luminosity 2016

Has anyone seen this year's show yet? What are your thoughts compared to last year's, and what songs are performed this year?

Finally going to see it tonight as I've been out of town. I'll let you know.

Miss_Maverick07 said:

Has anyone seen this year's show yet? What are your thoughts compared to last year's, and what songs are performed this year?

Haven't seen it, but I've heard it's better.

My wife and I saw the very first performance this year earlier this month. We thought it was just kind of okay. To us it wasn't near as good as last year or 2014. The choreography was kind of confusing and all over the place. They used some odd stage props. The drums are out in the midway which is kind of odd, and the percussionist was rather out of whack and distracting on some songs. I would rather a dancer/performer or singer be a focal point in the midway.

The song selection is mostly 70s and 80s hair band music with some modern hits thrown in. Dont get me wrong I am an 80s child, but it seemed kinda flooded with this era of music. It kind of reminded me of a performance i would see at KI, not CP. This was the first performance of the season so maybe some kinks will be worked out, but overall I wasnt very impressed comparing it to former years.

I thought the show itself was good, but again, little "retro" in song choices again which everyone around me mentioned was somewhat of a buzz kill for the energy of the show. The production itself is really good with pyro, lighting and all that. Some odd parts (giant projector screen, for example), which wasn't nearly as cool/effective as the dress projection last year.

I only saw it once and its hard to make a final call on how I compare to other years right now. Probably going tonight to take more photos, so I will see if any changes/improvement.

Here are my pics from opening night: https://www.flickr.com/photos/invertalon/albums/72157669632282076

We haven't seen the show yet but they were rehearsing during night ERT at CoasterMania. Those dancers have some serious moves...

The production values remain extremely impressive for a seasonal park. Not many parks are doing shows on this scale. I love that Cedar Point is still willing to invest the time and resources to make it all happen. For example, the moment during "Titanium" where the aerial performers spiral up into a burst of pyro as the music rises is particularly impressive. It is the kind of spectacle that makes Luminosity unique.

I am a bit intrigued by the heavy leaning towards the classic rock in this year's show. Did they feel that audiences weren't responding enough to the current pop music route of previous years? Perhaps classic rock broadens the appeal a bit? I would be interested to hear how this year's mix came about.

Also, the finale, while still visually impressive, feels less focused than previous years. There is less of a build up and crescendo than that the finale just sort of starts happening.

All that said, the performers are pretty great all around. The female vocals are extremely solid. The dancers really give their all and then some, especially with all of the aerial stuff. Very impressive.

They still have a good DJ after Luminosity I hope though yes?

There is still a DJ, although he is a different DJ from previous years and he also hosts the pre-show dance competition. The music mix at the dance party seemed about the same as before, although I have never really hung around long enough to speak for the quality of the mixing in any year.

did they play "make me like you" by Gwen Stefani? I love that song.

Saw last night's show and like everyone said, its a very different format. It's more of a focus on classic rock than the top 40 pop stuff. Lots more aerials stunts in the air and some really cool pyrotechnics that are synchronized with the music. I liked it. With each new show each year it grows on me.

I think putting the drummers out in the midway solved the issue of having to leave a couple of paths open to allow for dancers to move out to those midway stages.

My son and I found it odd that they chose to use a lot of footage of Mean Streak during the show.

But go see it, the female vocalists are amazing!

TimChat2 said:

I am a bit intrigued by the heavy leaning towards the classic rock in this year's show....

....I would be interested to hear how this year's mix came about.

Well I know the musical director is a huge fan of classic rock so that honestly could be the reason. It's definitely the reason behind the music selection for the Halloween Garter shows each year.

We picked up on the Red Garter vibe pretty quickly. In the previous years Luminosity has been for the most part focused on current pop/dance music with Garter's identity being more rock/country with classic rock for HalloWeekends, so it was interesting to see the two styles mixing in this year's show.

It has to be tricky determining the audience for Luminosity in terms of what kind of music to mix in. If the show leans too heavily on current music it risks alienating the older crowd but then using older selections might not connect with the younger folks.

Not to mention Mean Streak is heavily featured in this years show. I saw it last night and while the visuals were good, the music not so much. Just not the same energy as last year imo.

So the rumors that Lumosity is going to receive an RMC conversion in the off-season are unfounded?

I saw it last Friday evening. It was good, but I didnt like it as much as the last year's show. They didnt have any sort of pre-show dance competition or any audience engagement prior to the show like last year, but maybe that was just for the one night. The vocals were really good, but they seemed to not have as many visual effects as last year, outside of the aerialists, which were also very good, but I felt like they relied a little too much on aerial acrobatics, and didnt really have anything else. It sort of spread things out and made it hard to really get the full picture. Also, the fireworks were cool.

How long ago did they do away with the DJ on the balcony at the Coliseum? I wish they would bring him back because the area around Luminosity is very loud, bright and energizing but once you get to the main midway, the only music is the normal midway music. Wasn't their plan to create energy as you leave the park? That energy dies quite a bit once you get past Valravn. The old DJ provided that energy towards the front of the park.

I don't really recall anyone being up on the Coliseum balcony after the show much beyond the first year of Luminosity. They must have decided that the area was a little bit too removed from the Celebration Plaza area to still be part of the "party" so to speak.

I've seen 2016s twice and each time I didn't feel the same energy out of the crowd as I have in passed seasons. I don't know if it's the music not connecting with them or what. It's gotta be hard as a performer looking out into a stone faced audience.

Was at the point last night and watched a good portion of Luminosity. I was very impressed by the acts performed and enjoyed the music as well. I was wondering if there was a way to find the songs used during the performances. One song I found catchy in particular was the one played during the balancing act. Basically the one where a guy stacked shelves on top of a ball and danced on it.