Rivers of Light to open Feb. 17, 2017 at Animal Kingdom in Disney World

Rivers of Light is now scheduled to open Feb. 17, 2017 at Animal Kingdom in Disney World.

The 15-minute nighttime show has had some difficulties getting off the ground. It was originally supposed to open on Earth Day, April 22, 2016. However, technical difficulties kept it on the shelf for almost a year. There have been numerous tests and previews going on during the past months.

Disney Publicity photo of Rivers of Light

The show takes place in the Asia section of the park, not far from Expedition Everest. Disney has built a 5,000-seat amphitheater along the Discovery River.

According to a Disney’s description of the show: Rivers of Light combines live performance, floating set pieces, a musical score, fountains and more “in a celebration of animals and nature. will depict an ancient lantern festival guided by two storytellers who call forth four animal Spirit Guides: an Asian Tiger, Tropical Turtle, African Elephant and Great Horned Owl. These Spirit Guides return at different points during the show to lead the audience through their journey through the Rivers of Light.”

Broadway production designer Michael Curry created the floats used on the river. The lanterns stand 15 feet tall and are 30 feet long, illuminated from within by LED technology. The score was created by songwriter and composer Don L. Harper and recorded at the Abbey Road Studio in London. The signature song “We Are One” was written by Mark Mancina, who created the score and was a key collaborator on the music for Disney’s hit animated feature film “Moana.”

The 11 show floats are independent of each other and programmed to follow a choreographed “dance” across the lagoon. More than 50,000 programmable, color-changing LED lights are found in the four Animal Spirit Guide floats alone. Each Lotus float produces its own water screen.

“At the show’s finale, we hope guests will feel like they have been on a tremendous ceremonial and visual journey,” Michael Jung, Walt Disney Imagineering creative director said in a news release.

It is also now possible to making dining or FastPass+ reservations for new show, on MyDisneyExperience.com.