In each of our childhood’s, we have experienced moments when we thought we knew exactly what we wanted to do in life. Children tend to spurt out their future occupations, as if it’s a well-known fact. For example, when I was little, all of my friends would tell me they were going to be an astronaut, a doctor, a firefighter, and so on. At the time, we believe that we know exactly what we want for ourselves in the future. It’s ironic how sometimes, little kids have a clearer idea of what career path they would like to follow, than college students. As to be expected, most kids don’t actually go into the field they imagined for themselves when they were little. However, I was another story.
My parents took me to Disney for the first time when I was just six months old. Of course, I don’t remember any of it, but they had always loved Disney, and they were hoping that they could create the same love for me. I don’t remember much of these trips from when I was that little, but some of my first memories were from Walt Disney World. Each time we would attend, my parents would always hear me saying, “I’m going to work for Disney one day.” At first, they would laugh it off, and tell me that people who work there don’t make a ton of money. However, they never shut down the idea completely for me. They suggested that I could work there part-time in the future, or find a program that would enable me to work there temporarily. They probably thought that my Disney fantasy would soon fizzle out in my head, as if it were a phase that I would eventually become too old for. However, the more we went to Disney, the more my signature phrase would sound like a reality. At fourteen, I discovered the “Disney College Program”, which accepts a certain number of college students from around the world to work in Disney for a semester. Now, I’m eighteen years old, and still stress to my family, friends, or anyone that will listen, that I will work there one day, and now, I have the perfect program to do that with.
The role I wish to pursue in Disney, is a character performer. This group includes fur characters like mickey mouse, and face characters like the princesses. For this specific role, there is a tough audition hopefuls must pass, in order to work for Disney. When I discovered this, I found myself stuck with what seemed like hundreds of questions about the auditions. When and where were they held? What is required for each? How long do they last? I’m the kind of person to accidentally work myself up over the slightest of things, so the idea of auditioning for Disney became very daunting for me. Luckily, there are millions of blogs and vlogs out on the internet from people that have gone to a Disney College Program audition, sometimes even more than one, and have successfully made it in. These blog posts and videos are full of information about the different experiences people have had when auditioning, and what to expect going in. In one video made by Mackenzie Brown, a young adult that made it past her audition, she says “I watched a ton of videos… and when I got there, I felt I was very mentally prepared in what was going to come.” (Mackenzie Brown. “How to be Successful at Disney Auditions”). It seemed like everything I had wanted to know, was laid out right before me. This made me wonder, what was it like for people who didn’t have these videos to reference? My old vocal teacher, Julie Smith, worked for Disney in the 1980s, so she was the perfect person to ask.
Julie had told me that she originally found out about the Disney audition from her friends in theatre class. She joined a group of girls that were all auditioning together, and discussed with them what they should expect when they go to try out. She also had help from her drama teacher, who worked with her to make her dance technique, improvisation skills, and audition songs perfect. She explained to me that her main motivation for the job, was that she could be doing what she loved, in a place that she loved. The fact that she was getting paid for all of this, was just the icing on the cake, which is very similar to the way I feel about why I want to work for Disney. Her teacher became the equivalent of online sources for her, and that is how she prepared for her audition. Once the time finally came to try out for Disney, she felt very comfortable with her material, and what she could bring to the company. There were many rounds that she had to get through in order to be hired, with each round knocking about 50-100 girls out of the competition each time, but she finally made it through. Julie said all she had to do, was remember what she had practiced and learned, and the joyous smile that is needed to work for Disney just came naturally to her. She felt that at the time, she didn’t need advice from others online, and if she had the option of going back in time, and being able to watch some videos before her audition, she wouldn’t. She found everything she needed in her friends and teacher, and she was offered “one of the best jobs [she has] had to date.”
This is a chapter of my life that I am thrilled to jump into. If I’m lucky, I could start living my dream as soon as summer 2018. Through all of the help from the blogs and vlogs online, I know I will be ready for the audition, when I finally get my chance to shine.
