News and Rumors 4/18/11 - 4/24/11

News and Rumors are gathered from various different sources. All rumors are rumors and are to be taken as such.


News


Epcot

• Some work is going on with Illuminations in the near future.  Starting April 27 - May 27th, the Inferno Barge will be under refurb.
• The British Invasion will perform their last set on April 30th.
• The Impressions de France film has been upgraded and remastered into digital form.

Disney's Hollywood Studios

• Sounds Dangerous will go back to seasonal status on May 1st. 
• Some new details have come out about the new Star Tours II 3D attraction.  From Disney:  Entering the attraction queue area, Star Tours guests walk into a bustling spaceport. The famed Star Wars droid duo, C-3PO and R2-D2, greet them as the Starspeeder 1000 is prepped for service.  Guests also are introduced to AC-38, a hotshot droid pilot known simply as “Ace,” and Aly San San (voiced by actress Allison Janney), the “spokesbot” for the spaceport.
  
  After winding through the spaceport, guests board the Starspeeder 1000 spacecraft and prepare for Star Tours Flight #1401. Through a series of mishaps, however, C-3PO finds himself in the pilot’s seat instead of Ace, and it’s up to him and R2-D2 to navigate their passengers through the galaxy. However, the tyrannical Empire is out to stop the Starspeeder at all costs. C-3PO and R2-D2 take the controls and try to outwit and outrun the Imperial forces and a galactic bounty hunter hired to pursue the spaceship and its passengers.
  
  Utilizing the 50+ random story combinations, the Starspeeder then embarks on a wild trip through the galaxy, visiting several planets made famous in the Star Wars films. Among the locations that might provide haven from the Empire’s pursuit are the icy planet of Hoth, the lush jungles of Kashyyyk and the underwater Gungan world of Naboo. And along the way guests may encounter Star Wars characters that offer to help (or hinder) their journey, including Yoda, Admiral Ackbar, Darth Vader and Boba Fett. “Skytroopers,” a legion of stormtroopers created just for the Star Tours attraction story, might even join in the chase.  

Disney's Animal Kingdom

• The Wild Africa Trek has added two additional treks per day.

General WDW News

• The Polynesian quiet pool's reopening date from it's refurb has been pushed back, now reopening on May 1st.  
• The Cabanas quiet pool at Disney's Coronado Springs resort are down for refurbishment until May 19th. 
• The newly remodeled Lego Store has reopened this week.

Rumors

• As I reported on Wednesday, the rumors are swirling heavily, thanks to a newspaper article in a Brazilian paper, that a Brazil pavilion may be announced for World Showcase.
• In May, the Disney Junior Dance Party will go on every evening that Fantasmic is presented. 
• A rumor is floating around that the Jedi Training Academy could be moving to the Sounds Dangerous building.  If this does indeed happen, the Imagineers will be able to do more creatively with the show, including possibly including a Living Character Initiative version of Yoda. 
• There is a rumor floating that the Norway pavilion may be seeing changes soon, as funding has appeared to have fallen through for the remaking of the film at the end of the attraction.  Because of that, the pavilion may be changing back to the original concept of Scandinavia.