Scott And Carol Present - A Behind The Scenes Look At Dollywood's A Christmas Carol

We were curious about how Dolly Parton appears, in hologram form, in Dollywood's A Christmas Carol production. Justin Bradley, Entertainment Manager at Dollywood, met us early for a behind the scenes tour. This is unlike any other production, for it has original musical numbers written by Dolly Parton herself.

When we first entered the theatre, they were cleaning the big projection screen. A little to the right of the brush, you can see how much dust has settled after the previous day's performances. They use a shop vacuum to clean the brush after each stroke. Justin said they also sometimes have to adjust the tension to prevent wrinkles in the screen. He also mentioned that last season they had more work until they were able to relocate the raccoon that was leaving scat throughout the stage and theatre. That would have taken more than a brush to clean up!

Justin pointed out how busy the stage is when all the characters appear together in the town scenes. The cast is warming up their voices and doing sound checks so we couldn't record a video.

Here the production crew is checking the test pattern to make sure the projects are all in alignment. The projectors are above the stage, and shoot directly onto the floor. You can see a small part of the reflecting screen in the lower right of the picture. The vertical image behind Justin is actually on the angled screen where the spirits appear.

Here is a view of the reflecting screen on the floor from above. It is hidden from the view of the audience. If the projectors are not in perfect alignment, strange things happen to the images of the spirits. The number 4 that you see, directs Scrooge where to look during a specific time so he appears to be looking at the spirit.

If you look over to the right edge of the upper platform, you can seen tape marks along the edge. Here is where Scrooge's showmanship gets tested, because he cannot see the projection and basically, from his perspective, is interacting with one of the spots on the floor. While he is remembering where to look, his timing must also be impeccable because the recorded spirits cannot adjust for any changes.

The end results of all this technology produce scenes like this one of Scrooge interacting with the spirit of Jacob Marley,

And, the most popular spirit of all, Dolly Parton as the spirit of Christmas Past. She also sings during her "appearance."

There are a total of four holograms, which also include the silent spirit of Christmas Future, who helps Scrooge mend the error of his ways.

Here are some excerpts from the show. It is quite the extensive production and is the first time this technology has been intermixed with a live production in the theme park. Our thanks to Justin, the production crew, and the cast for their assistance in letting us, and you, behind the curtain. 

Happy New Year from all of us at News Plus Notes, may you be healthy, prosperous, and faithful during 2015. 



Scott And Carol Present - An Old Time Christmas At Silver Dollar City

An Old Time Christmas celebration at Silver Dollar City has received national acclaim as one of the best places to celebrate the holiday with your family. The citizens go over the top to change centuries with over five million lights.

So lets get the obligatory "Frozen" reference out of the way, but in this show Frosty upstages Olaf.

Here is a few of the highlights, and watch how adeptly the cast switches gears when the plan goes awry.

Silver Dollar City's adaptation of "A Christmas Carol" is so popular that guests line up for hours before the doors open. Winning many awards, we would visit every year for this show if we didn't have to travel so far.

The lavish sets and special effects set this show apart from normal theme park offerings.

The  fourteen members of the cast are fantastic and to think they can put this together with less than a month of rehearsals shows the depths of their talent. They are truly phenomenal.

Here a few of the highlights. One of the special things about the show is that the music is all performed by a live band, a specialty of many Hershend Family Entertainment Company productions. It adds a lot of energy to the performance.

Silver Dollar City also has an adaptation of "It's A Wonderful Life, another Broadway style show.

Although the original movie was not a musical, this production contains many elaborate musical numbers.

Clarence finally gets his wings. The original movie was voted the #1 "Inspirational Film of All Time by the American Film Institute.

These are the highlights

Rudolph's  Holly Jolly Christmas Parade kick's off with everyone's favorite Bumble!

Many of the characters from Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer appear throughout the park, as well as the parade.

Of course, no Christmas Parade is complete without Santa Claus.

This float is similar to some billboards we saw on the way.

Here are all of the million lights in Rudolph's Holly Jolly Christmas Light Parade.

The rule is, if it doesn't move, put lots of lights on it. If it moves, figure out how to put lots of lights on it. They start stringing the lights in August.

Families can become gingerbread men,

or just enjoy the many light vistas available through the park. Many of the lights are visible from the rollercoasters, the Giant Swing, and the train.

