Long awaited and highly anticipated, The Simpsons™ Ride at Universal Studios Florida is now open!  Check it out and visit Krustyland, the low-budget theme park created by famed TV personality and shameless product huckster Krusty the Clown!You be there right alongside Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie as you enter through a carnival-like midway. Once you board your vehicle you’re in for one surprise after another as you embark on a wild, over-the-top ride through the park… flying, floating, and more or less crashing your way through Krustyland’s kiddie attractions, stunt shows and thrill rides. State-of-the-art digital projectors cover an 80 ft. diameter domed surface with an image four times the standard High Definition found in most home theaters, and twice what you’d experience in a normal digital theater.  All the character voices in the attraction were performed by the original stars of the long-running The Simpsons show.  In addition, hilarious new The Simpsons animation was created not just for the ride, but for the pre-show and queue areas as well.

Celebrate the music, spirit and culture of Jamaica at a two-day festival that fills the streets of Universal CityWalk on May 10-11 from 2:00-9:00 pm!  Enjoy steel drummers, DJs, local Reggae bands, Caribbean food, specialty drinks, over 20 African and Jamaican merchants as well as featured performers including: Inner Circle, Maxi Priest, Toots & The Maytals and Stephen Marley, the son of Bob Marley.   (1-day ticket is $25 plus tax / 2-day ticket is $35 plus tax.  Tickets include FREE ADMISSION to select CityWalk venues.)

A 3,000-capacity concert venue located at Universal Orlando’s CityWalk, Hard Rock Live showcases a wide variety of music ranging from popular national acts to the best emerging new artists. Hard Rock Live and the 600-seat Hard Rock Cafe Orlando – which is also perfect for live music – are situated in a 140,000-square-foot building designed as a retro interpretation of the great Roman Coliseum.  The facility opened and held its first concert (Glenn Frey/Joe Walsh) on January 29, 1999. Today, the venue continues to be a popular stop for musicians and music fans alike. 

Universal Orlando Resort today announced a brand-new roller coaster that will feature total immersion entertainment and put guests in the director’s seat.

Adrenaline pumping and music thumping, you find yourself heading straight toward the sky.  Suddenly, you are doing 65 mph, 17 stories over Universal Studios.  Gasping with excitement, you rock out to a song you picked before strapping in.  And, it’s all on video.  Once the adventure is over, you edit the video to send to your friends.   

This is true high-tech, customizable, multi-sensory entertainment.  Scheduled to open in spring 2009, Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit will stake its claim as the most technologically advanced roller coaster in the world.  The Universal Creative team is combining audio and special effects engineering, sophisticated on- and off-board video and one-of-a-kind guest personalization to create a roller coaster experience unlike any other.   

By weaving the digital age with theme park entertainment, Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit is designed to blend roller coaster intensity with guest interaction so no two experiences will ever be the same.

Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit touts six near-miss moments and first-ever thrills including a record-breaking loop.  Ride vehicles feature the brightest and most innovative color changing LEDs in the world.  High-energy visual displays fill the queue line.  With up to four ride vehicles on the tracks at any given time, and with concert lighting and special effects mixed in, Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit will be a true high-intensity, multi-sensory experience that is unmatched. 

Guests can customize their ride experience by choosing what song will play while they’re on the roller coaster.  LED boards in the queue lines will display song options from five genres (classic rock, rap, country, pop and soundtracks).  Once on-board, guests can choose their song or let the coaster’s digital sound system choose for them.  When the ride is over, guests will be able to customize footage from their experience and compile it into a take-home music video. 

Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit will be located near the Jimmy Neutron attraction traveling the southern perimeter of the Universal Studios theme park, over to the CityWalk lagoon and back.

Here’s your chance to be in the band! At Universal Orlando CityWalk’s Rising Star karaoke club, you take center stage as the lead singer of a band. This is real music, played live while you belt out your favorite songs in front of a live audience!

