Le Chateau de la Belle au Bois Dormant
Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant (literally "the Castle of Sleeping Beauty") is a well-known structure that stands at the hub of the Disneyland Park at Disneyland Resort Paris.
The castle is home to a slumbering Audio-Animatronic dragon, which at 27 meters in length is the largest Animatronic figure in the park. The edifice also features a gallery of displays which illustrate the story of Sleeping Beauty in tapestries, stained glass windows and figures, a shop selling Christmas ornaments year-round and a second shop specialising in hand-blown glass figures.
History
"Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland was inspired by the Neuschwanstein Castle in Southern Germany. This European influence was fine for building a castle in Anaheim, but the fact that castles exist just down the road from Disneyland Paris challenged us to think twice about our design". —Tony Baxter, executive designer Walt Disney Imagineering
Since Europe is home to the very castles that inspired the structures at Disney's first three parks, Imagineering reevaluated the edifice to stand at the hub of its impending European park. Many different concepts were devised and considered, ranging from slightly modified versions of Disney's existing castles to revolutionary, radical new structures to stand instead in its place. The team eventually settled on Imagineer Tom Morris' fantastic and whimsical approach to the well-known castle concept. Finished in 1992, Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant stands 45 meters and is designed to look and feel as distant from reality as an illustration in a storybook. Inspirations cited by Imagineering include illustrations from Book of Hours Les Très Riches Heures and the Mont Saint Michel monastery in Normandy.
References
- Imagineers (1998). Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind the Dreams Look At Making the Magic Real. Disney Editions. ISBN 0786883723.
- Alain Littaye, Didier Ghez, Yann Arthus-Bertrand (2002). Disneyland Paris, From Sketch to Reality. Nouveau Millénaire. ISBN 2951788304.
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