Everything You Need to Know for Rogers: The Musical – Virtual Queue Details, Dates & More!
Disney has shared new details about Rogers: The Musical at the Hyperion Theater in California Adventure. This limited time Marvel production will use a virtual queue, and have a variety of viewing options, food & drinks, and more throughout Summer 2023 at Disneyland Resort.
Rogers: The Musical is a classic tale of heroes, time travel and romance features a talented cast of singers and dancers telling the story of Steve Rogers – Captain America, joined by Peggy Carter, Nick Fury, and other members of the Avengers. Rogers: The Musical originated as a meta self-parody featured in the Disney+ series Hawkeye. It gained a bit of a cult following, and was presented at last year’s D23 Expo as a result, where it was met with rave reviews from fans.
This Marvel musical is based on the life of Steve Rogers, the first Captain America. The backstory in the Disney+ series is that “Rogers: The Musical” was produced at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in New York City in 2024. The Avengers were invited to see the premiere of the musical, but Clint Barton is the only Avenger who actually shows up. In the Disney+ series, the fictional musical features a show-stopping number called “Save the City,” which is based on The Battle of New York from the first Avengers film.
Disneyland has shared the official dates of Rogers: The Musical. The new one-act live theater production will perform just outside of Avengers Campus in Hyperion Theater for a limited-time engagement from June 30 through August 31, 2023.
Personally, I’m a little skeptical of that end date. As you’ll see from the following, Disneyland is doing a lot for Rogers: The Musical, which certainly suggests it’s not being viewed internally as a two-month production. If it were really this temporary, it wouldn’t be getting nearly this much attention.
While I could see Disneyland not performing this during the off-season due to the cost, the fall isn’t really slow anymore. The day after Rogers: The Musical is currently scheduled to end (September 1) is the start of Halloween Time at Disneyland, which is hugely popular. Immediately after that, Christmas kicks off.
More likely, Disney doesn’t want to commit to Rogers: The Musical beyond the first couple of months just in case response among Disney or Marvel fans is tepid, and demand is low. That gives them an “out” for ending it, as it was never technically scheduled to last longer. If it is well-received and popular, there’s a good chance that the run to be extended indefinitely “by popular guest demand.”
Perhaps a more likely possibility is that Disneyland does not intend to run Rogers: The Musical this Halloween or Christmas because there’s already sufficient demand then, but will bring it back when a boost is needed in 2024. Disneyland Resort could plan to add the musical into the seasonal rotation like Soarin’ Over California, Hyperspace Mountain, and Main Street Electrical Parade–bringing it back whenever wanting to draw locals out to the parks. I hope this isn’t their plan.
If Rogers: The Musical is good and a hit with guests, it should just become permanent. Don’t play games to cut costs, create a false sense of urgency to see it, or artificially juice demand. Disney California Adventure needs more to do and Hyperion Theater has been vacant for two years. Enough with the monkey business, Disney.
With the confirmed dates and our speculation about the future of Rogers: The Musical (before it’s even debuted) out of the way, here are some tips and info to know before you go:
1. Free Virtual Queue for Rogers: The Musical
Rogers: The Musical is scheduled to perform several times per day, Tuesday through Saturday most weeks during its run this summer between June 30 and August 31, 2023 at DCA. You’ll be able to access viewing areas for Rogers: The Musical through a virtual queue system available only via the Disneyland app.
Each day that Rogers: The Musical is performing, distribution for the free virtual queue will begin at 10:30 a.m. Pacific for the first two show times of the day and 2 p.m. PT for the remaining performances of the day.
Here are other details about the virtual queue for Rogers: The Musical:
- If a guest gets into a virtual queue, they will not be able to choose which showtime they would like to have for Rogers: The Musical. Instead, they will be automatically given a showtime.
- There is limited capacity for each show. After attempting to join the virtual queue, Guests will be directed to a screen which shows whether or not they are added to the queue.
- Once a guest joins the virtual queue, they will be called back to the Hyperion Theater when the physical queue is ready to open, approximately 30 to 45 minutes before showtime.
- To access the virtual queue, guests must have entered Disney California Adventure or entered Disneyland Park with a Park Hopper ticket or Magic Key Annual Pass.
Joining the virtual queue is not required to view Rogers: The Musical, but it is highly recommended. If the virtual queue reaches capacity, you can check in at the Hyperion Theater before Rogers: The Musical begins for any walk-up viewing options.
In all likelihood, the virtual queue for Rogers: The Musical will fill up in seconds each time it opens, and speed strategy will be necessary. If that wasn’t the expectation, Disneyland wouldn’t be using the VQ in the first place. Accordingly, you’ll want to be ready and refreshing the app right as the virtual queue opens. Don’t even mess with the (potential) walk-up viewing options.
