10/12/23: New Sun Princess Ship Features Sensational New Collaboration with The Magic Castle™

[LACruiser88]

October 12, 2023 6:05 PM EDT   Princess Cruises Unveils Spellbound by Magic Castle™   New Sun Princess Ship Features Sensational New Collaboration with The Magic Castle™   SANTA CLARITA, Calif., Oct. 12, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Princess Cruises today unveiled Spellbound by Magic Castle, a collaboration with the famed Hollywood icon set to enchant guests aboard Sun Princess when the new ship debuts in early 2024. Spellbound blends the captivating world of magic with the art of mixology to create an extraordinary, Victorian-inspired experience.     Guests will find Spellbound nestled behind a non-descript door amidst the sensational confines of the newest Princess ship, where they'll enjoy incredible feats of magic from talented magicians, surprises in themed rooms and theatrical cocktails delivered by sleight-of-hand servers. "We are excited to introduce Spellbound by Magic Castle and take the art of magic around the world aboard the spectacular new Sun Princess," said John Padgett, president of Princess Cruises. "This collaboration with The Magic Castle™ takes entertainment into new dimensions with an extraordinary experience that combines the allure of magic with the thrill of cruising. Spellbound will become an iconic guest favorite on Sun Princess."    With its ornate décor that includes magical artifacts, vintage curiosities, and interactive special effects, Spellbound is meticulously designed to capture the essence of Hollywood's exclusive Magic Castle, where stars gather, legends have been born and magic has left audiences spellbound for decades. As guests move into Spellbound, they'll first encounter the essence of the authentic Magic Castle including the Music Room adorned with eclectic and mystical artifacts and paintings to peak curiosity. In the Music Room, guests will meet the spirit of Isabella who will share her stories of sailing on Sun Princess. The venue will also feature a vintage Parlor Bar featuring Artemis the owl who is revealed through interaction with skilled illusionists before entering the intimate 30-seat, Spellbound theater, to experience close-up magic that will blow guests' minds.   "We are bringing some of the most authentic aspects of The Magic Castle in Hollywood to Sun Princess, complete with incredible magicians and illusionists, so that Princess guests can experience a taste of the world class magic that is showcased nightly at the Magic Castle," said Erika Larsen, president of Magic Castle Enterprises. "It's an exciting opportunity for guests to immerse themselves in a magical experience typically reserved exclusively for members and their guests."   Performances by world-class magicians handpicked from around the globe will fascinate audiences with mind-bending tricks, awe-inspiring illusions, and mesmerizing acts that promise to leave guests in a state of wonder and disbelief.   Spellbound will make its debut aboard Sun Princess in February 2024. More details about operating hours and pricing will be made at a later date. Images can be found here.   Currently under construction at the Fincantieri shipyard in Italy, the 175,500-ton, 4,300-guest Sun Princess will offer an array of exciting new entertainment and activity offerings, as well as luxurious staterooms and suites across a broad spectrum of categories.  With the most balconies and sun decks on any Princess ship, guests can take in the sunshine and crystal-clear waters of the Mediterranean and Caribbean from the comfort of their stateroom. The Dome, a transformational entertainment venue inspired by the terraces of Santorini, is the perfect place to relax and the Arena is an evolution and the most technologically advanced Princess Theater design.   Inaugural 2024 Sun Princess cruises to the Mediterranean, Europe and Caribbean are on sale now. More ship information and images can be found at www.princess.com/sunprincess.

[LACruiser88]

7 minutes ago, LACruiser88 said:

More details about operating hours and pricing will be made at a later date.

Very curious to see what the pricing will be???  🤷‍♂️

[beg3yrs]

The bar must be very magical as the same gentleman is at two different tables simultaneously.

[SCX22]

Wish Princess would make the decor more contemporary.  The renderings make a brand new ship feel and look old.  Why does the theme have to be Victorian?  Someone from corporate must like Downton Abbey. 

