Welcome back Gina! I'm so glad you enjoyed your cruise last year on the Disney Fantasy! Planning your first Disney cruise is really fun, but I think that planning your second (and third, and fourth...) is even more fun because you already have a great idea of how it all works! But, there are still many more surprises to come! Especially if you'll be sailing on a different ship, which it sounds like you will.
On the Fantasy, you enjoyed two show nights in Animator's Palate: Animation Magic (where you drew your own characters and watched them come to life), and Undersea Magic (where Crush probably spoke right with your family!). This year's five-night sailings are offered on the Magic and the Wonder. The "show" nights are different on these two ships, and only one show is offered on the shorter five-night sailings. So, if you dine only once in Animator's Palate, that will be "show" night for you there. The Magic has a brand new
Drawn To Magic dinner show where you'll see sketches come to life throughout the night on the walls, slowly being colored in, and ending in an amazing video montage of some of the best Disney moments. It's enough to bring tears to your eyes - ahem, I say this from a bit of experience! There is another show on the Magic, the Animation Magic show, but it is only offered on sailings of seven nights or more.
The Wonder also offers a great show night in Animator's Palate, though it's not quite as elaborate as those on the other ships. Again, on five-night sailings, this will be on your first or only night at Animator's Palate.
So, no worries about missing out on a show in Animator's - you'll get the full experience no matter which dining rotation you have!
I hope that helps as you plan your next sailing! Let me know if you have any other questions, Gina!