'Descendants/Zombies: Worlds Collide' concert delivers on all 8 films

UPI

2 days ago

1 of 5 | From left, Joshua Colley, Malia Baker, Mekonnen Knife, Kylie Cantrall, Freya Skye, Dara Reneé and Malachi Barton perform in "Descendants/Zombies: Worlds Collide," touring through Sept. 16. Photo courtesy of Disney Concerts
LOS ANGELES, August 1 (UPI) -- Disney Channel musicals like Zombies and Descendants are meant to be watched repeatedly, with the soundtracks on loop.
The Disney Descendants/Zombies: Worlds Collide Tour, touring through Sept. 16, has created a once-in-a-lifetime experience for fans of the films, unless of course parents take kids from city-to-city like young Grateful Deadheads.
The show sees Kylie Cantrall, Malia Baker, Dara Reneé and Joshua Colley from Descendants: The Rise of Red join Zombies 4 stars Freya Skye, Malachi Barton and Mekonnen Knife on stage. Both casts perform their own songs from the latest films, along with classics from earlier entries, crafting an experience covering all eight films.
Judging by the Los Angeles crowd, the genuine screeches of fans literally have the power to drown out the music. They do subside long enough to hear a chorus or two, but the enthusiasm never dies down through a three-hour show, including an intermission.
The performers engage the crowd leading into each song. Knife quizzes the audience on Red's (Cantrall) dance moves to lead into her introduction song, aptly titled "Red." Later, Cantrall leads the crowd in a werewolf howl to call the wolves, as Reneé leads "We Own the Night" from Zombies 2.
In Los Angeles, the male cast members posed for someone's phone camera and played Hide and Seek with the spotlights. Barton taught the audience how to do the "Shuffle of Love" dance from the Rise of Red song of the same name.
As rousing as the singing performers are, a team of background dancers elevates the show further. Those dancers wave flags, red shields, halos and other props, even using feathers to make a magic carpet when the Descendants sing about Aladdin -- this is after Skye emerges out of a giant cupcake to sing "Life Is Sweeter."
Each performer reflects on how much it means to them to be on stage. Particularly the Los Angeles locals, including Cantrall, who got emotional about being on the same stage where she saw Beyoncé perform as a young fan, and Barton, who had just seen Jelly Roll at the venue this year.
Skye and Barton walk into the crowd as they sing their duet from Zombies 4, "Dream Come True," and even on stage, Skye waved at every fan she saw personally. Likewise, Syke and Reneé shook hands with fans up close on their way off stage during the show's many costume changes.
A healthy video component maintains the world of the films too. Red calls her mother, the Queen of Hearts, on her phone.
Zombies stars Milo Manheim and Meg Donnelly recorded a video where they led the crowd in a singalong of their duet "Someday" from the first film. Skye and Barton performed the song live, as Zombies 4 was literally about passing the torch to them,
Manheim and Donnelly also pretended to notice all the cosplayers in the audience, but let's not spoil it for the kids. They totally saw your awesome costumes!
Other footage included scenes from the films and personal videos. Among the videos was a veritable time lapse of Cantrall growing up live on social media, Skye and Barton's audition video singing "Rewrite the Stars," Colley's childhood Halloween photos and Reneé as a kid at the Cheetah Girls/Hannah Montana concert, the previous generation's Disney phenomenons.
Cantrall, Skye and Colley perform some of their originals too. Those are more pop radio tunes than Disney musicals, and demonstrate their range. Baker also performs her Descendants song "If Only" on her acoustic guitar, showing her raw talent is equal to the big production numbers.
Whether one belongs to the target audience or simply has access through their children or the media, Descendants/Zombies: Worlds Collide is a heck of a show. The energy is contagious with boppy songs, extravagant production and charismatic performers.
Fred Topel, who attended film school at Ithaca College, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, a Rotten Tomatoes critic since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012 and the Critics Choice Association since 2023. Read more of his work in Entertainment.