Walt Disney News

ABC Family's '25 Days of Christmas,' cable's biggest programming event of the year, returns with 25 continuous days of holiday-themed entertainment for the whole family. From December 1 - 25, viewers can ring in the holidays with original movies, holiday specials and returning favorites.

Hollywood's legendary El Capitan Theatre is taking fun to the next level with Disney's "Wreck-It Ralph" in wreck-tacular 3D from Nov. 2-Dec. 18, 2012, it was announced today by Lylle Breier, senior vice president of worldwide special events for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

L.A. Dance Project, which gave its inaugural performances at Disney Hall in Los Angeles this past September, will make its Peak Performance debut, tonight, October 25-28, with a program of classic works by two of the greatest dance innovators of their generations, William Forsythe ("Quintett") and Merce Cunningham ("Winterbranch"), and the local premiere of "Moving Parts" by L.A. Dance Project's Founding Director Benjamin Millepied.

Marin Alsop returns to the Walt Disney Concert Hall stage to lead the Los Angeles Philharmonic in three performances, Friday and Saturday, November 2 and 3, at 8 pm, as well as Sunday, November 4, at 2 pm. All three evenings include Golijov's Azul, featuring rising young cellist Joshua Roman, as well as hyper-accordionist Michael Ward-Bergeman, and percussionists Jamey Haddad and Keita Ogawa. The three evenings close with Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6, "Pathetique," what many consider to be the composer's most profound symphony. The Saturday and Sunday programs open with Barber's Essay No. 2.

Producer Charlie Lyons (The Water Horse, The Guardian, Ladder 49), director Jay Russell (The Water Horse, Ladder 49, My Dog Skip) and actor Tim Guinee (NBC's "Revolution", Showtime's "Homeland", "Iron Man I & II") worked for two years to acquire the theatrical stage rights to the most famous and beloved of all noir short stories, "Rear Window" (aka "It Had to be Murder"). This unique producing consortium announced today their plans to mount a Broadway production of the iconic and haunting tale of the wheelchair bound witness to a possible murder in his neighboring New York City apartment. Although the Broadway rights in this story have been repeatedly sought over the years from the Sheldon Abend Revocable Trust and its predecessors, this is the first option ever granted.

Former LA Phil Music Director Zubin Mehta returns to Walt Disney Concert Hall with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Tuesday, October 30, at 8 pm. Joining them is thrilling pianist Yuja Wang performing Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1. Also on the program of Romantic Symphonies is a rare performance of Schubert's Third Symphony as well as Brahms' First Symphony. The concert is the first of the LA Phil's Visiting Orchestras series of the 2012/13 season.

Just in time for Halloween, the first national tour of the new musical The Addams Family, will make its Seattle premiere tonight, October 24-November 11, 2012 at The 5th Avenue Theatre. Based on the bizarre and beloved family of characters created by legendary cartoonist Charles Addams, this smash Broadway hit brings the darkly delirious world of Gomez, Morticia, Uncle Fester, Grandma, Wednesday, Pugsley and, of course, Lurch to spooky and spectacular life.

Barbara Cook and the Los Angeles Philharmonic launch the 2012/13 Songbook Series at Walt Disney Concert Hall on Wednesday, November 14 at 8:00 PM to celebrate the legendary Broadway lyric soprano's 85th birthday. For their first performance together at Walt Disney Concert Hall, Cook and the Los Angeles Philharmonic will explore the American songbook and timeless classics. The evening's performance also marks the first time the LA Phil performs a concert in the Songbook Series.

Broadway In Detroit and producers Thomas Schumacher of Disney Theatrical Productions and Cameron Mackintosh present MARY POPPINS at the Fisher Theatre tonight, October 23-28. For tickets, go online at www.ticketmaster.com or www.broadwayindetroit.com.

Philip Glass, one of America's most esteemed composers, will be the subject of a remix project due today, October 23 on Orange Mountain Music. The idea for the record came together during a conversation between Philip and his friend and new collaborator Beck. The pair recruited producer Hector Castillo (David Bowie, Bjork, Lou Reed) to help assemble a collection of remixes of Glass' works by a list of critically acclaimed artists including Beck himself, Tyondai Braxton, Amon Tobin, Cornelius, Johann Johannsson, Nosaj Thing, Memory Tapes, Silver Alert and many others.

Los Angeles Philharmonic Association President Deborah Borda has announced the appointment of Gail Samuel to the position of Chief Operating Officer. In this post, Samuel will oversee operations at the Hollywood Bowl, management of the Philharmonic orchestra, programming of jazz, world music, orchestral pops and pop/rock presentations by the Association at both the Hollywood Bowl and Walt Disney Concert Hall, concert production, public relations and community affairs. Samuel will be a key liaison to the County of Los Angeles.

Season four of Disney Junior's hit Emmy-nominated animated series MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE kicks off with the music-filled special 'Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey and Donald Have A Farm,' MONDAY, NOVEMBER 5 on Disney Channel (9:30-10:00 a.m., ET/PT) and Disney Junior (7:00-7:30 p.m., ET/PT).

The 16th Annual Hollywood Film Awards, presented by the Los Angeles Times, previously announced that Academy Award winning actress Marion Cotillard will receive the 'Hollywood Actress Award' for her distinguished performance in Jacques Audiard's 'Rust and Bone,' a Sony Pictures Classics release, at the Hollywood Film Awards Gala ceremony tonight, October 22.

Today, Nancy Rhodes, Artistic Director announced that the Honorary Chairs, Sheldon Harnick and Maury Yeston join Encompass New Opera Theatre in celebrating Alan Menken's life in the American theatre, film and recording world tonight, October 21, 2012 at the National Arts Club, 15 Gramercy Park South, New York City.

Season four of Disney Junior's hit Emmy-nominated animated series MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE kicks off with the music-filled special MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE: MICKEY AND DONALD HAVE A FARM, Monday, November 5 on Disney Channel (9:30-10:00 a.m., ET/PT) and Disney Junior (7:00-7:30 p.m., ET/PT). New episodes, including a series of specials built around Minnie Mouse, will continue to roll out through 2013 and beyond.

Sony Music is pleased to announce the release of the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack of LINCOLN, a magnificent new score written by John Williams, the doyen of Hollywood composers, for a major new film by Steven Spielberg.

My distant cousin Walter Elias 'Walt' Disney had a knack for turning everything into perfection, or at least practically perfect in every way. He took the mean, cranky nanny from P.L. Travers' book "Mary Poppins" and turned her into a saint. He excised two of the four Banks children, allowing the cutest ones to remain in the story. Travers' nanny couldn't dance on rooftops, didn't have adventures with Bert, didn't win at the horse races and couldn't sing. Travers was Australian; they take pride in being able to endure aggressive crocodiles, harsh deserts and appalling alloparenting. For those of us in the northern hemisphere who prefer our protagonists to be a bit on the spoonful of sugar side, Disney's Mary Poppins is just the ticket.