The Wiggles On Tour - Orlando

This is kind of a non-traditional MFL Event Report, but being that the Wiggles are now part of the Disney family, and they are touring the USA, I thought I'd go ahead and call it an "official" event report!

Thanks to you MFLers that gave me a heads up on the Wiggles coming to Orlando.....me, DH and DD got to see them last Thursday night and had a wonderful time! DD dance and sang with the best of them, as did Mom and Dad;)

We got our tickets on-line via Ticketmaster about 10 minutes after they went on sale. The Wiggles DO SELL OUT in under 3 hours, so if you plan to go, buy your tickets as soon as they are for sale. We did not fuss with seat location, but requested "Best Avalable". Tickets for "Best Avavilable" were $30 per person and you got a "Hot Potato" bag waiting for you in your seat which included a poster, crayon, and coloring book. That came in handy waiting for the show to start! And YES, the seats were GREAT, BETTER than expected (2nd row, just to the right of the stage), and worth the premium cost.

Seating opens up about 45 minutes before the show. They have a limited number of souvineirs (T-shirts, feather swords, a light-up trinket, 1 or 2 video titles, and a few small stuffed animals) for sale. Prices seemed reasonable, and I didn't feel like they were pushing merchandise.

They have 2 large screens on either side of the stage which have video going on while the arena fills up. It is kind of a "the Wiggles get ready for a show" theme. It is cute, it is captioned, and plays until the show begins. Fun, entertaining, and keeps the kids busy.

When the show begins there is a video of the Wiggles riding in the Big Red Car.....then they show shots of your town...it was fun to see ORLANDO exit signs, and finally of the Big Red Car pulling into the back of a stage area! Then they drive on stage in the Big Red Car- too cute!

They sing all the hits and have LOTS of fun. The show lasts about 75 minutes and is just plain fun for everyone. Grandparents, parents and kids of ALL ages (yep, babies to teenagers) were singing along!

I was most impressed with the feeling of true joy that these men and their crew exude. They are really doing this because they LOVE it. (I understand they are making a gazillion $$ these days, but they could be cold and callous). They were there having FUN. They played to the crowd. They were all over the audience, even the nosebleed sections. They stopped to hug kids. They waved to people through the performance. This was not about a perfectly "in sync" performance, but a show of love and fun for the crowd. They sang, laughed, joked, and were genuine.

As a note, they pay special attention to the kids who bring things for the characters- Roses for Dorothy and Dog bones for Wags. They will collect ALL of these from the children. They are really respectful of the children and that they brought these "gifts". They also take time to read EVERY poster in the crowd. They really make the kids feel important and that the event is all about KIDS.

The adults had just as much fun. The Wiggles would say and do little side jokes for the adults, all appropriate and fun! I think they get a big change out of watching the adults go as crazy for them as the kids do:)

BTW- We sat fairly close to Joey of InSync fame.....he was there with his wife and daughter. He was friendly, required no special treatment and had "regular" seats on the floor. The people that did recognize him would only say HI in passing and did not swarm all over him. As an Orlando resident, maybe they are use to him, but it was refreshing to see folks allowing someone "famous" an evening out with his family without bothing him.

Buy your tickets the day they go on sale and SEE THE WIGGLES! They were great!! No matter what your ticket price or seat location, this is a "must do" event!

Jane in FL
MFL Event Reporter