(Updated 2/8/16)
NOTE: Sofia the First has replaced Quincy and Doc Mcstuffins replaced Annie
Your intrepid reporter ventured to Hollywood Studios during Extra Magic Hours to see if I could discover what characters appear for the Disney Jr Dance Party and what times they appear. This may be a low budget operation, but it isn’t low quality :) First, you need to know that the Disney Jr Dance Party is ONLY available to onsite Walt Disney World guests. The Cast Member asks you to show a resort ID at the entrance. I always stay offsite now, so I had to ask a friend to help me get in by listing me on their room reservation.
When the party first began, only Handy Manny and Jake were out dancing. They arrived promptly at 10:00 pm. Handy Manny wasn’t as good of a dancer as Jake, but pirates are always the best!
Once the party gets rocking it can become very difficult to take decent photos. They use a lot of theatrical “smoke,” have bubbles fall from the ceiling and even make it snow. Those bubbles and “snow” can really mess up your camera lens, so you might want to put away the camera when they use those features. It wouldn’t be a Disney World dance party without a live DJ right? I think his name was DJ Hipster Cool Guy with Spiked Hair, or something like that.
This photo shows you how foggy it becomes in the room. The kids were having an absolute blast and many of them stayed the entire 2 hours for Extra Magic Hours. The party used to be 3 hours long, but Disney cut late EMH from 3 hours to 2 hours a while back. Boooo!
At 10:15 pm Mickey and Minnie appeared to join Handy Manny and Jake. The kids excitement level jumped right back up again when the DJ announced the Big Cheeses were in the room. Everyone loves Mickey and Minnie! I think Mickey was trying to fly in this photo.
Mickey was assigned the task of leading a Conga Line by the DJ. Why do they call it a Conga Line when NO ONE plays the Congas? You guys need to leave a better name for this in the comments!
At 10:30pm Goofy and Pluto arrived and Manny and Jake left to take a break. This left us with Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Pluto.
When the DJ announced that he was playing a song in honor of Pluto, which turned out to be “Who let the dogs out?” Pluto went nuts. He was jumping around all over the place and the kids really responded to him very well. Shouldn’t the song honor Goofy too? He is a dog after all. One of his original names was Dippy Dawg. I like Dawg because it reminds my of my time living in Georgia and Randy Jackson from American Idol. “Dawg, you’re in it to win it!”
At 10:45 pm Quincy and Annie joined the dance party. Most of the kids went to Annie, leaving poor Quincy alone. After they realized that Quincy had great Disco moves and could play the air guitar, the crowd began to move his way. At this time Mickey and Minnie left for break and it’s Goofy, Pluto, Quincy and Annie.
NOTE: This is currently the only place that you can interact with Quincy and Annie from the Little Einsteins.
Check out those air guitar skillz.
After dancing for 5 or 10 minutes of the set the characters sometimes are willing to pose for a quick photo with your child but there are NO AUTOGRAPHS, so leave those memory books in the stroller!
I was actually impressed with how much fun the children were having at this Dance Party. Most of the parents were taking photos or sitting on the sidelines. There are a few padded benches in the back of the theater if you need a place to rest. By rotating characters every 15 minutes, it seemed to keep the kids interested in the party. Here’s the schedule I observed:
10:00-10:30 Jake and Handy Manny
10:15-10:45 Mickey and Minnie
10:30-11:00 Goofy and Pluto
10:45-11:15 Quincy and Annie
11:00-11:30 Jake and Manny
11:15-11:45 Mickey and Minnie
11:30-12:00 Goofy and Pluto
11:45-12:00 Quincy and Annie (they actually danced beyond 12:00 but there weren’t many people left).
Leo, Annie, June and Quincy from Little Einsteins need to be at the Disney Junior Dance Party.
I need to have a talk with the Disney Cast members about this because Little Einsteins at the Disney Junior dance party wouldn’t be complete without Leo and June from Little Einsteins.
There is no dance party. It closed long ago
I’ve heard rumors that this has or will be closing. Any truth to this?
Already has closed. I mentioned itv weeks ago
Thank you for the prompt reply, Kenny! This is such a shame because it was an awesome experience. We did it previoudly on my DD’s actual birthday and it made her day so special. I wonder if they stopped because they did the Club Disney thing during the day for the little ones, but I thought they cancelled that, too — correct?
Hollywood Studios canceled all 3 character dance parties
any chance of it reopening??? We are going in August and did this on our last visit. It was one of my girls FAVORITE experiences!
Unsure
Hopefully they reopen, Disney Junior’s 20th anniversary is coming soon
this actually happened to me when i was 4 years old back in 2005 and i still remember it as one of the most fun filled day of my life
I’m going to disney the first week in January and have booked an extra night just to attend this disney Junior dance party (january 8) I’ve looked online and called but can’t seem to figure out whether this will still be happening…. Any help Kenny? It’s not on the calendar of events and disney staff don’t have a clue
I have not heard of any plans to close it.
