blondie

I have been considering working at PKI... possibly in GR like andyatuc. I might try it next year.

Hey Italianchef... I'll try to stop by Barnes & Noble Saturday to pick up a copy of your book and to meet you. See you there...

I got to the park around 3:00 pm. It was too hot to do much, so I spent most of the time finding shade. I managed to catch the last Vibe show of the day and I got to see my favorite guy singer *wink wink*. I see so many people wait around after the shows to chat with the performers and take photos. And yet, I can't seem to get my nerve up to even say hi to this one particular performer... I chicken out every time. :-( I then headed over to Coney Island to scope out a good seat. I got a great bench and just sat. They came over with the announcement of the storm and I thought I would just go out to the parking lot to watch the 9:00 fireworks. Trying to walk out of the park was a challenge! Wall to wall people all pushing their way out. I've never been claustrophobic before, but being completely surrounded by a mob of people and then everyone stopped moving for some reason... I was a little nervous. Thank goodness the crowd started moving again and I got out to the parking lot. I have a gold pass and was parked in the gold pass area near the big PKI sign. What a view! It was a perfect shot of the Eiffel Tower! Next time I try to see the fireworks, I will go to the parking lot. By 9:00, the storm had rolled in. I thought I would wait it out in my truck. The parking lot was terrible. So many people trying to leave at the same time. I decided to just sit and watch. I can't begin to tell you how many verbal fights I witnessed. One man driver was cussing and threatening a woman driver and nearly got out of his vehicle to fight her. So many people were losing their tempers... I just sat in the truck. Once it was all said and done, I finally got home. It was after midnight and I had spent 3 hours in my truck. I was thinking about going back today (July 5), but I see there are storms out there again. :-(

Previous posts have said that Vibe will be moved to the bandstand stage during the Stunt Show. I'm sure that the stunt show will require a lot of props and such, so I'm guessing that Vibe will need to move before July 15th so that they can start setting up the stunt show stage. I noticed that the current park brochures (which list the days and times of the shows) are only good through July 5. I'm guessing that today (July 5th) may be the last day Vibe is in the International Showplace. Does anyone know anything about Vibe?

I was at the park July 4th and noticed something being constructed behind Cyber Says. Right now, it looks like a stage. Does anyone know what this is? (I'm sorry if this has already been posted somewhere.)

I went to FF twice last year and it was fairly crowded both times. I stood in line for Curse of the Crypt for a good hour at least. The Circus of Horrors and House of Darkness took just as long. I also saw the WEBN show on both occasions and it was packed in there. I'm anxious to hear more about the free FF admission that PKI posted on their website.

Hi NoLimits8705. You should probably take a look at the Paramount Parks Audition site at http://www.auditionnow.com/ It will have all the updated info when it's closer to audition time (usually in November if auditioning at the Park). As for any tips... you should definitely arrive early and be prepared to wait as it takes a while before you actually audition. I wish you luck NoLimits... and don't forget to smile while you perform! :-)

Just a few questions/ideas: 1. I noticed there was a mention of body piercings in the earlier posts. Will these trigger the metal detectors? How about earrings? Will I have to take out my earrings? 2. On the news the other night, they did a short story about the metal detectors and security. They mentioned that the park will have a list of banned items. Does anyone know what these might be? Will we be able to take in cell phones, cameras, etc? 3. As a season pass holder, I will eventually get the hang of it and know what will need to be done to not trigger the detectors (glasses, coins, watches, etc). I'll have every compartment of my purse open for quicker inspection, etc. Once we do it a few times, we will be pros at it and should be able to go through it quickly. My concern will be for all the others, especially those who do not heed the instructions, and end up holding the lines for everyone else. I can just see families trying to get in with a bogged down stroller and several bags with their pockets/clothing/bodies loaded with metalic items. Too bad season pass holders don't have their own main park entrance.

I'm just curious... how sensitive are these metal detectors? Will the average KI visitor make the detector go off? Cell phones, basic jewelry (earrings, etc), eye and sun glasses, etc... are these items likely to trigger the detector? I'm all for extra security/protection, but if basic items, such as those mentioned above, are a problem and I have to strip down (figuratively speaking) just to make the detector not buzz... that's going to be a bit of a hassle.

I just heard on a Columbus radio station today that they will be giving away tickets to the Sneak Preview night. The same thing happened last year and I can remember that it was a bit crowded. Several years ago, they used to have these nights separate. One night would be for winners of tickets from radio/tv station contests etc, then another night just for Season Pass Holders.

Is anyone else a little disappointed about the show schedule? Other than the children's Nick show and Karaoke, there are NO shows until June. Hmmmm... and it sounds like the performers will be rotating between the different shows. Maybe I'm wrong, but this all sounds like major budget cuts in the entertainment department. At least the CMT Country Show opened in April last year. Young Country won't open 'til June. I know a lot of season pass holders who visited the park faithfully last year just for the shows... and I know they will not be too thrilled with the 'main' teenage-to-adult aged shows not starting till later.

Pulse sounds interesting. Any idea where that show might be? I'm guessing the bandstand area... where Karaoke is. I was surprised to see a CMT Country Show at the Back Porch. The stage and area seem so small.

PKI has published their 2003 show lineup What's everyone think?

