Disney California Adventure said Tuesday that its popular World of Color show will remain closed until next year, squelching speculation by fans that it might reopen in time for the holidays. It’s been closed since April, after going down under mysterious circumstances.

“We know our guests love World of Color and we have been working diligently to bring this experience back as soon as we can,” resort spokeswoman Liz Jaeger said Tuesday. “We are hopeful the show will return in the next several months.”

The 22-minute-long water spectacle that typically takes place nightly in a lagoon at Pixar Pier is one of the most popular shows ever at Disney California Adventure. It debuted in 2010 featuring some 1,200 musical fountains that put on a sound and light show.

From 2016: Fountains fly into the air, lit with a multitude of colors in the “World of Color – Season of Light” show that takes place during the 2016 holiday season at Disney California Adventure. (File photo by Mark Eades)

From 2016: Stitch from the Disney Animation movie “Lilo and Stitch” is projected onto a water screen during the “World of Color – Season of Light” show. (File photo by Mark Eades)

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From 2016: Fountains are shaped like a water flowing Christmas Tree as part of the “World of Color – Season of Light” show that takes place during the 2016 holiday season at Disney California Adventure. (File photo by Mark Eades)

From 2016: Images from the Disney/Pixar film “Finding Dory” are projected onto the fountains that make a water screen as part of the “World of Color – Season of Light” show that takes place during the 2016 holiday season at Disney California Adventure. (File photo by Mark Eades)

From 2016: The fountains erupt into flames as Goofy tries to decorate for Christmas as part of the “World of Color – Season of Light” show that takes place during the 2016 holiday season at Disney California Adventure. (File photo by Mark Eades)



From 2016: A fountain streams more than 100 feet into the air during the finale of the “World of Color – Season of Light” show that takes place during the 2016 holiday season at Disney California Adventure. (File photo by Mark Eades)

Disney typically offers a dining and entertainment package for a meal and a reserved space to watch Disney California Adventure’s “World of Color” light and water show. (File photo by Bill Alkofer)

Reservations are not accepted at the walk-in Cove Bar, top right, above Ariel’s Grotto overlooking Paradise Bay at Disney California Adventure. Cove Bar will double in size expected before the end of 2015. As the sun sets, depending on the season, it is blinding to look towards the water. (File photo by Cindy Yamanaka)

From 2015: World of Color as seen from the then-Cove Bar. (File photo by Jeff Gritchen)

It has been closed since April after an unexpected incident that occurred during routine maintenance. Accounts differ over exactly what caused the malfunction — and Disney has not elaborated publicly — but it was significant enough to shut down the entire show for many months.

There had been widespread speculation and even a video posted on Facebook by MiceChat.com showing testing of the show in its lagoon indicating that the show might still reopen in time for the Christmas holidays.

Disney officials said Tuesday that World of Color is a one-of-a-kind show with extremely complicated systems, including a one-of-kind fountain and that everything has to work together. During regularly scheduled maintenance in April, components that run the show that were supposed to be submerged in the lagoon were damaged and could not be properly submerged, requiring extensive repairs.

“There was a major incident,” Disney author David Koenig said in October, saying he was precluded from providing any further details. “It would make a wonderfully dramatic story.” He correctly predicted then that the show would not reopen this year.

The ambitious World of Color took five years to plan and build in a 3.5-acre lagoon filled with 15 million gallons of water. It’s based on the idea of a “Fantasia” using water, light, color, music and animation. It uses some 1,200 programmable fountains and an underwater grid with 18,000 points of control, including lighting, color intensity, water angle and height. Fountains during the show range in height from 30 feet to 200 feet. It uses 28 high-definition projectors, including 14 that are submersible.

In October, @BSeeprs85 tweeted that the “$80 million light and water display that’s super cool went down earlier this year and now we know why. During regular maintenance (an electronic) control panel was left open when the entire platform was submerged. Destroyed the computer.”

Disneyland update: World of Color? $80 million light and water display that’s super cool went down earlier this year and now we know why. During regular maintenance and electionic control panel was left open when the entire platform was submerged. Destroyed the computer. — Honey Bae (@BSeeprs85) October 26, 2018

Disney officials said this account wasn’t entirely accurate but declined to provide more specific details about what happened.

Todd Regan, who runs the MiceChat.com blog under the pen name Dusty Sage, said part of the problem with the repairs is that “it’s extra hard to fix when you have to use scuba divers in the lagoon.”

MiceChat.com had previously posted video showing nighttime testing going on of the World of Color systems, leading observers to speculate it might be up and running again for the holiday season.

Disney officials agreed that the show was being tested, but that the park decided it needed further work before it could be launched again.

Regan said that’s a shame, because a nightly World of Color show could help draw people away from Disneyland, which gets so crowded over Christmas week that the park occasionally has to briefly close its gates.

“During that period, they cannot run a parade because the walkway’s not wide enough (with the holiday food booths in place,” Regan said. “So World of Color is the only true nighttime spectacular they can run this time of year.”

However, Regan said the average guest would be unlikely to be disappointed, because the show had not been advertised.

Disney officials pointed out that Disney California Adventure still offers nightly holiday shows and that the Lunar New Year festival and Food & Wine Festival will be returning next year.