The karaoke club debuts March 22 and will be open nightly from 8pm – 2am. 

• Tuesday – Saturday: Live band with backup singers & host
• Sunday & Monday: Backup singers and host

There is a cover charge of $7 to enter the Karaoke Club, however, there is no charge to sing.  (CityWalk Party Passes accepted.)  The club is open to anyone age 21 or older (18 or older on Thursday nights).

Mardi Gras at Universal Studios continues this Saturday night with a live concert performance by KC and the Sunshine Band.  (Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons had previously been scheduled for the March 15 concert series date.)

KC & The Sunshine Band remains as popular today as they were when they first danced onto the music scene 35 years ago. Harry Wayne Casey – KC, for short – developed a unique fusion of R&B and funk, with a hint of a Latin percussion groove.  That sound resulted in a string of hits like Get Down Tonight, That’s The Way (I Like It) and Shake Your Booty.

The concert is just one piece of the Mardi Gras fun.  You’ll also enjoy festive street performers, cajun’ New Orleans style eats and a rocking parade with lots of Mardi Gras beads.

Mardi Gras is included with your daily admission price to Universal Studios.

Mardi Gras continues its run at Universal Orlando® Resort with another 7 weekends of Saturday night music and fun. The popular Mardi Gras parade and concert series continues this week with an appearance by Smokey Robinson on the Mardi Gras stage at Universal Studios Florida.  Don’t miss this opportunity to enjoy exquisite Cajun cuisine, street entertainers, an electrifying parade, a rockin’ live concert and lots and lots of Mardi Gras beads! Mardi Gras at Universal continues every Saturday night thru April 19 with upcoming performances by Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons, Kool & the Gang, Heart, Huey Lewis & the News, LL Cool J and Earth, Wind & Fire.  The Mardi Gras celebration is included in the regular cost of admission to Universal Studios.

The Ellen DeGeneres Show will tape 3 shows at Universal CityWalk® at the end of March.  Tickets are now available for the live studio audience.  However, if you are unable to get tickets, you can still join the fun!   

Everyone is invited to the “Riff Raff” Street Party where you can watch the show taping live on CityWalk’s big Astrovision screen. Plus you’ll be able to watch the show’s musical performances live on the CityWalk Plaza Stage!

Ellen will tape two shows in Orlando on March 28 and one show on March 29.  Taping times and show guests & performers have not yet been announced.

The Universal Orlando® Resort creative team has collaborated with The Simpsons creator and executive producer Matt Groening and executive producer James L. Brooks to create the first-ever mega-attraction based on the hit FOX TV series.  The new ride, scheduled to open at Universal Studios Florida in Spring 2008 will feature the same classic humor and characters, all voiced by the show’s original actors.  

In The Simpsons Ride^TM, the Simpsons visit Krustyland, a new low-budget theme park created by the famed TV personality and shameless product huckster Krusty the Clown.  You’ll join Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie in the carnival-like midway of Krustyland and experience the wonders of Springfield’s krustiest theme park – complete with inept fortune tellers, uninspired musical revues, The Tooth Chipper roller coaster and more.

For those who can’t wait for the ride’s grand opening, The Simpsons merchandise and souvenirs are already available at the new KWIK-E-MART store at Universal Studios Florida.

The annual Mardi Gras celebration isn’t limited to raucous parties in New Orleans.  Another equally entertaining celebration occurs on the streets of Universal Studios Florida in Orlando!

This extended Mardi Gras features amazing street performers, floats, parades, live music from popular performers, cajun cuisine and beads - lots and lots of beads!  And it all starts this weekend at Universal Studios. 

Each Saturday from now thru April 19, Mardi Gras activities are included in the cost of your regular Universal Studios admission ticket.  That means you can spend a full day riding the attractions and then, when the sun goes down, the party really gets cranking.  This weekend, the music features the rocking sounds of Bret Michaels of Poison.  That’ll be followed next week by the Go-Go’s.