Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! is a scheduled 30-minute live show that recreates many of the memorable scenes from the Indiana Jones movie series-and reveals the secrets behind the stunts and special effects-for big kids, teens and adults in Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park. The edge-of-your-seat suspense in the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! show comes to a climax in an explosive finale with pyrotechnics so intense you can feel the heat from the seats near the front of the stage.
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! is based on many of the popular stunt scenes from Raiders of the Lost Ark. The show uses various pyrotechnic devices which are incorporated into several of the stunts.
Guests are permitted to enter the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular theater approximately 20 minutes before show time. While waiting, guests are often entertained by a live performer - in the past, these have included Rosie, a loud-mouthed but hilarious cleaning lady, and Francis, a plumber, who interact with audience members. A few minutes before the show begins, the show's "casting director" gives a brief overview of the upcoming show and auditions several adult guests to serve as extras in the sequences to follow.
The action starts with Indy braving dangers in a recreation of the Peruvian temple scene from the beginning of the movie. Dangerous spikes, false floors and ancient booby traps test the archaeologist's skills before he attempts to make a getaway with the golden idol. The stunt show then moves on to the busy and audience-participant filled streets of Cairo. Indy and Marion watch street acrobats before events take a turn for the worse and a massive fight scene breaks out. The Cairo street scene concludes with Indy shooting at a Jeep loaded with explosives, producing a fiery conclusion. The final scene of the stunt show recreates the action-packed sequence in which Indy and Marion try to stop the Nazis from flying the Ark to Berlin; the reenactment is complete with a scaled-down version of a German Luftwaffe aircraft. Indy fights a large German mechanic while Marion mans the aircraft's machine gun, blowing away everything in sight. Indy and Marion are able to make a narrow escape just as the airport is engulfed in flames.
Along with the former Superstar Television and Monster Sound Show, The Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! is a show that relies on audience participation as part of the show's entertainment. Volunteers are chosen from the crowd to perform in the Cairo street scene though they safely stay away from the real stunt work. More recently, along with the audience, one real stunt actor plant is chosen from the audience to do real work.
Touring Tips
- To have the best chance of being chosen as an extra for this show, sit near the front of the theater and show lots of enthusiasm!
- Children (and even adults) who are frightened of loud noises should sit further away from the main stage area, as some of the effects and explosions are ear-splitting.
- The Indiana Jones show has two merchandise stores which sell Indiana Jones merchandise and apparel. There are two shops that sell Indiana Jones-related merchandise adjacent to the Stunt Spectacular theater. The Indy "truck" is located at one exit, the much larger Indiana Jones Adventure Outpost is located just past the Prime Time cafe. Both locations carry Indiana Jones movie memorabilia, hats, jackets, rubber snakes, t-shirts, etc., as well as Disney plush characters in Indiana Jones-style clothing.
- The nearest restrooms are located in the Backlot Express counter service restaurant, near the west side of the theater.
Facts
- It is executively produced by George Lucas and directed by Jerry Rees, with stunt coordination by Glenn Randall.
- The Indiana Jones amphitheater holds 2000 guests.
- The small golden idol used in the first act of this show is an exact replica of the idol in Raiders of the Lost Ark.
- The giant rolling ball is 12 feet in diameter and weighs 440 pounds. The show's sets weigh as much as 100 tons each, which makes them the largest moving sets in history.
History
The show opened on August 25, 1989, as the first Indiana Jones attraction at a Disney park, and was put on a six-month hiatus in 2000 to refurbish the sets and prepare it for the addition of FASTPASS, but no major changes were made to the format of the show itself.
This is the first theme park attraction to use a computer based show control system in conjunction with a custom made programmable logic controller system to trigger, control and sequence complex live events in real time, controlled by the actors in many cases. All other effects are triggered by a cast member at the booth. The control system was based on the Amiga computer with software by Richmond Sound Design Ltd. This began a trend in live stunt shows with both Walt Disney World and Universal Studios opening many more similar attractions over the next eight years.