On the WKRC, Channel 12 website, they are are running a "Survivor Finale Petition" where you can sign it to bring the Season Finale to Cincy. No mention exactly where in Cincinnati though. Here's the link: Finale Petition Also, the Cincinnati Enquirer ran an article last year which mentions Kings Island as a potential place to hold the Finale: Cincinnati Enquirer October 8, 2002

When the parking lot was full and they closed it, did they also close the ticket/season pass entrances? Were visitors able to park at other locations and still walk in? I wonder what happened to those people who were at the park earlier in the day and got stamped and left, only to try to return and the parking lot was closed? Bet they were not happy campers...

Thank you CoasterRZ for the info on how they sell the Gold Passes. When I didn't see the regular passes being sold right now, I thought that maybe KI did away with having the different passes. Thank you so much for clearing that up for me! :-) Thank you for all the other posts and to FoF for the link!!! I was happy to see the Gold Pass Parking still there, as well as the early ride times and 2 for Tuesdays. I noticed their Bring-A-Friend Free Days was not updated. I went to one of those last year and it was just crazy. Way too crowded. The parking lot was at full and they stopped letting people in. Traffic was backed up in front of the park... people were getting mad and would just drive through the grass to sneak in... ahhhh what fun! Think I might skip Bring A Friend days this year.

Last year, KI made a distinction between Season Passes. You could purchase a regular season pass OR a gold pass. This time, looks like they are only selling Gold Season Passes (that's all I could find offered on their website). I'm just curious about the parking. If I flashed my "Gold" Pass last year, I got to park in that "special" gold pass only parking area. Any idea what they are doing for this year? I have to admit, that Gold Pass Parking area came in handy numerous times last year. Other park visitors who did not have a gold pass were going frantic on crowded days trying to find a parking spot... and many times I was able to just flash my gold pass and find a nice parking spot. A few times the gold pass area was full, but more times than not, that special parking area was great!

Personally, I would be thrilled if Graveyard Shift and its original cast could return :-) I agree with Return_of_Yogi... I like shows with some kind of story line. I can remember the show Entertainment Tonight. It had a lot of talented dancers, but there were no singers OR plot. Just a few different dancing segments and watching Mary Hart on the TV screens while the dancers changed clothing for the next dance number. Graveyard Shift, on the other hand, had a nice balance of dancers, great singers, some acting and a story line. I would be happy with more shows similar to Graveyard Shift. As for the magic show... I don't know. Guess we'll have to wait and see. A few years back there was a magic show in the Paramount Theatre... I didn't care for it. But, it does has one plus... in the hot summer months or when it's pouring down, it's nice to duck into the Paramount Theatre, get cool and catch a show. Whereas, a show at the International Showplace will either get canceled from a storm or you melt in the sun while you watch a show. I was surpised to hear there may be a show at the Backporch. The stage and area seems so small and cramped.... do shows there pull in a lot of guests? I also noticed an earlier post where KI added an additional auditioning date of March 1. Has KI ever held an audition this last? Is the park having trouble filling Entertainment positions for this year? Was just curious. I always thought show rehearsals started towards the end of February.

Hi Shadow. "Patch" was not replaced.... he was there throughout the entire show cycle. I know that at least two other Graveyard Shift performers would fill in for him on his days off, but the main "Patch" performed the entire season. I hope he's back this season as that guy is incredibly talented ;-) SML828, thank you for the info on your Ushering. Goodness, I bet you knew those shows by heart... bet you knew every word to every song and even the dance moves! You probably could have been up on stage performing. Bingog34, sounds like you had an awesome time when Medusa danced with you! Any ladies out there dance with Dr Funk during the part of the show where he came into the audience? I'm a bit shy, so I steered clear from that side of the theatre :-)

I remember "Retro: Repeat the Beat"... that was a good show. Being an usher SML828, did they rotate you on the different shows or did you work the same show all season? I agree with italianchef... Graveyard Shift was the best show I've seen come through Kings Island. It even won a Big-E award at the 2002 IAAPA awards. The music was great, the sets, the choreography, and of course... the cast. They were all great, but must admit that "Patch" was my favorite :-)

Sounds like a rough schedule for Entertainers! They put in a lot of time and work doing the shows. Plus, with all the rehearsals and practices prior to that... they must not have too much free time. Thanks SML828 for clearing up that 2003 show page for me. I didn't think those were the correct shows. It's a shame that they are changing the Entertainment setup this year. I read in one of your posts about it being "in-house" productions. That puts a lot of pressure on KI and their Entertainment Dept to come up with shows.... the songs, the sets, the choreography, etc etc. What a huge task that must be.

I was just surfing the net and came across a website that appears to be listing the 2003 show lineup for KI. Could this be correct? Take a look at:2003 Shows Page What's everyone's take on this?

Thank you for the replies Return_of_Yogi and teenageninja. There was some great talent at the park last year. I don't see how anything could top Graveyard Shift, so I'm anxious to see the new shows for this year. Teenageninja, you mentioned something about the 'schedule'... is it awful for the Entertainers? Have they already started rehearsing for the 2003 season?

Does anyone know if any of the entertainers from the 2002 shows (Graveyard Shift, Love My Country, etc) will be back performing in the 2003 shows? The guy who played "Patch" in Graveyard Shift is very talented. Was just wondering if he would be back for another season.