Universal Studios Orlando Says Goodbye to Beetlejuice's Graveyard Revue

The theme parks in Orlando have been busy the past few years and that doesn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon. With new attractions being announced almost monthly it's no surprise that some older ones are being closed down to make way for the new and improved rides and shows. Universal Orlando most recently said goodbye to the Beetlejuice Graveyard Revue. This was one of the only original things left in the park and was a very popular attraction.

Because of the Beetlejuice show's popularity I'm a bit surprised that Universal decided to simply close it and not try to find a way to keep it running. Especially given that Universal has a huge stadium theater that currently houses Fear Factor Live. Which while its not a bad show has never had the attendance that Beetlejuice had, even in more recent times. I'm a little shocked that Universal didn't take the Fear Factor stage and redo it and move Beetlejuice there and then close Fear Factor. It definitely would have been the move that would have made guests happier than simply getting rid of the show altogether.

The Beetlejuice show went through many different revamps during the course of it being open. The most recent redo of the show got rid of the ever annoying Hip and Hop and replaced them with four dancers suppose to be ghosts. I personally preferred them over Hip and Hop. And it also brought in two new characters to the show, Cleo daughter of the Mummy and Fantasia daughter of the Phantom of the Opera. While maybe not my favorite thing that they did with the show it worked alright, the new characters added some more flavor to the show. The biggest problem with the latest revamp of the show was not the recast of the characters but the song choices themselves. I remember the first time that I saw the new show my first response was, "they could have picked better songs". They just weren't as entertaining as any of the previous versions. This led to a of guests not liking and show and I think it's what doomed it to be closed. I firmly believe that if it had not been revamped they would have moved the show, and not closed it.

I always loved the Beetlejuice show and still liked even the latest version, even if not as much as the earlier ones. I hate to see it go and I feel that Universal made a huge mistake in keeping something like Fear Factor over Beetlejuice, unless they have bigger plans on the horizon for that area. However when thinking about Universal they aren't like Disney, who has room to build and grow, Universal has to close current attractions in order to make way for new ones. Which makes it exciting to hear what's coming but also sad to hear what's leaving.

If you missed the Beetlejuice show while it was running below you can watch the last two versions of the show.