Hero’s Welcome for ‘Hunchback’

Step aside, Bossy. There’s a new girl on the mooo-ve.

With a bump and a grind and the backing of what had to be a zillion Disney artists, Esmeralda, the sultry heroine of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” has danced her way into Disneyland, onto the site of what used to be the Big Thunder Ranch. From the look of things, she’s in for a long run.

“The Hunchback,” for those who managed to miss the promotional blitzkrieg, is Disney’s 34th animated feature. Based loosely on Victor Hugo’s classic novel, it is the musical tale of Quasimodo, the deformed bell ringer of Paris’ grand cathedral, and his transformation from outcast to hero thanks in part to the friendship of the beautiful Esmeralda.

The film opened June 21--the same day that Disneyland launched its live stage show “The Hunchback of Notre Dame Festival of Fools.” The 25-minute medieval shindig stars the comely Esmeralda and her big-hearted pal Quasimodo (Quasi to his friends, which, of course, is just about everybody) and is being offered five times daily in a specially designed amphitheater.

“Hunchback” film ads invite audiences to “join the party”; this festival is the real-life fulfillment of that. Except for Judge Frollo’s menacing sneers and a couple of tense moments when Quasi gets dissed or the lovely Ez nearly gets toasted, “Festival” is 100% fun and frivolity. If Quasi were to toss a 15th century lampshade onto his head, you wouldn’t be surprised.

The darker elements that help make the film engrossing for older viewers (and terrifying for the few preschoolers who were carried out crying when we saw it) have been jettisoned from this stage show. The action, as the title indicates, revolves around the festival of fools, a peasant festival in which everything is topsy-turvy and the ugliest face in Paris can be crowned King. Three guesses whose face that is.

The story strings together four of the film’s eight Alan Menken/Stephen Schwartz tunes: “Bells of Notre Dame,” the ebullient “Topsy Turvy,” “Out There” (Quasi’s lament for life beyond the cathedral walls) and “Esmeralda Dance.” (There also is a passing phrase from Frollo’s tortuous “Hellfire,” but it’s brief.)

Emceed by gypsy storyteller Clopin and presented as a show within a show, commedia dell arte style, “Festival” features a large cast of singing and dancing villagers, gypsies and soldiers along with the central characters: hunk-a-rama/captain of the guard Phoebus as well as Esmeralda, dastardly Frollo and gentle Quasi. Sadly, kid favorites Djali (Esmeralda’s goat) and Quasi’s three personable gargoyle pals have been written out, reportedly for logistics reasons.

Here’s the story: Lonely Quasi decides to disguise himself and join in the merrymaking at the Festival of Fools. The townsfolk, thinking his gruesome mug is a mask, promptly crown him King of Fools but soon jeer him for his ugliness. Enter Esmeralda, who frees him and stirs the ire (and maybe the libido, but we definitely don’t get into that here) of Frollo, who orders the burning of Paris to flush out Esmeralda and her fellow “gypsy vermin.”

Now its Quasi’s turn to wear the hero’s cape. In a grand bit of Errol Flynn rope work, he swings to Esmeralda’s rescue, snatching her from the flames and freeing Paris from Frollo’s burning grasp in the bargain. Phoebus may get the girl, but Quasi gets the love of his countrymen. Huzzahs all around.

The show has been described as “opera meets halftime,” said producer Sayre Wiseman, who joined the project about a year ago (the show was 18 months in the making and involved virtually every department in the park, from construction to concessions, Wiseman said).

“Basically, it’s a mixture of a parade and stage shows, two things that Disneyland already does well,” she continued. “There are tumblers and stilt walkers and dancers and singers, and all of it is going on all around you.”

Indeed, “Festival’s” staging can give one the feeling of being in the middle of a medieval fair. The amphitheater is laid out like a huge wheel: At its hub is a 500-square-foot central stage; the outer ring is a multistory backdrop with small stages and towers linked by 240 feet of walkways and bridges.

A massive steel bell hangs high in the largest tower, giving the set a focal point and Quasi a perch for his big solo.

Seating forms the spokes of the wheel, with visitors sitting on low bleachers or on the ground while the entertainers perform in front, to the side and behind them. Grab a seat close to one of the main aisles and you may be banging a be-ribboned tambourine yourself. The bleachers also afford the best views, especially for little kids who may not be able to see much from the ground.

Actually, because the story literally unfolds on all sides, it would be easy for anyone of any size to miss a point here or there. To the rescue: “vexsilators,” singers who draw attention to the areas where critical action is taking place by waving large red banners.

“I think of them as medieval operations guys,” Wiseman explained with a laugh. “Our show director, Michael Barnard, did a lot of research into the ‘Hunchback’ period, and found that in the late 1400s, the church would put on morality plays in which the audience was interspersed with the action.

“Obviously, they had no lights or sound to focus your attention on the action, so they used these vexsilators to run around and wave the flag to show you where to look.”

Ever practical, the Disney folks threw in extra vexsilators to help out with pre-show crowd control, guiding guests (the approved Disney term for “tourists”) to available seating.

This show obviously cost a chunk of cash, what with its 2,000-capacity custom amphitheater; Shigeru Yaji’s brilliantly patterned costumes; huge, cartoonish props; 100-plus performers (two alternating casts of 50); and its own--surprise--retail outlets.

But despite that (and the coincidental perk of the Fantasy in the Sky fireworks exploding overhead just after the last show each day), “Festival” still retains at least some of the rustic feeling of a 15th century pageant. Effects mostly depend on the actors’ dancing and acrobatic skills, especially Quasi’s rope-swinging and Esmeralda’s dancing.

One final warning, though: All audience seating is in the sun; there is no shade. Go on a hot day and you’ll fry. Try to opt for an evening performance. Or at least be sure to bring hats, sunscreen and something to sit on--those bleachers retain the heat.

* “The Hunchback of Notre Dame Festival of Fools” continues at Disneyland, 1313 S. Harbor Blvd., Anaheim. Showtimes: 3, 4:15, 6:30, 7:45 and 9 p.m. daily. The show is running indefinitely, but performance times may change after Sept. 8. The Festival is included with park admission of $26 to $34. Running time: 25 minutes. (714) 781-4565.