2. Paid Premium Viewing for Rogers: The Musical
You may choose to buy a Rogers: The Musical Premium Viewing Experience package from the Studio Catering Co. Truck in Hollywood Land. Available in limited quantities per performance, the package includes a Rogers: The Musical popcorn bucket with kettle corn and choice of bottled beverage, plus access to lounge seating before the show, priority choice of seating in the theater, a souvenir lanyard, and priority access to a photo opportunity. All for $29 per person.
The premium viewing experience package for Rogers: The Musical will probably be popular, especially since it “only” costs $29 per person. Disneyland diehards and Marvel fans will have FOMO about not missing out on the supposedly limited run of this production, and will want to get the best seats for Rogers: The Musical.
There’s no way we’d buy a Rogers: The Musical Premium Viewing Experience package. Sure, it’s only $29, but the virtual queue is free–and the popcorn and other stuff has zero value to us. To each their own, though. Maybe you love popcorn buckets and Coca-Cola, and value not having to stress with the VQ.
Hopefully we’re wrong and this actually is not popular, as this type of upcharge and VIP viewing is getting out of hand. However, Disney won’t stop offering this until there stops being a market for it. The ball is in the court of consumers.
3. Rogers: The Musical Food & Beverages
It wouldn’t be a limited-time celebration without food & drinks for Disney to sell! During the run of Rogers: The Musical, select locations across Disney California Adventure park will serve patriotic and heroically-themed food and beverages.
Here’s a list of the limited-time menu items at DCA:
- Red, White & Blue Shake at Schmoozies: Vanilla shake with wild cherry and blue raspberry slushes and whipped topping (Non-alcoholic)
- Patriotic Punch at Hollywood Lounge: Sprite and white cranberry juice with blue raspberry and cherry syrups topped with whipped cream (Non-alcoholic)
- Pastrami Pretzel Dog at Award Wieners: All-beef hot dog topped with pastrami, whole-grain mustard, provolone, sauerkraut, and thousand island dressing
- Shawarm-izza at Shawarma Palace: Italian sausage, pepperoni, mozzarella, and pepperoncini in a garlic-parmesan wrap with marinara dipping sauce
- Like an Apple Pizza Pie at Terran Treats: Cinnamon-sugar fried pizza crust topped with apple and cranberry filling, streusel, and cream cheese frosting
- Cap’n Everything Dog at Outdoor Vending Carts: Hot link wrapped in pizza dough topped with everything bagel seasoning and served with a side of mustard cheese sauce and potato chips
- Kettle Corn at Outdoor Vending Carts: Red, white, and blue caramel corn
- Rogers: The Musical Popcorn Bucket at Seasonal Snacks and Outdoor Vending Carts: Includes Kettle Corn
Okay, so this list actually has some potential All-American All-Stars on it. Schmoozies constantly delivers on the milkshake front and Award Wieners is a national treasure, so you know those two things will be fantastic. Then there’s the Shawarmizza and Cap’n Everything Dog…and maybe the Apple Pizza Pie.
We’ll be taste-testing all of those items and will report back with the results of our research!
4. Rogers: The Musical Merchandise & Photos
You can remember your Rogers: The Musical experience with themed offerings available during the show’s special engagement.
For a limited time, two Magic Shots from PhotoPass make you the main character with an opportunity to pose with Captain America’s shield in front of the Hyperion Theater marquee.
If you’re more into collecting things over memories, there’s also no shortage of stuff to buy. Rogers: The Musical merchandise will be available near the Hyperion Theater, including a T-shirt, magnet and ornament.
Additionally, at the Super Store Featuring Avengers Campus shop in Hollywood Land, you can gear up with a wide assortment of Avengers merch and apparel.
Ultimately, that’s what to expect for the first (and maybe only…but probably not!) summer season of Rogers: The Musical at Disney California Adventure. Our expectation is that this production is going to prove popular with both Disneyland diehards and Marvel maniacs (is that what they call themselves?)…and that Disney already strongly suspects that’ll be the case. Although new to DCA, Rogers: The Musical was soft-tested at the D23 Expo, and it’s likely that the company knows it has a hit on its hands.
In which case, Rogers: The Musical is not really a limited-time production and framing it as such is either a hedge or way to create hype and kick the FOMO machine into overdrive–perhaps a bit of both. Just something to keep in mind before going nuts and buying the premium viewing package or even park tickets just to see the show. We’ll be on hand for the opening of Rogers: The Musical and will report back with virtual queue and viewing tips, plus a review of the fun new foods and the show itself. Stay tuned!
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YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think about “Rogers: The Musical” coming to Disney California Adventure starting on June 30, 2023? Do you expect this to actually be a limited time production, or is that a way to create an artificial sense of urgency/scarcity before the musical’s run is inevitability extended “by popular demand” from guests? Planning on purchasing premium viewing or trying your luck with the virtual queue? Think this will be a good addition to Avengers Campus, or does the production sound too cheesy to you? Do you agree or disagree with our assessments? Any questions? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
For any fans, the original soundtrack is finally available on Spotify. (The timing feels like it’s tied to the end of the SAG/AFTRA strike.) It’s a little calmer than the actual show but it’s so nice to be able to finally hear the songs again. And hopefully it’s a good sign that Disney plans to bring them back after the holidays like Tom predicts.
