The Walt Disney World Resort is launching their ‘Awaken Summer’ campaign with all of the new attractions and entertainment coming to the parks and resorts this summer, and the new offerings are heating up right along with the Central Florida temperatures! We at BestofOrlando.com were given the opportunity to get a sneak peek at some of the new happenings firsthand, as Disney is hosting a special two-day Awaken Summer Preview Event for media. Keep reading below for details from day one, and stay tuned for more details and announcements from day two as we look inside all that’s to come at the Walt Disney World Resort in the Summer of 2016. 
The event kicked off at Disney Springs, where media were treated to a 15-minute performance from Cirque du Soleil La Nouba’s two new acts, a high-energy trio of B-Boys and a high-wire Russian duo aerial bamboo act.  The B-Boys, Josh Ortiz (Incredible Josh), Jean Carlos Lloret (Bebo) and Dmytro Li (Flying Buddha), were each famous and highly-decorated solo dancing artists before combining their talents for Cirque du Soleil, where they add an urban flair to the show with their breakdancing and hip-hop choreography as the opening act. Alexander and Ekaterina Abramov follow by performing a variety of tricks while suspended from the ceiling using nothing but a steel pole. 
The event then included a tour of Disney Springs’ new Town Center, the fourth and largest expansion of the revamped Downtown Disney area, which is set to open May 15. This area, themed around a turn-of-the-century Florida settlement surrounded by a natural spring (hence the name Disney Springs), will be the heart of this shopping, dining and entertainment district and will include at least 30 new tenants. 
After dinner at Paradiso 37, media were transported to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, where it was all about Star Wars. Media were treated to a dessert party on the stage of the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! and had the opportunity to experience the new Star Wars Launch Bay before ending the night with a ‘bang’ with a VIP viewing of the Symphony in the Stars fireworks show. While guests at the park have already been enjoying this display for months, a new fireworks show will be hitting the Studios this summer, and it promises to be the most elaborate display in the history of this theme park. 
Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular, will be larger than life – with a run time of 15 minutes, this nightly show will feature projections from the Star Wars movies onto the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, while more explosive fireworks, special effects and rooftop pyrotechnics will make guests feel even closer to this out-of-this-world experience. Stayed tuned to BestofOrlando.com for even more activities and announcements, including updates from Epcot and Disney’s Animal Kingdom, as we will be previewing even more to come at the Walt Disney World Resort this summer on day two of the Awaken Summer event! Orlando, FL – 4/19/16 By: Melanie Curtsinger | 
