rock Shock (1992) (1995)

Other Events

  • CinéDisney (2010 – 2015) (Disney and Pixar shorts)
  • Cinéma Mickey (2009 – 2010) (Classic Mickey shorts)

Indoor entertainment complex and theatre with fast food restaurant and two arcades.

  • Opening Date

    12th April 1992

  • Attraction Type

    Indoor theatre

  • Capacity

    400 Seats (theatre),
    800 Seats (including restaurant)

  • Suitablility
    • Children 3-7
    • Children 8-12
    • Young Adults
    • Adults
    • Seniors

Trivia

  • The enormous Hyperion Airship moored in the main entrance of this international aircraft hangar was the largest static prop in any Disney park in the world upon opening in 1992. It is a near exact, full-scale replica of the ship featured in Disney's 1974 film The Island at the Top of the World, based on the Ian Cameron novel The Lost Ones. By strange coincidence, the original Walt Disney Animation Studios was based on Hyperion Avenue, and the name "Hyperion" continues to be used for many Disney ventures such as its publishing house, Hyperion Books. The main soundstage at the Hyperion Avenue studios served as the inspiration for Disney Studio 1 at Walt Disney Studios Park.
  • Café Hyperion, the Counter Service restaurant within the complex, was regularly lauded as the "largest fast food restaurant in Europe" upon opening in 1992.
  • See those two circular windows above the main Videopolis Theatre entrance? They were originally intended to connect to elevated walkways spanning the path below and reaching over into Discovery Mountain, an early concept for Space Mountain would have seen it built as a vast indoor complex similar to Videopolis itself. In fact, even without the mountain in place at park opening, they were due to be opened up with a bridge leading to stairs down to ground level in the middle of the pathway. Michael Eisner, Disney CEO at the time, was so horrified at how these huge steel structures obscured the view of his prized Star Tours, however, he demanded they be removed immediately. Two planters today mark the location of these stairs, and the space behind the windows is used as a radio recording studio.

Tips

  • The theatre seating is now open all day to all guests, providing a perfect heated, covered space to take the weight off for a few minutes whilst enjoying the cartoons on the big screens.
  • Eating at Café Hyperion? Try to dine before midday or after 2pm for the shortest queue times and most available seating. Try to find a table at the edge of one of the tiers for a great view of the video screens and over the entire complex.

Advice

  • Scheduled performance times - check Information Board or Programme.
  • Fully accessible. Wheelchair spaces are available toward the rear of the theatre seating.