The Disney100 Exhibition will be at Union Station Kansas City from May 24 to November 30, 2024. (Photos and graphics property of the Walt Disney Company)
By: Jacob Elyachar, jakes-take.com
Union Station Kansas City received a massive shipment of faith, trust, and pixie dust!
The Walt Disney Archives arrived at the fabled Kansas City landmark to present the Disney100 Exhibit, which celebrates the Walt Disney Company’s 100th anniversary.
“It is important that the exhibit came to Kansas City. Walt Disney spent a lot of his formative years here, and it is also where he started his first company, Laugh-O-Gram Studio,” said Matthew Adams, Manager of Exhibitions at the Walt Disney Archives. “It is undeniable that Kansas City played a huge part in Walt’s upbringing and creative process. This is where he started.”
The exhibit took five years to create and encapsulates 100 years of history and magic, but picking out the over 250 magical artifacts was quite a Herculean feat.
“We have such an embarrassment of riches in our company,” said Adams. “Ultimately, it came down to what story we wanted to tell.”
While classic Disney stories such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, 101 Dalmatians, Aladdin, and The Little Mermaid chronologically follow the classic beginning, middle, and end format, Adams stated that the Walt Disney Archives needed to organize the exhibit differently.
“We were thinking about our younger guests, who are only familiar with some of our newer characters, which would have been traditionally towards the end of the exhibition,” said Adams. “We did not want them to wait until towards the end to see a character they recognize or resonate with.”
The Mickey Mouse Swarovski statue is one of the artifacts featured in the Disney100 Exhibition. (Photo by Jake’s Take with Jacob Elyachar)
Before stepping into the Disney100 Exhibit, visitors can explore Disney’s local ties to the Kansas City area. This section of the exhibit features a treasure trove of artifacts, including Mickey and Minnie Mouse character dolls from 1935, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves marionettes from 1937, bark from Walt’s Dreaming Tree, and a miniature Mickey Mouse Swarovski statue from 2023.
Where It All Began & Where Do the Stories Come From?
The Disney100 Exhibit begins with the “Where It All Began” section. Visitors will be able to see several personal photos of the Disney family and artwork from his earlier projects, including Laugh-O-Grams, the Alice comedies, and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. The section ends with a particular area dedicated to the creation of Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and their iconic friends.
The second gallery answers the question: “Where Do the Stories Come From?” Fans can see early designs of Snow White and the Evil Queen, Maleficent’s dragon form, and the Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and Sleeping Beauty prop storybooks. Fans can also see several stand-ins from their favorite live-action adaptations, including Winnie the Pooh from Christopher Robin and Cogsworth and Lumiere from the 2017 Beauty and the Beast version.
The horse that Julie Andrews rode while filming Mary Poppins is one of the artifacts that visitors can find in the Disney100 Exhibition. (Photo by Jake’s Take with Jacob Elyachar)
There are things that everyone will resonate with; you have Mary Poppins’ carousel horse from the “Jolly Holiday” sequence from Mary Poppins,” said Adams. “It is such an iconic piece, and to know that Julie Andrews was riding that horse, so that’s there, and maybe Mary Poppins was their favorite film.
Can you name the Disney characters featured in this photo? (Photo by Jake’s Take with Jacob Elyachar)
Character Development & the Spirit of Adventure & Discovery
The Disney100 Exhibition’s third gallery, the Illusions of Life, highlights the Disney characters. Fans will get to see models of some of the entertainment company’s iconic characters and learn insights into the making of three iconic fan favorites: Cruella de Vil, Ariel, and Olaf. Fans will be delighted to see Marc Davis’s iconic drawings of the 101 Dalmatians villainess, both Glenn Close and Emma Stone’s costumes, an Olaf puppet used in the Broadway adaptation of the 2013 Oscar-winning animated film Frozen, and props used by Halle Bailey in the 2023 live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid. Meanwhile, fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Star Wars universe will be delighted to find props and headpieces in the fourth gallery.
“Both Star Wars and Marvel have their sections in our gallery called The Spirit of Adventure and Discovery,” said Adams. “It is all sprinkled throughout (the exhibit); we wanted to ensure that every gallery represented some of our older and newer titles well.”
Han Solo’s dice, a BB-8 puppet, Black Panther and Captain Marvel’s uniforms, the helmets of Iron Man, Star-Lord, the Wasp, and Loki’s signature headdress are featured in the Spirit of Adventure and Discovery. Fans can also see models of the Jungle Cruise attraction and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea’s Nautilus in this gallery.
MCU fans can see some of the headdresses and masks of some of their favorite characters at the Disney100 Exhibit. (Photo by Jake’s Take with Jacob Elyachar)
Sound & Music, The World Around Us, Innovations and Disney Parks
The Disney100 Exhibit’s final four galleries focuses on the Magic of Sound + Music, Walt Disney’s passion for travel, the company’s innovations, and the Disney Parks. Sheet music from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, a mini documentary about The Lion King Broadway musical, and a digital jukebox of songs from across the company’s various media await visitors in the Magic of Sound + Music gallery.
Fans can find information about Walt Disney’s trip to South America in the World Around Us. They can also find concept art regarding Disney’s Animal Kingdom’s icon Tree of Life and a video from legendary Disney Imagineer Joe Rodhe, who spoke about his work designing Pandora – The World of Avatar. The Innovations gallery featured some of Walt Disney’s inventions that helped propel the entertainment industry forward including the Multiline Camera, storyboarding, and audio animatronics. The Your Disney World honors the Disney Parks by showcasing props from the Disneyland Resort, ride vehicles from popular rides such as Peter Pan’s Flight and the Mad Tea Party, and a model of Magic Kingdom’s Cinderella Castle.
The Disney100 exhibit will be at Union Station Kansas City from May 24 to November 30, 2024.
For more information about the Disney100 Exhibit at Union Station Kansas City and to get tickets, visit their website.
