Have you been in a moment and thought, “Wait, how did I get here?” Well I had that moment during my latest dinner at the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue at Walt Disney World. Before I get into that moment, a little backstory is in order.
My family first walked into Pioneer Hall in November of 2018 for my sons first birthday. We asked a friend what we should do for him and they recommended this show as something special and new for our family to experience, we genuinely had no idea what to expect.
Well, we all fell in love with the show, my oldest daughter, Delaney, has dreams of being Dolly Drew when she “grows up” and we all decided that was way too much fun and couldn’t believe in all our years at Disney we hadn’t made time for the show.
Fast forward to March 2020 and we had the ultimate Disney Spring Break planned, complete with our return trip to Hoop, and I think we all know how that played out… the cancelled vacation was a total bummer, but it really gave us something to look forward too. The kids and I spent some time finding the Hoop Dee Doo cast members on Instagram to follow them and see how they were doing – It really blew our minds that many of these cast members have “other roles” around the parks. We used some covid lockdown time laughing at how often we saw them in other pictures from different experiences - y’all I am telling you these actors are TALENTED! They play so many roles and I truly had NO IDEA, hats off to them!
Well, fast forward again to June 2022 and the best news ever is released – Hoop Dee Doo was coming back! This was very exciting and just in time for our upcoming summer vacation to Walt Disney World! We re-visited Pioneer Hall in July and the show was just as fabulous as ever – and it was fun seeing some of the cast members we “knew” through social media back on the stage.
Just this past week, I was back in Disney World for the Middle of the Magic Annual Conference with my middle daughter, Evie! It was just Evie’s 9th birthday and so she was able to tag along with me for some birthday magic! The agency was going to Hoop and I was on the fence if Evie would want to go back, given we were just there in July (the funny part of this story is I was team Hollywood Studios and Evie was team Hoop Dee Doo) – but since it was her birthday, Evie won and we joined the amazing agents at Middle of the Magic for a truly unforgettable evening back at Pioneer Hall!
I don’t want to ruin the show for you if you’ve never been, but there is a LOT of audience participation throughout the show – the cast truly are some of the most magical people in the parks. They are pleasant, funny, engaging and bring you into the show like nothing else. Evie had a cute birthday shout out which was extra special, and at that point I thought the night had been made as it was a new experience we hadn’t had.
So here we are at the part of this long story, where I am going to be in that “How did I get here” train of thought… I was in for a shock when Johnny Ringo walked right up to me and asked if I wanted to help out in the end of the show spectacle. If you know me personally, you’ll know I’m a behind-the-scenes kind of gal. But after some encouragement from my friends, and Evie, I decided, what the heck! I will do it! As a veteran of the event production industry, producing is much more my speed and I love watching others do their thing and shine on stage - I am MUCH more comfortable CALLING a show than I ever will be being IN THE SHOW.
Not giving too much away of the show – this experience was once-in-a-lifetime and something I don’t think I will ever forget. The cast was incredible backstage – I think that part was my favorite (shocking to all, I’m sure). Seeing how they interact with each other, and the other audience participants, was truly magical. Just for example, there is one audience participant that was a younger boy, probably 5 or 6, and there is a loud noise that happens on stage. The actor playing Johnny Ringo was so sweet with him, walking him through what was happening and making sure he wasn’t scared during that moment. He was great with all of us backstage, trying to ease our nerves and make everyone feel comfortable – a true professional.
While I don’t think I will ever join their nightly routine on the stage, I’ll leave that to the professionals - although if they’re looking for a producer, I guess I’d consider it! ha! I am so grateful to have been able to experience this! I hope one day, I’m watching my Dee shine on stage and she can tell her friends, my mom once totally embarrassed herself up here.. isn’t that crazy!?
The moral of this story is this:
1. Don’t be afraid to try something new.
2. Book Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue during your next Walt Disney World vacation.
It’s just a short boat ride from the Magic Kingdom – a great break in your park day! You never know, you might be the next honorary Pioneer Hall Player!
Are you interested in booking a Walt Disney World Vacation? Contact Melissa, at Middle of the Magic Travel to start planning today!