/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/C6WYYZWETUI6TKTRIBWI6S7HAY.jpg "Disney World IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth, which debuted Oct. 1, 1999, will close in late summer 2019, Disney said. A new nighttime show will replace it.")
After nearly 20 years, the popular Epcot fireworks show, IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth, will go dark next summer.
The Disney Parks Blog announced this week that the award-winning complex show that incorporates fire, water and video effects will be departing in late summer 2019.
There's still plenty of time to say goodbye to the show that debuted at Epcot on Oct. 1, 1999, to glowing reviews. It features elaborate pyrotechnics and a 28-foot-tall globe floating atop a barge that makes its way to the center of the World Showcase Lagoon as it projects video images from around the world.
The change comes as Epcot reinvents itself.
A Ratatouille-themed ride is coming to the park's France pavilion and a roller coaster based on Guardians of the Galaxy is set to open by 2021. And a new table-service restaurant is planned to open adjacent to Mission: Space.
In the announcement, Disney also said a new nighttime show would "immediately follow" the close of Illuminations late next summer. Earlier this year Reedy Creek Improvement District, which oversees Walt Disney World, approved a $2 million budget to allow for upgrades to Epcot's World Showcase Lagoon.
Contact Sharon Kennedy Wynne at swynne@tampabay.com. Follow @SharonKWn.
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