[Steelers36]

3 hours ago, SCX22 said:

Wish Princess would make the decor more contemporary.  The renderings make a brand new ship feel and look old.  Why does the theme have to be Victorian?  Someone from corporate must like Downton Abbey. 

Did you consider it was the Spellbound group that came up with the theme and design?  I wouldn't know, but just hazarding a guess since it is their show.

[Coral]

Years ago they had a contract with Crystal Cruise lines to do are a show on the ship. They would give everyone a free ticket to go to Magic Castle when they were in LA after. I doubt they will give us on Princess.

[Coral]

5 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

Did you consider it was the Spellbound group that came up with the theme and design?  I wouldn't know, but just hazarding a guess since it is their show.

That would be my guess.

[SCX22]

The buck stops with Princess.  Should have said no to some aspects Magic Castle designers came up with, if this is the case.

[Coral]

45 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

The buck stops with Princess.  Should have said no to some aspects Magic Castle designers came up with, if this is the case.

One room is not gonna make a difference. Maybe we should experience it before we criticize it.

Edited October 13, 2023 by Coral

[taxmantoo]

44 minutes ago, Coral said:

One room is not gonna make a difference. Maybe we should experience it before we criticize it.

Wouldn't that be contrary to expected Cruise Critic poster behavior? 😁

[voljeep]

Wow - the real magic is separating the cruisers from their money! - had no clue what this was about, so just looked at the food/drink menu - a $16 basic Caesar salad? - Nope - 

[Steelers36]

https://www.magiccastle.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Castle

 

With limited entrance, it may be like 360 - Reserve Guests only at first by invite.

 

I figure $75/pp once open to anyone to book.  If PCL plays nice they could include a first drink with the admission (not holding my breath).

 

I wonder how the conversation went between PCL and MC concerning dress code.  The MC dress code is very strict and very formal. 

[c-boy]

2 hours ago, SCX22 said:

The buck stops with Princess.  Should have said no to some aspects Magic Castle designers came up with, if this is the case.

[voljeep]

10 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

https://www.magiccastle.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Castle

 

With limited entrance, it may be like 360 - Reserve Guests only at first by invite.

 

I figure $75/pp once open to anyone to book.  If PCL plays nice they could include a first drink with the admission (not holding my breath).

 

I wonder how the conversation went between PCL and MC concerning dress code.  The MC dress code is very strict and very formal. 

link? maybe i missed that on the website

 

[Steelers36]

4 minutes ago, voljeep said:

link? maybe i missed that on the website

 

Sorry, do not understand the question.  I provided two links for information about Magic Castle enterprise.

[voljeep]

5 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

Sorry, do not understand the question.  I provided two links for information about Magic Castle enterprise.

oops - guess we won't be going formal unless I get a note from my podiatrist regarding my "dress" black on black leather 'tennis' shoes

[mtnesterz]

12 hours ago, SCX22 said:

Wish Princess would make the decor more contemporary.  The renderings make a brand new ship feel and look old.  Why does the theme have to be Victorian?  Someone from corporate must like Downton Abbey. 

We have been fortunate to be invited to the Magic Castle a couple times. That is what the decor inside looks like. The Victorian mansion that is the Castle is haunting just driving up and standing outside. The ship won't have that ambiance.

Here's the thing. The magician who invited me has passed, but he was far above the level of someone who would work as an entertainer on a cruise ship. ALL the magicians there were. So what caliber of magician will be willing to work a ship contract?

As mentioned, there is a dress code when attending The Magic Castle. It is specific and enforced. This remains to be seen for the ship. http://www.magiccastle.com/dresscode/

Edited October 13, 2023 by mtnesterz

[voljeep]

12 minutes ago, mtnesterz said:

We have been fortunate to be invited to the Magic Castle a couple times. That is what the decor inside looks like. The Victorian mansion that is the Castle is haunting just driving up and standing outside. The ship won't have that ambiance.

Here's the thing. The magician who invited me has passed, but he was far above the level of someone who would work as an entertainer on a cruise ship. ALL the magicians there were. So what caliber of magician will be willing to work a ship contract?

