The Land
The Land is a pavilion located in Epcot.
Pavilion History
The Land opened along with the rest of phase 1 of Epcot on October 1, 1982. The pavilion was originally sponsored by Kraft, and it was the largest pavilion built in Epcot. The pavilion focused on man's interaction with the land, especially focusing on agriculture. Both the interior and exterior of the pavilion were given an earthy color scheme. The Land originally featured three attractions Kitchen Kabaret, Symbiosis and Listen to the Land. Kitchen Kabaret was an Audio Anamatronic musical revue, that taught gets the value of healthy eating. Listen to the Land was a boat ride, that showed guests how humans both live off and destroy the land. A working greenhouse was located at the end of the attraction, giving guests a glimpse of the future of agriculture. The final attraction that opened in the Land pavilion was Symbiosis, a film shown in the Land's Harvest Theater. Symbiosis focused on the balance that humans needed to achieve between technological advancements and maintaining the environmental.
The Land remained essentially the same until 1993. In 1993, a effort was made by Disney to modernize all of Future World, including the Land pavilion. Kraft, unwilling to finance the refurbishment, withdrew it's sponsorship on September 26, 1993. One day later, Nestle assumed the sponsership, and the Land began undergoing a gradual makeover. The first of the Land's attractions to get updated was Listen to the Land. On November 10, 1993 the attraction reopened as Living with the Land. Living with the Land was almost identical to it's predecessor, however a storm scene was added as the attraction's opening scene. The biochemical lab which served as Listen to the Land's final scene was also relocated to the attractions greenhouse. Besides these changes the only noticeable difference between the attractions was the removal of the "Listen to the Land" song.
In January 1994, Kitchen Kabaret was closed and updated. The attraction that replaced it was titled Food Rocks, which was basically a modern version of Kitchen Kabaret. The show still focused on nutrition, but the musical numbers were updated to appeal to a younger audience. In 1995 Symbiosis, the only remaining opening day attraction finally closed. The a new film was made for the Harvest Theater, entitled the Circle of Life: An Environmental Fable. The new show featured characters from the 1994 Disney movie the Lion King, but still focused on the balance between technological advancement and the conservation of the land. The pavilion itself also received a new color scheme, and fabrics, which made the pavilion seem more vibrant and new.
In 2003, Nestle decided to renew it's sponsorship of the Land. As part of their agreement with Disney, Nestle had to finance all renovations to the pavilion. After renewing their sponsorship Nestle gave the interior of the Land a complete makeover. A new color scheme was added, adding even more bright colors to the pavilion. Wider walkways, new signage, and new carpets were all added to the Land. At this time, the food court in the pavilion was also completely redesigned.
After renewing their sponsorship, Nestle also wanted to add an E Ticket attraction to the pavilion. On January 3, 2004, Food Rocks was permanently closed. The attraction was replaced by Soarin', a motion simulator attraction that simulated the experience of hang gliding. The attraction was originally designed for Disney's California Adventure, so it was added to Disney World as part of the Happiest Celebration on Earth promotion. In order to accommodate the construction of Soarin', the entire Land pavilion was closed. The pavilion officially re-opened on May 5, 2005 to rave reviews.
In 2009, Nestle decided to pull out of it's sponsorship of the Land pavilion. The pavilion only remained sponsorless for two years however, because on July 29, 2011 Chiquita (a produce company) agreed to sponsor the pavilion.
