A former Disneyland princess has revealed the tough demands placed on the real-life actors playing classic animated characters including Snow White, Alice In Wonderland and Tinkerbell.
Known as ‘face characters,’ the princesses not only have to look the part, they need to remember quotes from their movies, stay in character at all times, and know how to sing and dance.
A former Snow White actress, known only as Reddit user doublenn recently held an Ask Me Anything Q&A session in which she revealed how tough it can be working at Disneyland.
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In order to play a Disney princess an actor must have the right body type, the right age, and have the right temperament, reports Business Insider.
According to doublenn, becoming a Disney princess requires a long and drawn out audition process.
First the girls are checked to see which character they could potentially look like, then follow several other tests including dancing, acting in character and an interview.
There are certain height restrictions involved as a Disney princess is typically between 5ft 4inches and 5ft 7inches, although for fairies such as Tinkerbell, Alice and Wendy must be more petite - between 4ft 11inches and 5ft 2inches.
Age is another important factor. Most girls are between 18 and 23, some last until they are 27, but it is almost unheard off for a princess or fairy to be played by someone over 27.
Being a Disney princess looks easy... but is it?
Disney face characters are required to stay in character at all times and always smile
Once chosen, the lucky actors go through an intensive five day training course during which they study Disney movies so they can quote lines said by their character.
Each day requires a lot of preparation for the actor to become their character. Doublenn told Reddit that it would take her an hour to get read, including 20 minutes just putting on Snow White’s dress.
Throughout the day she was then required to touch-up her makeup to ensure she always looked her best.
Doublenn also revealed that being a face character isn’t a lucrative career and during her time as Snow White she started on $13.50 an hour which increased to $16.
Actors playing Disney princesses go through a tough selection process and their careers are over before they become 27
Disney also has lots of rules for its actors to follow, with the main one being that princesses need to remain in character at all time.
Other rules include not being allowed to sit down while working, always smiling, always doing the character's voice.
Doublenn revealed that as a result of straining her voice to sound more like Snow White over several years she developed inoperable vocal nodes.
However she also says she enjoyed her time at Disney and made some long lasting friends with the other princesses.
Rules for Disney princesses include always smiling and always talking in the voice of their character
Known as ‘face characters,’ the princesses not only have to look the part, they need to remember quotes from their movies, stay in character at all times, and know how to sing and dance.
A former Snow White actress, known only as Reddit user doublenn recently held an Ask Me Anything Q&A session in which she revealed how tough it can be working at Disneyland.
Scroll down for video
In order to play a Disney princess an actor must have the right body type, the right age, and have the right temperament, reports Business Insider.
According to doublenn, becoming a Disney princess requires a long and drawn out audition process.
First the girls are checked to see which character they could potentially look like, then follow several other tests including dancing, acting in character and an interview.
There are certain height restrictions involved as a Disney princess is typically between 5ft 4inches and 5ft 7inches, although for fairies such as Tinkerbell, Alice and Wendy must be more petite - between 4ft 11inches and 5ft 2inches.
Age is another important factor. Most girls are between 18 and 23, some last until they are 27, but it is almost unheard off for a princess or fairy to be played by someone over 27.
Being a Disney princess looks easy... but is it?
Disney face characters are required to stay in character at all times and always smile
Once chosen, the lucky actors go through an intensive five day training course during which they study Disney movies so they can quote lines said by their character.
Each day requires a lot of preparation for the actor to become their character. Doublenn told Reddit that it would take her an hour to get read, including 20 minutes just putting on Snow White’s dress.
Throughout the day she was then required to touch-up her makeup to ensure she always looked her best.
Doublenn also revealed that being a face character isn’t a lucrative career and during her time as Snow White she started on $13.50 an hour which increased to $16.
Actors playing Disney princesses go through a tough selection process and their careers are over before they become 27
Disney also has lots of rules for its actors to follow, with the main one being that princesses need to remain in character at all time.
Other rules include not being allowed to sit down while working, always smiling, always doing the character's voice.
Doublenn revealed that as a result of straining her voice to sound more like Snow White over several years she developed inoperable vocal nodes.
However she also says she enjoyed her time at Disney and made some long lasting friends with the other princesses.
Rules for Disney princesses include always smiling and always talking in the voice of their character