SeaWorld Orlando revealed they will begin 2020 by changing their centrepiece killer-whale show to a new.
The Florida theme park will be replacing their signature show ‘One Ocean’, which debuted in April 2011, with a new program called ‘Orca Encounter’ starting January 1 at Shamu Stadium.
‘One Ocean’ revolved around a conversation theme and was SeaWorld’s first show that did not place special trainers inside the water with the killer whales.
Those changes came after the death of a SeaWorld Orlando senior trainer who was pulled into the water and drowned when one of the killer whales grabbed her ponytail.
Dr. Chris Dold, SeaWorld Chief Zoological Officer described the ‘Orca Encounter’ program as ‘educational.’
SeaWorld Orlando will be shuttering their ‘One Ocean’ performance and begin the ‘Orca Encounter’ program staring January 1
‘Guests will learn about killer whales’ role in the ocean ecosystem, behaviors the animals exhibit in the wild, the importance of conservation to their habitat and animal welfare practices at SeaWorld,’ he told The Orlando Sentinel.
‘This educational presentation reflects our company’s mission to inspire people and protect the animals and wild wonders of our world through education, research, animal rescue and conservation.’
The new show is ‘the continuing evolution’ of SeaWorld shows, according to Dennis Speigel, CEO of International Theme Park Services.
Dold: ‘This educational presentation reflects our company’s mission to inspire people and protect the animals and wild wonders of our world through education, research, animal rescue and conservation’
SeaWorld Orlando entered headlines after one of the theme park’s killer whales killed a trainer on 2010
‘They’ve got a new regime now, and I’m sure they’ve looked at this and studied it and said this will help put us back on track and this is the wave, literally, of the future.’
This latest shakeup comes after Sergio Rivera took over as the SeaWorld Parks CEO last month, making him the fifth CEO in just two years, Orlando Weekly reports.
After former CEO Joel Manby suddenly resigned in February 2018, an exodus of sorts occurred that would reportedly see nearly every single executive at the company leaving.
Rivera’s appointment coincided with a nearly 3 percent attendance drop in the third-quarter earnings, some of which can be attributed to Hurricane Dorian.
SeaWorld has continued to build rides throughout the years, but the company has been fostering a growing interest in conversation.
‘They’ve got a new regime now, and I’m sure they’ve looked at this and studied it and said this will help put us back on track and this is the wave, literally, of the future,’ Speigel said.
Sergio Rivera (pictured) became CEO of SeaWorld Parks in 2019
‘There are a lot of areas particularly globally…that are looking at the natural, educational experiences more of the come and explain, show and tell.’
‘Orca Encounter’ has taken stage at SeaWorld San Francisco for a few years, with the production focusing on the whales inside their tanks backed by visuals.
A narrator presents facts about the whales with SeaWorld trainers standing on the edge of the water, acutely emphasizing the push for education.
Program subjects range from whales’ physical attributes, their hunting techniques and behaviors.
Despite SeaWorld’s new program format,’ the whales perform some of the same routine features in ‘One Ocean’, like the familiar goodbye wave they give the crowd at the end of the 23-minute show.
Currently, SeaWorld has 20 orcas at their United States parks, including five in Orlando, five in San Antonio and 10 in San Diego.
SeaWorld came under public scrutiny after the 2012 publication of the novel ‘Death at SeaWorld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity’ by David Kirby and the 2013 documentary Blackfish.
Additonally, groups like PETA have asked the company to transfer the animals to coastal sanctuaries.
Blackfish argued that SeaWorld Orlando’s treatment of killer whales was both physically and psychologically damaging to the animals, resulting in violent and neurotic behavior.
The movie accused the animals living their lives in captivity under stressful circumstances the catalysts for dangerous actions.
One of the tragic examples of this was the death of Dawn Brancheau, 40, on February 24, 2010.
Brancheau was reportedly working with a whale named Tilikum in knee deep water when the animal grabbed her by the ponytail and submerged her underwater.
Dawn Brancheau, 40, (pictured) was killed in April 2010 after a whale grabbed onto her ponytail and submerged her into a pool for 45 minutes
Pictured: The body of Brancheau can be seen under black tarp after rescue crews were able to retrieve her from the water
Tilikum did not release Brancheau for 45 minutes and rescue teams were not able to reach the whale until he was herded into a smaller section of the pool.
An autopsy from the Orange County, Florida, medical examiner found that Brancheau’s spinal chord was severed and she sustained injuries to her jawbone, cervical vertebra and ribs.
Tilikum was previously involved in two other deaths, including drowning a previous trainer at a British Columbia marine park who he fell into the pool in 1991.
In 1999, Tilikum was blamed for the death of a 27-year-old man whose naked body was found floating inside a SeaWorld pool.
Authorities said the man was a victim of Tilikum’s ‘horseplay’ after he allegedly hid inside the theme park until it closed and then climbed into the whale’s tank.
In 2006, trainer Ken Peters suffered a broken foot and puncture wounds after a whale named Kasatka pulled him to the bottom of a pool by his feet.
Since the release of Blackfish, other SeaWorld trainers have accused the theme park of drugging the whales and malpractice.
Jeffrey Ventre, who worked for eight years at SeaWorld Orlando, claimed the whales were drugged, deprived of food to encourage them to perform and some ‘self-mutilated’ due to stress.
During his time with the theme park, he noticed whales grinding their teeth and scratching each other.
He said: ‘There was a lot of self-mutilation. Jaw popping was regularly seen – it’s a threat display between two orcas.
‘The job is more akin to a stunt man or clown performing with captive animals using food deprivation as a motivator.’
He also alleged that the whales were given ‘Valium to calm their aggression.’
Trainer John Hargrove, who resigned in 2012, also spoke about killer whales being medicated while he was at the theme park.
He said: ‘I worked with some whales that were on medication every day of their life and have personally watched whales die at very young ages from disease.’
Since the release of Blackfish, some SeaWorld trainers have publicly spoken out against the company and accused them of malpractice
During his career, Hargrove has been involved with 10 waterwork aggression incidents where he was held under water by killer whales.
In response to the allegations, SeaWorld maintained that they valued safety and welfare above all else.
A SeaWorld spokesperson told MailOnline: ‘These are many of the same tired, false and misleading claims uninformed activists and disgruntled former employees have been repeating for years.
‘Our animal welfare practices are accredited and reviewed by organizations such as American Humane, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums and U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, so any notion that SeaWorld abuses animals is categorically false.
‘The fact is, no one does more to protect marine mammals and advance cetacean research, rescue and conservation than the more than 1,000 dedicated animal care experts at SeaWorld.’