The new Walt Disney animatronic won’t be forced to evict the Abe Lincoln animatronic from the Disneyland Opera House thanks to a new turntable stage that will allow the “Walt Disney: A Magical Life” and “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln” shows to play in rotation.
“Walt Disney – A Magical Life” will debut on Thursday, July 17 — the 70th anniversary of Disneyland’s grand opening in 1955.
The “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln” show closed in April and is not expected to return until fall 2026 after the yearlong run of Disneyland’s 70th anniversary celebration.
Walt Disney Imagineering redesigned the Main Street Opera House with a turntable stage to allow “Walt Disney: A Magical Life” and “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln” to play in rotation.
“Getting to eventually have that in rotation and have Lincoln and Walt share the stage was really a big win for us,” Imagineering Portfolio Executive Creative Producer Jeff Shaver-Moskowitz said.
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“Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln” will get a new scenic set as part of the upgrades to the Main Street Opera House.
“There’s a big sigh of relief from the fan community that Mr. Lincoln got some love too,” Walt Disney Archives Director Becky Cline said.
Shaver-Moskowitz and Cline spoke during a media preview of “Walt Disney — A Magical Life” on Monday, July 14 in the Main Street Opera House.
Disneyland visitors will be able to choose between the two shows or stay to watch both when “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln” eventually returns in fall 2026.
Keeping “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln” in the Main Street Opera House was important to Imagineering.
“Being able to keep Lincoln in his home was really great,” Shaver-Moskowitz said during the media preview. “It’s so important to Disneyland and the DNA of Disneyland.”
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Disneyland filed building permits in 2024 valued at $5 million with the city of Anaheim that called for an existing platform to be replaced with a new turntable on the landmark Audio-Animatronic attraction in the Main Street Opera House, according to city records.
The former platform raised and lowered the Lincoln animatronic so the theater could be used for traditional stage presentations.
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Walt Disney once planned to bring lifelike versions of Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, Thomas Edison and John Adams to Disneyland.
Shortly after the park’s opening in 1955, Disneyland announced plans to build Liberty Street and Edison Square just off of Main Street U.S.A.
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Liberty Street would have featured Jefferson, Franklin and Adams drafting the Declaration of Independence. Edison Square would have showcased the American inventor’s work with electricity.
While Liberty Street and Edison Square never happened in Anaheim, Imagineering’s initial creative work eventually morphed into the Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln exhibit that debuted at the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair and eventually returned to Disneyland.
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Imagineering eventually built Liberty Street — which became Liberty Square when the Magic Kingdom opened in 1971 complete with a Hall of Presidents.