Wonders of China — Former Show · History & Timeline

Former Show · the memorial record

⚰ Permanently closed · Mar 2003operated 21 years · 1982–2003

Also known as Wonders of China: Land of Beauty, Land of Time.

Replaced by Reflections of China →

This show is gone, but its history stays documented — the full lifetime log is below.

Show history

the lifetime record

✎ Add to the record

2003

◆ Latest milestone

ChangedMay 2003#

Reflections of China, a shorter Circle-Vision 360 degree film with newly shot footage that added Hong Kong, Macau and a modernized Shanghai, took over the same China pavilion theater in May 2003.

Filed as a reskin rather than a rename: the successor was separately directed by Jeff Blyth and runs 13 minutes against the original 19, and D23 and Wikipedia list the two films as distinct attractions, one past and one current. The counter-signal is on the record too - Yesterland characterizes it as the same movie "updated ... still relying on the Li Bai concept." Day precision is not corroborated: Wikipedia's Reflections of China article gives May 22, 2003, its Wonders of China article gives May 23, 2003, and D23 gives only May 2003.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes
RefurbishmentMar 2003#

Wonders of China gave its final Epcot showings in March 2003, after more than twenty years in the China pavilion theater.

Day precision is not corroborated: Wikipedia gives March 25, 2003 in both the infobox and the body, while D23's Disney A to Z states it "ended its run at Epcot on March 26, 2003, to be replaced by Reflections of China." Wikipedia's List of Epcot attractions gives year precision only and does not break the tie, so the date is held at the corroborated month.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes
1984

Update1984#

From 1984 to 1996 the same film also played at Disneyland, alternating with American Journeys in the Circle-Vision theater in Tomorrowland, while the Epcot showing continued unchanged.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes
1982

NewOct 1, 1982#

Wonders of China opened with EPCOT Center on October 1, 1982 as the China pavilion's Circle-Vision 360 degree film, a 19-minute travelogue narrated by Keye Luke in the guise of the ancient poet Li Bai.

D23 and Wikipedia both give October 1, 1982; Wikipedia supplies the 19-minute runtime and Keye Luke's narration as Li Bai. Yesterland's O Canada! page independently states: "At Epcot Center's China Pavilion, an actor playing Li Bai, an ancient Chinese poet, narrated Wonders of China (1982-2003)." The film also carried the fuller on-screen title Wonders of China: Land of Beauty, Land of Time, kept here as an alias because neither corroborating source prints the subtitle.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes

Questions & answers

When did Wonders of China open?

Per the documented record, Wonders of China at EPCOT opened on Oct 1, 1982.

When did Wonders of China last close for refurbishment?

The most recent closure/refurbishment documented for Wonders of China is dated Mar 2003: Wonders of China gave its final Epcot showings in March 2003, after more than twenty years in the China pavilion theater.

What changed recently on Wonders of China?

The latest documented change (documented May 2003): Reflections of China, a shorter Circle-Vision 360 degree film with newly shot footage that added Hong Kong, Macau and a modernized Shanghai, took over the same China pavilion theater in May 2003.

How many changes are on record for Wonders of China?

4 documented changes, dating back to 1982 — the fan-kept show changelog nobody else keeps.

Cite this page

Citing the record on a wiki or forum? Copy the reference below.