Crane Arrives for Mirabel Meet and Greet Construction at Magic Kingdom

A crane has arrived at Fairytale Garden in Magic Kingdom to retheme the area for a Mirabel meet and greet. Merida from “Brave” has been meeting in Fairytale Garden, next to Cinderella Castle, for over a decade. She relocated to Liberty Square on July 9.

Fairytale Garden Construction

The small crane is just barely visible in the courtyard, beyond fencing and scrims.

We can still see “Brave” tapestries on the stone walls. The courtyard will be decorated to look like the Madrigal home, Casita, from “Encanto.”

Green scrims were already erected around the meet and greet location.

Now a green wall is in front of the gate.

The green shade has been removed from above the meet and greet stage. The shade was striped in two different shades of green.

The wires that held it up are still in place.

Before Fairytale Garden held the Merida meet and greet, it was home to Rapunzel and Flynn Rider.

The Mirabel meet and greet is set to open “this fall.”

Mirabel Meet and Greet

After the March announcement that Mirabel and Moana would be hosting new meet and greets at Walt Disney World, Disney filed a permit in June to re-theme the Fairytale Garden in Magic Kingdom. The permit contracts the Adena Corporation, a construction contractor that has previously partnered with amusement parks like SeaWorld and Six Flags. Adena has also worked on commercial and retail projects, schools, healthcare facilities, and housing facilities.

Mirabel from “Encanto” film has previously only appeared for meet and greets at Walt Disney World during runDisney races. She has been appearing regularly in the Adventure Cavalcade at Magic Kingdom since June 2022.

Mirabel has appeared for meet and greets at the Disneyland Resort multiple times. She debuted in Paradise Gardens Park at Disney California Adventure for Viva Navidad festivities in 2021.

She later appeared at Disneyland Park, in front of a mural of her family.

Mirabel returned to Paradise Gardens Park in 2022, where her backdrop consists of a painted wall and her family’s magic candle.

We can expect Fairytale Gardens to have similar theming to Mirabel’s meet and greets at Disneyland Resort. Disney has not yet announced a specific opening date for the Mirabel meet and greet.

Mirabel’s mysterious uncle Bruno also made his Disney Parks debut at Disney California Adventure during Oogie Boogie Bash in 2022. Walt Disney World has recently posted a casting call for Bruno look-alikes, though we don’t yet know if this is for a meet and greet, cavalcade appearance, Halloween appearance, or something else.

Encanto

“Encanto” tells the tale of the Madrigals, an extraordinary family who live in a charmed Casita, surrounded by the mystical land of Encanto. Each child has been blessed with a magic gift unique to them — each child except Mirabel, it seems. When the family’s home is threatened, though, Mirabel may become their only hope.

The voice cast includes Stephanie Beatriz as Mirabel; María Cecilia Botero as Mirabel’s grandmother Alma aka Abuela; John Leguizamo as Bruno; Angie Cepeda and Wilmer Valderrama as Mirabel’s parents, Julieta and Agustín; and Diane Guererro and Jessica Darrow as Mirabel’s sisters, Isabela and Luisa. Also lending their voices are Carolina Gaitán and Mauro Castillo as Mirabel’s aunt and uncle, Pepa and Félix; and Adassa, Rhenzy Feliz and Ravi Cabot-Conyers as Mirabel’s cousins Dolores, Camilo and Antonio, respectively.

This film features all-new songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Hamilton,” “Moana”). It was directed by Byron Howard (“Zootopia,” “Tangled”) and Jared Bush (co-director of “Zootopia”), co-directed by Charise Castro Smith (writer for “The Death of Eva Sofia Valdez”), and produced by Clark Spencer and Yvett Merino. Bush and Castro Smith served as screenwriters.