It says Quincy was replaced by Sofia the First, but does Annie still ever come out? My DS loves Little Einsteins but they are nowhere else on property.
Annie still rotates there.
There is something wrong with this picture. We know that Annie and Quincy are there at the Disney Junior Dance Party. But where are Leo and June. They need to be there with Annie and Quincy too. The Little Einsteins team wouldn’t be complete without Leo and June from Little Einsteins. Leo, Annie, June and Quincy from Little Einsteins need to be at the Disney Junior Dance Party.
I need to have a talk with the Disney Cast members about this because Little Einsteins at the Disney Junior dance party wouldn’t be complete without Leo and June from Little Einsteins.
So if we are going in November..and Extra Magic Hours end at 10? what time would this dance party be? how does transportation work? thank you
During the 2 hours that are Extra Magic Hours
transport is no different than any other time
Hello. Will they have the Disney Jr. dance party if the magic hours are only 7pm-9pm?
Yes
Kenny so if park closes at 9pm and extra magic hours are from 9pm-11pm, that would be right time the party would be correct?! Thanks!! So excited we will be able to do this on our next trip!!
Yes. It’s also always listed on http://www.characterlocator.com along with everything else in WDW
Also – do you think there will be a character palooza that night too? I was looking at your dates from last year and there weren’t any on there for the month of November. Thanks
Palooza happens every day there is no rain, but I can’t guarantee it.
So for my trip the magic hours for HS are Sunday Nov 15 from 8 – 10pm. When will the Disney Jr Dance Party be?
Only offered on Evening Extra Magic hours for the full 2 hours. It’s always listed on http://www.characterlocator.com as well.
We were there last November and the cast member we asked about it didn’t know anything about it. We are planning to go back this November and would love to do it but I will have to change everything around to do so. Do you know if they have the dance party in November?
Dance Party happens every EMH night at this point. I’ll update it if it ever changes
It worked shortly after I posted. Thanks for the update, and awesome character locator app!!
I’ve been trying to find out more info about this Disney Jr. dance party because I’ve rearranged our entire week just so we can go to this. Soon after I rearranged all my reservations, the page in the disney website for this event disappeared and has not been back. I’m nervous because every time something unexplainable happens on the website, it gets explained soon after to the tune of… ‘Oh, that closing until October’ or ‘oh, they are no longer doing it after April’. I called a while back and they said, “we haven’t heard about anything, so it should still happen on every EMH evening at HS.” SHOULD isn’t really something that I can go to the bank with, figuratively, you know? You heard anything?
No changes planned for this. Still occurs during Evening Extra Magic Hours
Hi! I went in Sept 2014 and I didn’t see Quincy, instead they had Sophia, but Annie was def. there. Hope this helps
Yup, that’s what the note at the top of the page says :)
Kenny, Great site. I just paid for the full version. Thanks! Quick questions. My family has 5 day passes (but not hoppers). We don’t want to do Hollywood on the Extra Hours Day because it’s red and tends to be busier but I think the Disney Jr. Dance party sounds like a lot of fun. We are staying on site. Can we show up just at the extra hours window or will be not be able to get in since we will be spending that day at another park? I hope that made sense.
No, you’ll need a park hopper
Argh Kenny! Your character locator link isn’t working. We’re planning a trip for May 2015. Do you have any insider information on who will be at the dance party then? I know, you’re not a psychic, you’re a pirate…
If anyone who is reading this and has visited recently, can you tell us who was there? We want to see if we can catch at least one Little Einstein before they’re all retired.
Thanks, mateys.
Isn’t working? Just tried it and it worked fine. Dance party characters shouldn’t be changing.
I love your site! Thank you so much for all of your great posts. Without you, we would have never been able to “happen onto” Characterpalooza. Would you say that the dance party is crowded? We were wondering if we need to be there right at start time to really enjoy it – going to be there next week!
Not crowded at all, especially later into the night. Great chance to dance with these characters.
Hi guys , its our first time in February. I’m sure what it is your talking about but sounds so fun. D o you need to be stayjng in Disney hotel for magic hours?? Xx marie
Yes, you must stay at a Disney hotel, swan and dolphin or Hilton Downtown Disney for Extra Magic Hours.
Are the Little Einsteins still meeting during this event for the evening EMH?
There is something wrong with this picture. We know that Annie and Quincy are there at the Disney Junior Dance Party. But where are Leo and June. They need to be there with Annie and Quincy too. The Little Einsteins team wouldn’t be complete without Leo and June from Little Einsteins. Leo, Annie, June and Quincy from Little Einsteins need to be at the Disney Junior Dance Party.
I need to have a talk with the Disney Cast members about this because Little Einsteins at the Disney Junior dance party wouldn’t be complete without Leo and June from Little Einsteins.
Will the little einsteinium be there in September of this year?
Couldn’t tell you what the character rotation will look like in September
I do not see the Disney Jr. Dance Party on your most recent Character Locator schedule. Is this no longer happening?
It’s on the app under Hollywood Studios characters. Happens every LATE extra magic hours.
