BAY LAKE, Fla. — Festival of the Arts has returned to EPCOT, and this year the event features more Figment and nods to the park’s past.
What You Need To Know
- EPCOT International Festival of the Arts has returned
- This year's event features more Figment and nostagic nods to EPCOT's past
- The new Figment's Inspiration Station features themed food and artifacts from the original Journey into Imagination
- RELATED: Disney unveils EPCOT Festival of the Arts menus
Figment’s presence is felt throughout the festival in artwork, a scavenger hunt and merchandise. But this time around, the fan-favorite purple dragon has his very own food studio.
Figment’s Inspiration Station, a new addition to the festival lineup, is located at the Odyssey pavilion. Visitors looking to get their Figment fix can find themed food, artwork and nostalgic touches.
The menu includes items such as a rainbow cake topped with freeze-dried Skittles or the Grape Smoothie, which also comes with freeze-dried candy. Fruit Pizza — watermelon with cantaloupe, berries and berry balsamic — is a vegan option.
The studio also includes callbacks to the original Journey into Imagination attraction. An original Figment animatronic is perched above the entryway, murals from the attraction line the walls and two pin tables from the original ImageWorks are on display.
“Continuing down the nostalgia road, we programmed the music in the room all from the 1982 pavilion,” said Rick DeCicco, proprietor of festivals. “We’ve got 'One Little Spark,' of course, 'Making Memories' is one of the songs from the pre-show and 'Magic Journeys' from the original 3D film that played in the pavilion.”
Rainbow lights are also installed around the room to represent Figment painting the room with all the colors. That design continues on the outside of the Odyssey building.
“This room is a labor of love,” DeCicco said. “I look at it as almost a time machine. We’re stepping back into an EPCOT era that is beloved by all.”
The popular Figment popcorn bucket also has returned. After visitors waited in line for several hours last year just to buy one, Disney decided to make the coveted item available through mobile order this year.
The popcorn bucket can be ordered in the My Disney Experience app and then picked up at Figment’s Inspiration Station at the Odyssey pavilion. It comes with rainbow popcorn and costs $25.
At night, visitors get another dose of Figment. A light show inspired by the purple dragon will join the rotation on Spaceship Earth. It will be a tribute with “special music.”
Festival of the Arts runs through Feb. 20 and features more than a dozen food studios serving up a variety of decorative culinary creations, including Moderne with its avant-garde-inspired menu.
The festival, which also focuses on the visual arts, includes artwork on display. Visitors can also see chalk art or learn how to draw a Disney character.
Visitors can also enjoy live music at the America Gardens Theatre during the Disney on Broadway Concert Series. Broadway stars such as Kara Lindsay, Kevin Massey and Michael James Scott will perform songs from Disney musicals.