The fifty-foot tall Christmas Tree in Main Street has over 250,000 lights, and performs at least three different shows. Here is one of them. Some of the surrounding trees also are synchronized with the music.

Silver Dollar City helps everyone to remember the reason for the season,

and gives a not so subtle hint for what families can do throughout the holidays. Many thanks to all the citizens of Silver Dollar City for their assistance in bringing this to you. We spent a day and a half at the park, but couldn't do it all, there is so much to see. May all the News Plus Notes readers have a blessed Christmas and Happy New Year.

Legoland Florida Kicks Off Christmas Bricktacular 2014

© Legoland Florida

Legoland Florida has fallen awash with the holiday spirit, recently kicking off the 2014 season of Christmas Bricktacular by hosting 40 Make-A-Wish families at the park.  The families were invited to attend the Tree Lighting Ceremony, which featured a "colorful celebration of music, lights, and snow!"

The 200 invited guests were able to enjoy all the theme park's offerings, and all were special VIPs at the Lightning Ceremony.  Both Lego Santa and Lego Movie stars Emmet and Wyldstyle were on hand to bring kids on stage to help light the 30 foot tall Lego Christmas Tree.

© Legoland Florida

“As a theme park that is truly built for kids, we are honored to host these great kids and create wonderful holiday memories for them and their families. We’d like to thank Make-A-Wish for the opportunity to work together on this event, and for all of the wonderful things they do to support children and their families all year long,” said Legoland Florida Resort General Manager Adrian Jones.

© Legoland Florida

Christmas Bricktacular takes place each weekend in December, featuring tons of special holiday themed activities for families to enjoy.  Full details of the event can be located at the theme park's website.

Legoland Florida's parent company, Merlin Entertainments Group, created Merlin's Magic Wand to enable its attractions to provide tickets to ill, disabled and disadvantaged children around the globe.  The company donates admission tickets and uses donations from employees to pay for travel costs for families.

Scott And Carol Present - A Stone Mountain Christmas

Here, under the Confederate Memorial Carving in Stone Mountain Park, is the only place "Atlantians" are willing to accept snow. We all remember what happened last winter, with drivers stuck for hours on the highways, and the entire metropolitan area shut down. But under the watchful eyes of Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Thomas  J. "Stonewall" Jackson, children of all ages frolic in Snow Mountain, the civilized way to enjoy winter in the deep south.

There's lots to do in the SnoZone. Building castles and making snow angels are just two things to do, you are limited only by your imagination.

Cheers and victory dances arose every time some tossed a snowball through the hole at the Snowball Shootin' gallery! With targets both near and far, many parents challenged their little ones to a contest.

Families built igloos,

or snowmen, which ever they preferred.

Everyone over 36" tall can enjoy Avalanche Alley. The bigger the family that faster you go.

Tube Runners must be at least 42", and as you watch the video below you can see why.

Lots of fun, and a moving sidewalk to help you get back up the hill to do it all over again.

The Summit Skyride offer both a spectacular view of the Confederate Memorial Carving, and the skyline of Atlanta. You can see the lake, and on a clear day you can watch all the activity for over 50 miles away.

You can also get a bird's eye view of Snow Mountain.

Paul, the Project Director for Snow Mountain fills us in with some details.

With over 2 million lights, the displays sparkle and shine.

This lighted pathway leads to the mansion,, where the Snow Angel reigns.

The performers gather for the parade, with stops for mini performances along the way.

This man needs no introduction, for he is the highlight of the nightly parade.

Toyrific! brings your favorite misfit toys to life in the search to save the magic of Christmas.

Forever Christmas regales guests with holiday classics, from yesteryear and today.

A special treat for the younger audience members, black light toys.

You have never seen this version of "A Christmas Carol," if you haven't been to Stone Mountain Christmas. Above is just a little taste to whet your appetite.

The entrance gate beckons you to a winter wonderland

Here are some more views of the Christmas decorations at Stone Mountain. 

This tree is a light show in itself.

You can help the Snow Angel work her magic, and end your visit with fireworks. Fire and ice never blended so well together.

Watching fireworks through the snowflakes is an experience unique to Stone Mountain, and it happens every night.

Many thanks to Stan, Paul, and all of the wonderful people at Stone Mountain. Are the sleigh bells ringing for you yet? We heard them all over Stone Mountain Christmas!