As mentioned, there is a dress code when attending The Magic Castle. It is specific and enforced. This remains to be seen for the ship. http://www.magiccastle.com/dresscode/

not seeing how this is going to work out on a Princess ship with the current Princess demographic.

 

What % of Princess cruisers have a clue what this is about anyway?

[Steelers36]

23 minutes ago, voljeep said:

not seeing how this is going to work out on a Princess ship with the current Princess demographic.

 

What % of Princess cruisers have a clue what this is about anyway?

There is an interest in good magic and slight of hand.  It's obviously going to be somewhat of an exclusive adventure with max of 30 for a performance.  There will be an audience for it, but the cost pp will be critical.  $8.50 pizza charge has led to near vacant Alfredo locations, so pricing and the entertainment value equation will be important.  If I were to bet, I would say it will be regular cruise wear atmosphere since this isn't the members-and-guests-only club in Hollywood.  PCL might be getting an idea of how this will go over based on guests willing to pay $150/pp for 360 (that includes a meal and wine of course).

[TYCruise]

1 hour ago, voljeep said:

not seeing how this is going to work out on a Princess ship with the current Princess demographic.

 

What % of Princess cruisers have a clue what this is about anyway?

I could see it working well for cruises out of LA. Anywhere else I'm not so sure. It Depends on how Princess markets the experience. 

[SCX22]

6 hours ago, Coral said:

One room is not gonna make a difference. Maybe we should experience it before we criticize it.

 

I commented about the interior design from the renderings, not the experience.  Brand new ship and Princess is putting in a Victorian themed space which doesn't match the other spaces on the ship.  Once the partnership with Magic Castle ends, then is spaces deviates from the contemporary design continuity of the rest of the ship and won't make sense.  Magic can be done in contemporary spaces.

[XBGuy]

17 hours ago, beg3yrs said:

 

 

Thank you to @beg3yrs for posting the above pictures from inside the Magic Castle mansion in Hollywood.  That is how it looks today and how it looked 45 years ago,  I am sure that the Sun Princess venue will share many decorative cues from the mansion, but I would be surprised (and very pleased) if it looked a lot like those pictures.

 

Princess and the Magic Castle have entered into an an agreement which I have to believe gives the Magic Castle significant creative and branding rights.  I would assume that gives them a lot of say in the venue.

 

There is another thread floating around here on the Princess board reporting a Magic Castle cruise happening right now on the Discovery Princess.  However, sadly, there have been no posts from anybody onboard;  It is on a 7-day California Coastal cruise, and I think it ends tomorrow (October 14).

 

I do agree that this new concept would most strongly appeal to cruisers who have previously been to the Magic Castle, and that would clearly be dominated by California residents.  There is a certain amount of risk here.  Presumably, some mid-level manager is betting his job on this.  I would like to see it work out, but I do wonder if it will intrigue that many cruisers as much as it intrigues me.

 

I guess we'll see.

[Coral]

22 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

 

I commented about the interior design from the renderings, not the experience.  Brand new ship and Princess is putting in a Victorian themed space which doesn't match the other spaces on the ship.  Once the partnership with Magic Castle ends, then is spaces deviates from the contemporary design continuity of the rest of the ship and won't make sense.  Magic can be done in contemporary spaces.

They can re-design the space when the contract is over.

 

They used to do this on Crystal cruises and the reviews were great from it.

[voljeep]

1 minute ago, Coral said:

They can re-design the space when the contract is over.

 

They used to do this on Crystal cruises and the reviews were great from it.

how does the Crystal demographic compare to the Princess demographic?

 

and where did the Crystal cruises originate from?

[SCX22]

2 minutes ago, Coral said:

They can re-design the space when the contract is over.

 

 

It will remain to be seen.  If taking a note from the refurbishments of the Grand Class ships, Princess really doesn't do anything to the spaces besides sprucing them up.  Compare that to Celebrity or P&O Australia, where they gut it and redo everything.