Let’s go back to the early days of American Idol and explore the rise and fall of Disney’s immersive experience based on the show.
American Idol has been a television staple for as long as I can remember. It’s wild to think that since its debut, children have grown up, graduated college, and/or entered the workforce. The show isn’t the talent juggernaut it once was, but if you rewind to the early days of the pop-singer competition series, you’ll find a cultural phenomenon that captivated an entire country and multiple generations of TV watchers.
In the early years, the competition introduced the United States to talented singers every season, including Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia Barrino, and Jennifer Hudson, names that are still around today. It became a breeding ground for superstars, and every wannabe entertainer in the country stood up and took notice. Audition lines got longer, and the competition got harder because everyone wanted their fifteen minutes of fame. So, when Disney World needed a new attraction for its struggling Hollywood Studios in Florida, they turned to American Idol.
The American Idol Experience opened in 2009 and gave park-goers the chance to go through an audition/performance process, which included three paid actors sitting in for the show judges (Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson), a live audience, and a host standing in for Ryan Seacrest. Several competitions ran throughout the day, each with its own winner. Only one of those winners was awarded the ultimate prize: a fast pass in the television show’s audition line (basically, the winner got to cut the long line at the very first audition).
In the video below, Defunctland explains the rise and fall of “The American Idol Experience” and the early history of the show that inspired the immersive experience:
