The Electrical Water Pageant is the longest-running night-time entertainment event at Walt Disney World. The parade of floats on the Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake was a concept of Disney Creative Director, Bob Jani. He saw the darkness of the extensive waters at Walt Disney World and created an evening parade of themed floats with the soft warming glow of electric lights and accompanying music. The Pageant premiered on “Dedication Day” at Walt Disney World on October 25, 1971.

Jani’s original creation of 14 illuminated floats each 25 feet tall can be seen nightly (weather permitting). They each have a personal generator and an 800-watt speaker system. The “Baroque Hoedown” music was specifically composed for the Electrical Water Pageant and used from 1971 until 1977. “Baroque Hoedown” was dropped in 1977 and new musical selections were introduced.

Connections To Parades

The Electrical Water Pageant inspired the Main Street Electrical Parade that opened in Disneyland in 1972. The 14 floats in today’s Electrical Water Pageant are in the same formation as they were in 1977. In 1996, a new musical score was introduced for both the opening and closing of the Pageant. The creatures were updated with their lights giving them motion on the float.

Here is the lineup and music:

  • Sea Serpent (four floats) Boo Bop Bopbop Bop
  • Whale (one float) Whale of a Tale
  • Turtle (one float)
  • Octopus (one float) Poor Unfortunate Souls
  • Three Jumping Dolphins (three floats)
  • Brachiosaurus (one float) Walk the Dinosaur
  • Crocodile (one float) Never Smile at a Crocodile
  • Four Seahorses (one float) Fanfare & Under the Sea
  • Neptune (one float) Fanfare & Under the Sea
  • All floats switch to the American Flag & Stars with music “You’re a Grand Old Flag”, “Yankee Doodle”, and ”America the Beautiful”.
The Electrical Water Pageant has been a staple of many Disney World vacations since opening day!
The Electrical Water Pageant has been a staple of many Disney World vacations since opening day!

The Pageant can be seen from the “Monorail Loop Resorts” and the Magic Kingdom at the following times and order:

The Future Of The Electrical Water Pageant

As with most things at Disney World, there are always rumors, but the future of the Electrical Water Pageant seems to be secure. Two new ideas are circulating involving the future of the Electrical Water Pageant.

First, Disney World is building a walkway from Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa to Magic Kingdom. The new pathway crosses the waterway used by the water pageant to enter and leave Seven Seas Lagoon. This has required some creativity resulting in a swinging bridge that will open like a gate for the floats to pass by.  This means that neither the floats nor the parade will be impacted at all by this new structure. However, guests staying at either Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort or Disney’s Polynesian Resort might experience walkway closures before, during, and after the Electrical Water Pageant makes its loop.

Also, rumor has it that Walt Disney Imagineering has begun work on a new version of the Electrical Water Pageant including updated floats to debut in the 2021 year-long 50th-anniversary celebration of Walt Disney World.

Keep the Electrical Water Pageant on your must-see list for a relaxing way to end the day, and look for a new one in 2022.

Have you seen the Electrical Water Pageant?  Are you a fan?