New Highlights Announced for A Celebration of Harry Potter 2018!
A Celebration of Harry Potter is happening this coming weekend at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando Resort, and we now have the full schedule of panels, demonstrations, and events, including some new highlights.
The opening event, on Friday, January 26, will include highlights from the Harry Potter Film Concert Series, performed by the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra – sure to be a delight whether you’ve seen a Harry Potter Film Concert performance before or not! On Sunday, the creators behind the Film Concert Tour will also appear in a panel titled “Sound & Image: The Magic Behind the Music.”
“The Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle” projection mapping show
The annual Harry Potter Expo features interactive displays, props, and costumes. This year’s additions to the Expo include the new Fantastic Beasts virtual reality experience, in which fans can “step into Newt Scamander’s case to explore the spectacular world of the film in a breathtaking cinematic virtual reality experience,” and the new Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery mobile game. A panel introducing the mobile game will also take place on Sunday.
The Hogwarts Houses Rally and Costume Showcase is cosplayers’ chance to show off their best work! Participants will be preselected and judged on the quality and craftsmanship of their costumes.
Throughout the weekend, the Celebration of Harry Potter 2018 Scavenger Hunt will have guests “searching for the answers to a series of clues hidden in both magical and Muggle locations throughout the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.”
And we can’t forget the exciting new projection mapping show, titled “The Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle,” which will be launching this weekend. Nor do we want to forget the exclusive new merchandise that will be available!
Other panels include repeat favorites like graphic design with MinaLima, wand combat choreography with Paul Harris, and of course Q&A panels with the stars of Harry Potter – including James and Oliver Phelps, Bonnie Wright, Natalia Tena, and Stanislav Yanevski.
For those who can’t attend the Celebration in person, panels and demonstrations will be live streamed on Universal Orlando’s Facebook page and Twitter. The live stream schedule is below. All times are in ET (subject to change):
Friday, January 26
- 7:15 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. – A Celebration of Harry Potter Opening Event
- 9:00 p.m. – “The Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle” Projection Experience
Saturday, January 27
- 10:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. – Warner Bros. Studio Tour London: Special Effects Secrets with John Richardson (Panel)
- 11:15 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. – Graphic Design for the Harry Potter Films with MinaLima (Panel)
- 2:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. – Learn Wand Combat Skills with Choreographer Paul Harris
- 4:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. – Q&A Panel with the Harry Potter Film Stars
- 5:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. – Hogwarts House Rally: Costume Showcase
- 6:45 p.m. – 7:45 p.m. – A Celebration of Harry Potter Evening Tribute
Sunday, January 28
- 10:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. – Dance Like a Beauxbaton and Battle Like a Durmstrang
- 11:15 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. – Harry Potter The Exhibition: Magic of Costumes
- 2:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. – CineConcerts – Sound & Image: The magic behind the music and the journey to construct a complete score live to picture (Panel)
- 4:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. – Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment: Explore Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery (Panel)
- 5:30 p.m. – 6:15 p.m. – Q&A Panel with the Harry Potter Film Stars
MuggleNet will be in attendance to keep you up-to-date on whatever exciting developments may happen during the Celebration! To get all the details and buy tickets, visit the Universal Orlando website.
