Who hasn't dreamed of becoming a princess? A former Disney princess reveals what actually happened in the Magic Kingdom, including 17 details about the audition, the job, and Prince Charming.
A Carefully Orchestrated Plan
“The operation is very organized. Cinderella is in the parade, doing the breakfast, lunch and dinner rotation at Cinderella’s castle, and she is in the princess room. She’s also in the night parade and the main stage show at Magic Kingdom. That’s at least ten girls who are Cinderella in one day. It’s awesome to think about the fact that you never see two together.” source
“Kids can be very aggressive.”
“Kids can be very aggressive, usually rough-housing, but most of the time they’re coming at performers who know how to handle any kind of light abuse. But you would not BELIEVE how many parents say ‘Hit him, punch him, do it!'”
Nine Hour Shifts
“For Mulan I did a 40 minute set with 20 minute break. I did this for nine hours with a lunch in the middle of the day. But my meet and greet was outdoors. If you are indoors, you could do up to an hour and a half at a time.”
“Fur characters are never outside for more than…”
“Fur characters are never outside for more than 30 minutes, and no more than 20 minutes during the summer. If it’s an indoor location, they’re not out for more than 45 minutes.” source
The Audition Process
“There is an entire casting team who chooses what role you play. The audition involves acting like the character, dressing up like the character and having photos taken of you. They call if you are approved. You do not have any say in what character they pick. You could look exactly like Cinderella, but if they do not need to hire any more Cinderellas, you may not get chosen.”
Nobody Starts As A Disney Princess
“Everyone is hired initially as a “Character Performer.” You are not allowed to learn a “Face Role” (the characters that talk to guests) unless you have had training as a fur character first, like Mickey Mouse. I had five days of fur character training, which was three days of animation, autograph practice, and two days meeting guests as a fur character. After you are approved for the fur character training, you are allowed to move on to face character training. You have two days of training per face character you’re given. Day 1 is watching the movie, learning how to walk, talk and act. Day 2 is meet and greets with guests.”
No Singing Allowed!
“We’re not allowed to sing for meet and greets. There are certain people who sing as the princesses, like Belle in the Beauty and the Beast show at Hollywood studios, but they are under an equity contract.”
The Extensive Makeup Routine
“You are scheduled to clock in one hour before your first meet and greet. This is when you do your makeup and put on your costume. They provide all of the makeup. You’re taught how to do the makeup in your training for the character since each character has a very specific makeup profile with certain colors. All of my characters were pretty easy, but there are characters like Darth Maul and Ahsoka Tano who require professionals to do it for them since it’s so extensive.” source
Wigs Are A Princess’s Best Friend
“Cosmetologists styled our wigs every day. They were all period-appropriate because Disney pays a lot of attention to detail. At the end of the day, I took my wig off and the cosmetologists would wash it and blow it out every night.”
“I’d get slipped the occasional…”
“I was hit on as Pocahontas more than Mulan or Silvermist, and it definitely has to do with the amount of clothing she’s wearing. I’ve never been touched inappropriately, but there’s always the family that makes the grandpa or the dad get a picture alone and they’d whisper how pretty I was or ask when I got off off work. I’d get slipped the occasional phone number on a napkin, but nothing ridiculous has ever happened.” source
“Most Kids Are Shy”
“Most kids are shy when they come up to meet you. In all honesty, I’ve had thousands of conversations with people where I’m the only one talking” source
Out of Character Experiences
“I worked a 14-hour day and saw the last family, who were nice, but I wanted to go home. As soon as they exited the room, I immediately pulled off my wig and went “Aw YES!” The little girl ran back in and said “Bye guys! Bye Tinkerbell! Bye Silvermist! Bye Rosetta!”I was holding my weave in my hand. RIP child’s dreams.” source
How To Ace An Audition
“If you want to prepare for the audition watch videos of the fur characters on youtube and try to mimic what they do. That can be a basis of how to pass an audition. Take some simple dance class if you’re feeling nervous.”
Smiling All Of The Time Can Be Hard, But It’s Totally Worth It
“It is like any job in hospitality. People are paying money to receive a certain experience and my job was to accommodate them. If I was ever upset about something in my life, there would be at least one child/parent who would be so awesome it made me remember how great the job is.” source
The Truth About Prince Charming
“Most of the guys who play the Disney princes are gay.” source
“Most of it was improv.”
“I did a lot of training on the voice. My voice is naturally high, but Snow White’s is even higher. There are a lot of specific hand motions you have to do, but most of it was improv. If a little girl came up to me with an apple shirt on, I’d say, ‘Oh, I don’t eat those anymore!'” source
“I always had to have a smile on my face.”
“I always had to have a smile on my face. They were very strict in terms of how we greet guests, but I like greeting people in a positive way and I felt that working in an environment that promotes positivity trickled down into my personal life.”