Let’s Call Disney Junior Dance Party’s Stop! Dance Game!
Plus Donald, & Handy Man-n-y’s Tool’s Flicker Turner, & Phi ll-e-p-p-e, & Skull-y in The Line of Okay Stop! Plus Pat The Hammer in the Line of Now Dance!
I Think There Should Be Huey Due-y, & Louie, & Daisy, & Mr. Spirit As Well 4 The Line of Stop! Plus Aunt Judy, Jake’s Sis I-z-z-y, & Cub-y in The Line of Dance.
Thanks. I forgot to update this post.
Never mind. I see the update. Lol
We are heading down Oct 22-29th and DHS EMH are 7:30-9:30; does that mean the party will be moved to 7:30-9:30 instead of 10?
Correct. Schedules on blog and app are updated every sat night too.
So, I assume these are still going on?
I SOOOOOO hope they will still do it in January!! My child LOVES the dance parties @ the MK extra parties!
This dance party is at Hollywood Studios and is still going on and is still on the weekly schedules here on the blog :)
Well I will keep my fingers crossed that they won’t change it by mid January!! Thanks :)
Haven’t heard of any changes coming
How far in advance does Disney advertise these parties? I was trying to add to My Disney Experience plans for our trip in October and there were no parties showing.
This occurs weekly. There’s a lot on my blog and app that Disney doesn’t list btw
This may be a dumb question but you said that your friend had to put you on the list so you could attend the dance party because you stayed offsite do you still need a regular ticket to attend even if you are stay on site?
You have to stay at a Disney resort to take advantage of Extra Magic Hours. I had someone add me to their room and get a key with my name on it.
Thanks… I guess I meant the dance party itself…. are there plans to incorporate the new characters into the EMH Dance party – like Sofia and Doc? Okay, last question for today – promise ;)
None that I know of, but not out of the realm of possibility
With the changes to the Disney Jr. Stage show… have you heard if the characters at the Dance party may change to reflect that? (sorry for all the questions today – going in three weeks and getting our plans in order). Did subscribe to the new locator… excited about having it for the next trip ;)
They already changed the Disney Jr. Show to include Sofia and Doc. Thanks for your support and hope it helps! I’m adding a bunch of content to dining sections right now. Should be visible in a few days. Feel free to ask.
wow this is awesome! so whenever there are EMH at DHS they have this? We are going 2014 so I hope they still do this..
Yes, Disney Jr Dance Party is available for every Evening Extra Magic Hour night.
Is there a dance party scheduled for the week of July 1?
Every week during DHS evening extra magic hours
Shepherd,
Just wanted you to know that entertainment schedules are updated every Saturday night as well!
Sounds like a blast! Thanks for the photos and reports!
Thanks for the character list!! It will help me plan accordingly for this year’s trip. Last July DD6 loved this, as Jake was there (and she was dressed as Izzy). Because it had rained earlier in the evening, not many people were here. All the kids had loads of character interation. Nice way to end the day. BTW – great website – really helped in my planning for last year’s trip!!!
So do they do this for every extra magic hours for Hollywood studios? We r going the week of Labor Day my kids would love it!
Every EVENING Extra Magic Hours, not when it has Morning.
On Tue, Apr 16, 2013 at 8:32 PM, Kennythepirate's Disney Character
This was one of the highlights of our Sept 2012 trip for my DD2. She had so much fun. It is a not to miss event if you have littles! They also had balloon animal artists making the kids balloon sculptures. Great Disney touch!
Did the Disney Jr dance party with my sons (4 and 5 at the time) back in August. They had an absolute blast. One tip my wife and I have is to have the kids take an afternoon nap so they are able to handle the late night.
When we arrived at 10 it was Manny and Jake on the dance floor soon joined by Mickey and Minnie. There were 4 characters out at all times and rotated in groups of 2 every 15-20 minutes.
Sons had the most fun with Quincy. He had by far the smallest crowd so they got a lot of dance time with him. They also loved Goofy and Ploto.
This is a hidden gem especially if you have small kids, and I would have never had discovered it had I not been for your listings of character locations on your web site and came across this. Thank you for all your hard work.
The dance party has been a favorite of my daughter’s since she was tiny and she still loves it at 9, but claims she just goes along with it for her little sister. Her dad and I know better! Thanks for the current cast of characters. Love that the Little Einsteins still appear.
Great! I made sure to slot Dhs on an emh day!
What, no June?!
Sometimes it’s June, sometimes Annie
Mike I agree with you. There is something wrong with this picture. We know that Annie and Quincy are there at the Disney Junior Dance Party. But where are Leo and June. They need to be there with Annie and Quincy too. The Little Einsteins team wouldn’t be complete without Leo and June from Little Einsteins. Leo, Annie, June and Quincy from Little Einsteins need to be at the Disney Junior Dance Party.
I need to have a talk with the Disney Cast members about this because Little Einsteins at the Disney Junior dance party wouldn’t be complete without Leo and June from Little Einsteins.
This no longer exists