Walt Disney grew up in Marceline, Mo., and honed his animation skills in Kansas City. Next spring, Disney 100: The Exhibition at Union Station will celebrate his life and work.
“Our leadership team has worked tirelessly over the last three years to ensure we were able to bring Walt and his story back to Kansas City, where his animation career began,” said George Guastello, president and CEO of Union Station. “We have a long-time partnership with Semmel Exhibitions, and when we heard the Walt Disney Company was creating an exhibition celebrating its 100th anniversary, we knew we had to bring it here to Kansas City, where the roots of Walt Disney run deep.”
Walt created his first commercial film and met Kansas City-born artist and Disney legend Ub Iwerks during his time in Kansas City. Together, their innovative spirits, boundary-breaking technology and unparalleled storytelling would help set the creative standards for the company that would be founded by Walt and his brother, Roy O. Disney, in 1923.
In creating this exhibition, the Walt Disney Archives opened its vault of treasures to showcase hundreds of objects, including more than 250 artifacts and works of art, costumes and props, and incredible memorabilia. Kansas City is one of the first three cities to host the North American tour, along with Philadelphia and Chicago.
Within Disney100: The Exhibition, guests will encounter some of their favorite Disney stories as they journey through 10 imaginatively themed galleries showcasing “Crown Jewels” from some beloved films such as “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (1937), the live-action “Cinderella” (2015), “Encanto” (2021) and many more. The exhibition features more than 14 interactive installations and hundreds of items, including from some of the most recent members of the Disney family — Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel.
“Guests will step into Disney100: The Exhibition and experience 100 years of Disney history like never before,” said Becky Cline, director of the Walt Disney Archives. We are excited to bring the tour to Kansas City, a place that was instrumental in Walt’s life. It was here where he forged his storytelling skills and his creative passion. Everything Walt did began with storytelling. It is the essence of Disney magic.”
This exhibition is the largest and most immersive projects the Walt Disney Archives has ever produced. Visitors will be taken on a visual journey where they can explore seldom-viewed works of art, including visual development art for “Sleeping Beauty” (1959), created by artist and Disney Legend Marc Davis. Also on display will be a special piece of production art from “Mary Poppins” (1964), which also can be seen in the opening titles of “Mary Poppins Returns” (2018), created by artist and Disney Legend Peter Ellenshaw
Tickets to Disney100: The Exhibition are now available, and station officials strongly encourage the public to reserve their adventure time ahead of the opening. For more information, visit www.unionstation.org.
–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice
