Disney Parks Blog saw our love for Lari the Armadillo on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure and has shared more facts about the original character.
Who is Lari the Armadillo?
Guests riding Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Magic Kingdom will first see Lari, a nine-banded armadillo, in the farm at the start of the attraction. He’s not far from Louis, who is searching the farm for musicians.
The second time guests see Lari is just before Tiana’s party, near the end of the attraction. He’s holding a Second Line umbrella constructed of found materials, both natural and human-made.
Lari is only one of the 19 new critter characters on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure but he’s not a musician like the rest. Disney Parks Blog describes him as a “fixer and a finder,” as well as “a jack-of-all-trades and fabulous raconteur.”
He can usually find anything before you know you need it. Perhaps he’s even a concert organizer? Whatever the case, you can count on his constant gaze on passersby.
Lari is usually found on the outskirts of New Orleans. He’s a “junk-man” and builds things with his treasures. He may have helped his fellow critters find or construct their instruments simply by sharing what he’s found. They never know what Lari’s next move is, and he tells everyone a different story of how he lost his eye (and he also switches his eye patch)!
Lari’s Origin Story
Imagineers based the characters of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure on real animals found in Louisiana. They validated the existence of the animals on research trips to New Orleans. On the last day of one trip, Imagineers were taking reference photos of a wooded area when they heard rustling in the bushes and an armadillo stepped out.
“Not only were we happy to have the literal validation that armadillos are part of the bayou,” wrote Ted Robledo, Portfolio Executive Creative Director, Walt Disney Imagineering, “but we were also just as excited to have one more critter to bring into our brand-new story.”
Check out more of our Lari love in our written Tiana’s Bayou Adventure review or video below. The attraction officially opens at Magic Kingdom on June 28.
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