I am hoping so much that this is there when we go in March 2024. I LOVED the segment I saw in Hawkeye and need to see the whole thing. My theater and Marvel loving kids would lose their minds over seeing it!
The only two Marvel Cinematic Universe movies I’ve ever seen are the first Iron Man and the first Avengers film, so maybe I’m missing something here, but this show seems like a very deep cut. A parody show-within-a-show featured in a direct-to-Disney+ TV series? If crowds come to watch this, Disney might as well mount a musical based on Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories next.
If it’s done right, then to most people it will simply be a fun musical about Captain America based on the first Avengers movie. I’ve yet to watch the film Third Man on the Mountain, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying the Matterhorn. (Only age and possibly maintenance did that, but DL Space Mountain is still fantastic so it’s not back problems.)
Now I want to start a rumor that Mickey and the Magical Map was based on old video games and Gold Key comics.
I wouldn’t expect you to know this off the top of your head but maybe you’d know how/where to look for details about if they’re going to have any ASL interpreted shows. With Festival of the Lion King they just had interpreters at pre-specified shows but I feel like the VQ would complicate things.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it’s so popular that they export it to DLP. The Avenger’s Campus there is so underwhelming-it really needs something to jazz it up!
So excited to see this — we’re making a trip out in July just to catch what should be the perfect blend of Old School Marvel and Disney Weird. The only thing that gives me pause is the “most weeks” caveat in the schedule info. I couldn’t find anything online showing if they were planning for the show to go dark at some point. Hopefully not that soon after opening.
Based on the scheduling, it looks like they only have one full cast for this. Meaning that if performers were to get sick or something else were to occur, the show would get cancelled. Same thing happened with Tale of the Lion King last summer–there were several days when all performances were cancelled.
Just a guess, though.
That makes sense given the Sunday/Monday dark days. Thanks!
While it won’t help you with possible cancelations, you can at least now see planned showtimes for specific days on the DLR website at https://disneyland.disney.go.com/entertainment/disney-california-adventure/rogers-the-musical/. This was key for me as I am planning a special trip (my friend and I have Magic Keys but I’m far enough out of area that flights are necessary) and the day I was originally planning around turned out to have no showings even though it was a Thursday (and the announcement says Tues-Sat.) If you’re planning to go for this show, check your date’s showtimes first!
I really hope you’re right. I’m a huge Marvel fan and was really hoping to see this in October, when I’ll be there next.
I’d say the chances of the musical being extended immediately after August are about 50/50, and really dependent upon performer contracts and whether Disney feels that the capacity is needed for Halloween and Christmas. That’s the cheaper and lamer route, so it wouldn’t surprise me if it’s the one they’d choose.
I’d bump that up to about 80-90% for a return in 2024. About the only thing that would stop them is terrible guest satisfaction scores, and I think they probably already have a good idea that this is going to perform well given the fan response at D23 Expo.
I’m not as familiar with fall crowd dynamics at DL as I am with those at WDW, but Tom’s posts on the subject make it sound interesting that the current plans end right before Labor Day Weekend. There might be a short (already secretly planned?) extension if it’s still popular, to bring in early September crowds. I’m guessing it comes back around January 4 or 8 (Magic Key blockout ends or decorations come down) if it’s consistently popular before any Glowing Away Forever announcement. I suppose if its significantly more popular than projected, I could see it going into fall as a way of balancing out a Christmas Party that stays in DL Park, but not until November, since moving the Halloween Party to DCA seems to help balance out crowds already.
Oh wow, that is a much shorter run than I was expecting them to announce. 🙁
I really hope you are right Tom! My family and I would LOVE to see this, but we won’t even be in America until late November. For everyone’s sakes I hope this lasts longer than advertised, but for our sakes I hope they keep it around through the holiday season, too! This would be one of our top priorities at DCA (if it is still on when we’re there), as it just sounds so crazy and fun.
(Fingers crossed…?)
I really hope they decide to keep this! I’ve been looking forward to it but we won’t be there until the first week of May 2024. I hope they bring it back. When I watched it in they Hawkeye episode, I thought it would be Awesome to see it in real life. I am so glad they are doing it and I hope it continues far longer than 2 months!
Ah yes, shawarma, a dish from in the Middle East, a region famously known for its religions that eat pork.
Wait, no, that’s the opposite. So that’s why it’s full of pork products at Disney. Makes perfect sense.
After immigrants brought Shwarma to Mexico it became Al Pasteur, which is made with pork. So it’s not like this hasn’t happened before.
And only Disney would put provolone on their Reuben dog…sigh.
We were fortunate enough to see it at the panel last year and thought it was a hoot. It was far too high-caliber of a production to be a one-and-done, so it was no surprise it got rehomed to DCA. I can’t imagine they’ll be so quick to get rid of it, especially since Avengers Campus is otherwise lacking in, well, just about everything.