DreamWorks characters will have a new meet-and-meet area at Universal Studios Florida later this spring.
Called DreamWorks Destination, this “all-new, interactive character experience,” as Universal is promising, will be “an incredibly-themed location” featuring characters from “Kung Fu Panda,” “Madagascar,” “Trolls,” and other DreamWorks animated films.
“Catchy tunes from various DreamWorks movies will fill the air as guests enter a bright, colorful party atmosphere – all set against a nighttime sky inspired by the animation studio’s iconic opening sequence from its films,” Universal said in its press release. “As bright lights illuminate the scene, guests will connect with their favorite DreamWorks characters, grab some fun photos and even join them for an epic dance party that will get every member of the family to move it, move it.”
The location of this new character greeting experience will be the former theater for “A Day in the Park with Barney.” The show closed after 25 years at Universal last year, though the closure was only confirmed in 2021.
Some structures appeared overnight in the former Barney theater’s courtyard recently. Signage was added Tuesday morning.
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>The signage has gone up for the DreamWorks Destination experience. <a href=”https://t.co/Y6MNeIQdYe”>https://t.co/Y6MNeIQdYe</a> <a href=”https://t.co/DIiY4vRqhV”>pic.twitter.com/DIiY4vRqhV</a></p>— Inside Universal (@insideuniversal) <a href=”https://twitter.com/insideuniversal/status/1394641362499293187?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>May 18, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>
The new character greeting location makes use of one of the many unused theater spaces around the Universal Orlando Resort. Four still remain — the old Blue Man Group space, the Fear Factor theater, the Sindbad theater, and the long vacant Toon Lagoon theater.
It also brings some life to Woody Woodpecker KidZone. While portions of Fievel’s Playland are now open again, the space has been a dead zone for much of the COVID-19 pandemic, save for Woody Woodpecker’s Nuthouse Coaster.