The dark side of Harry Potter’s wizarding world is about to come to live at Universal Studios Hollywood. From April 13 to 28, then again from May 25 to 27, the “Dark Arts at Hogwarts Castle” nighttime show will feature sinister imagery from the popular franchise covering the castle walls. Dementors, Death Eaters, Aragog the spider, Thestrals, and mountain trolls will be projected on the castle walls, with spectacular light, music, and other special effects.
Photo: Attractions Magazine/Twitter + Universal Studios
The ‘Dark Arts at Hogwarts’ Show at Universal Will Feature Flying Drones in the Shape of Harry’s Patronus
The website promises “Dementors, Death Eaters and other unspeakable creatures [will] rise to cloak the stone walls in sinister images and fiendish magic. Chaos erupts as the image of Lord Voldemort joins the fray, summoning his cruel legions to swarm the castle. Experience the fire-engulfed army of Inferi and the soul-draining breath of Dementors as you stare in awe at the castle’s takeover.”
While details of the show have been out for a while, one surprising feature was just revealed by Attractions Magazine on Twitter. Universal will be employing flying drones in the form of a stag, Harry Potter’s Patronus, to presumably fight off the dementors. The amazing tech of flying drone imagery was recently made famous by Intel at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in 2018.
It looks like the new Dark Arts at Hogwarts Castle projection show will incorporate light-up drones forming Harry Potter’s Patronus. Here’s video by InstaMilo on Instagram of the @UniStudios show testing last night. Details on the show at https://t.co/0pmRedPSvz pic.twitter.com/79bPjwmDsC
— Attractions Magazine (@Attractions) April 3, 2019
“Dark Arts at Hogwarts Castle” isn’t just a visual spectacle, either. It will be accompanied by a surround-sound musical arrangement conducted by Williams Ross, based on original scores composed by John Williams. The villain-centric show will be a welcome change of pace for fans tired of always seeing the series’ heroes.
The Orlando version of the show will premiere later this year though dates haven’t yet been announced. 
H/T: Attractions Magazine