I definitely felt the Disney Love last Thursday night. I wanted to paint with all the “Colors of the Wind,” build a snowman and dive “Under the Sea!” However, since we’re all quarantined inside—and it’s not snowman weather in New York—I could only try not to burst out in song since my Mom wanted to listen to the singers and not me. Yet, I digress.
ABC brought magic into our homes on April 16 with The Disney Family Singalong. There was a long, star-studded cast list of Disney family members. I could sit here and list them all, but I know I’ll be mentioning many within the rest of the article. The amazing Ryan Seacrest hosted the special night.
After a brief introduction from Seacrest, the first video of the night began with a vocal warmup by Broadway icon Kristin Chenoweth. How could we be ready to sing—or not sing—if we didn’t get our vocal cords flowing and our diaphragm pumping oxygen? From then on, the sounds from my TV were sweet melodies, jaw-dropping riffs, and inspiring ballads.
Sadly, ABC has not posted all of the videos to their YouTube channel, and the special can only be found on Hulu until April 24 or ABC website and app. I don’t want to ruin the magical experience with blurry or shaky fan videos posted on YouTube. So, I’m only going to share my five favorite videos that are available in high quality via ABC on YouTube.
In no particular order, let’s get started!
- “I Won’t Say I’m In Love” performed by Ariana Grande
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The Hercules classic experienced a major revamp when Grande took the stage. Grande didn’t just sing Megara’s solo; she sang all five parts of the Muses. Obviously, her stunning performance blew many fans and fellow celebrities away. Everyone seems to be wondering when the Hercules remake will happen and star Grande.
Grande wasn’t the only powerhouse female vocalist to perform. Christina Aguilera sang a stunning version “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” from The Lion King with her dog sleeping next to her. Tori Kelly performed a sweet rendition of “Colors of the Wind” from Pocahontas. Amber Riley sang “Let it Go” from Frozen. Auliʻi Cravalho sang “How Far I’ll Go” from Moana. Last, but certainly not least, Beyoncé surprised fans with a short version of “When You Wish Upon A Star” from Pinocchio.
Grande and all the women demonstrated what real female power is with their videos.
- “You’ve Got A Friend In Me” performed by Josh Groban
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Almost everyone is a sucker for Toy Story and this song. Groban certainly did a fantastic rendition of it. What made the video even more special were the clips of children singing along with him that occurred throughout the video. I wanted to melt!
Groban wasn’t the only singer to feature kids in his performance. Little Big Town sang “A Spoonful of Sugar” from Mary Poppins with their kids while baking. Thomas Rhett and two of his kids sang “Do You Want to Build a Snowman” from Frozen. Jordan Fisher nailed “Under the Sea” with splices of children dancing along. John Stamos and his family sang “It’s a Small World” from the Disneyland ride of the same name.
Singing—and dancing—with kids makes the performance that much more special. I really loved these few surprises Groban and many others had for viewers at home.
- “I Wanna Be Like You” performed by Darren Criss
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Like Grande, Criss also sang his backup vocals in many videos edited together. However, he also played two string instruments, a maraca and a makeshift drum set for only about a minute performance. That’s a lot of work for a short song!
Other standout performances were the Broadway cast of “Aladdin” singing “Friend Like Me” featuring James Monroe Iglehart and Beauty and the Beast’s “Gaston” from Josh Gad, Luke Evans and Alan Menken. There was also “The Bare Necessities” sung by Erin Andrews, Bobby Bones, Carrie Ann Inaba and Marcus Scribner and Donny Osmond’s “I’ll Make A Man Out Of You” from Mulan.
It’s so amazing watching performers invite us into their homes and dedicate insane amounts of time—looking at you, Criss—to make people happy.
- “Be Our Guest” performed by Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert featuring Julianne Hough
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I’m pretty sure this is the only performance that was lip-synced; however, with the sheer amount of dancing Hough, Erbert and Hough did, it’s understandable why. This dance routine stole the show for me. Many of you may know that I’m a dancer, and that’s why I absolutely loved this routine! The dance moves were complicated, and the theatrics were dynamite. I don’t even know what else to say other than this performance leaves me speechless every time I watch it.
- “We’re All In This Together” performed by the Original High School Musical cast and many others
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I lied. The High School Musical moment stole the show as the second to last performance of the night. Apparently, this reunion was the starting idea for the special, and the whole show was put together in only about two weeks. Director Kenny Ortega and five of the six—Vanessa Hudgens, Corbin Bleu, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel and Monique Coleman—original cast members participating. Zac Efron was only able to send a brief introduction video due to poor Wifi connectivity leaving many fans angry. However, Kaycee Stroh—our favorite dancer Martha—was in attendance along with other Disney Stars from High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, Descendants, Zombies, and The Cheetah Girls.
With over 24 stars, this singalong had me smiling from ear to ear from the pure joy each. I didn’t want to spot watching it. In addition, this was undoubtedly the best message of hope and unity of the night. “We’re All In This Together” might be a cliché message, but it’s certainly true due to a certain pandemic we’re living in.
Closing out the night was a beautiful duet from Demi Lovato and Michael Bublé. They sang “A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes” from Cinderella. Yet another beautiful message, and a stunning duet to end the hour.
If you love singing, dancing or just having fun, watch The Disney Family Singalong now. I will certainly be watching it again and again while wishing upon a star that hopefully, another Disney reunion will happen if we’re not able to leave our homes any time soon.
Until then, I’m not afraid to admit that I’m in love with Disney and always will be!