My Journey to Pursue My Dreams Intro

I WANT TO BE A DISNEY PRINCESS! There. I said it. It has always been a dream of mine to work at the happiest place on earth. With an estimated amount of 130 thousand guests per day and 47 million per year, Disney is the leading entertainment company to ever exist. Walt Disney World first opened in 1971 and still continues to be the best of the best today. Walter Elias Disney was the man who started the dream. He first sketched out a mouse on a train ride from Illinois to the city. This talking mouse is named Mickey Mouse. Walt soon created friends for Mickey to star in TV shows, movies, musicales, cartons, and more. Walt loved his job and his special friends, but had a bigger dream. He had a dream to make a place where kids and adults could all have fun together and where you never had to grow up. This idea sparked the creation of Disneyland, which later leads to the construction of Walt Disney World. Soon after Disneyland was completed, Walt passed away. Even though he is no longer here, his legacy continues bigger and better than ever. The Disney parks are constantly being redone, constructed, and invented. There are about 62,000 cast members working at Walt Disney World right now, and sooner or later, I plan to be one of them. The term cast member is a theater term. The cast of something is the people who make the magic and make your experience believable. The Disney Company likes to think of their parks as a big stage. The part that you play in the parks is a role and you are acting your part. I’m not saying that the employees of Disney are phonies, because they are not, they just always need to remember how important their job is for the Disney experience. They must always keep their character and not let their outside life or feelings impact their attitude that day.

There are many different characters at Disney. Some of them are called “face characters” and others are called “fur characters”. The face characters are the character look-a-likes and the fur characters don’t show any of their body and they have a mask on (for example  Mickey and Minnie Mouse). If you get cast to be a face character, you still have to be a fur character at times. You don’t get to choose which character you will be. They pick your character based on your height and looks. The auditions to become a Disney character happen many times during the year in many different locations. The audition starts out where you bring your resume and head shot, they give you a number and separate you into groups of around 50. Then they teach both groups (one after the other) a 2 8 beat simple dance (most of the time the dance consists of marching, waving your hands, twirling, etc). After they teach you the dance, they separate everyone into groups of 4 usually. All of the groups do the dance and then they announce who made the cut and who didn't  The ones that made it stay for the next round, while the ones who didn't are asked to leave. After that, they take your measurements and give you a character name, script, and costume. They doll you up, teach you your script (about 1 paragraph) and send you out in front of the casting directors again. You play the part and they tell you if you made it or not. The process is a very laid back one. They are very to the point and you can tell that they want you to be as worried free as possible. They even give you tips and pointers to help you improve because they want you to be the best you can be.

Now, I’m starting this blog to help people who have questions about Disney and its ways, but also to share the process of making my dreams (hopefully) come true. I am 17 right now and hope to audition when I am about 19, 20, or 21. I know, it seems like such a long way away, but one can never be too prepared! I invite you to take this incredible journey with me… And away we goooooooooooooooo!