In honor of Who Killed Ariel?: A Princess Murder Mystery, I thought I’d let you in on a little secret. When you see the show, you may wonder - wow, that Belle is so princessy and beautiful, it’s like she’s an actual princess! Well folks, it’s your lucky day. I actually worked at Disney World in the beautiful Kissimmee, FL. Everyone who knew me before says “Ah yes that’s Bailey, she worked at Disney and that’s her only interesting quality.” Everyone who met me after says “Wait, you worked for Disney? What princess were you?”
And that’s where we’ll start our little Q and A.
What princess were you?
Snow White.
At least that’s what I told people after I was asked for the 100th time. I thought Snow White was the least controversial, people wouldn’t question Snow White. Plus I can fake her shaky vintage soprano pretty well.
Believe it or not, there are thousands more jobs at Disney that aren’t face characters. What I actually did was sell Merchandise. Retail in the Magic Kingdom. Lots of wailing children, adults speaking Portuguese and trying to pass it off as Spanish, and entitled retirees who cut in line to ask how much something is even though there is a clear price on the tag. I worked in Tomorrowland, a concrete wasteland during the day, but actually pretty cool at night. I had to wear mom shorts and a retro-futuristic shirt that was way too big. Ever pay to get your Space Mountain picture printed? I may have helped you out.
But why weren’t you a princess?
At auditions, they have you stand in a room with over 500 other 20 year old women, then they call you up in groups of 50. When you walk up to the casting table, they look at your face, call one name out of 50, and the rest of you cry in the bus on the way home. I auditioned four times. I chalked it up to my eyes and teeth not being big enough. Because I am a *princess* no doubt about it. They just couldn’t see it.
What was the best part of working at Disney?
The Wishes Fireworks show. Just look it up.
What was the worst part of working at Disney?
There is a tunnel underneath the Magic Kingdom. In that tunnel, there are hundreds of pipes on the ceiling, all hauling sewage and garbage. Sometimes those pipes drip. Sometimes they drip when you’re in the middle of talking and garbage juice gets in your mouth and you sweat trash the rest of the day.
Who is your favorite Disney Princess?
Belle from Beauty and the Beast. And not just because I play her in Who Killed Ariel. When The Princess and the Frog was released, there was a lot of talk about representation and how important it is. I agree completely and I’m glad Disney is slowly incorporating all different ethnicities and body types (it’s about damn time.) Girls need someone to look up to that looks like them. That’s why I like Belle so much - she was a brunette who loved to read and the town thought she was weird. She really spoke to a brown haired girl who liked to read and whose peers thought she was weird. Love you, Belle.
Any last tidbits of info?
Gaston is hot, owns a successful brewery, beautiful cape collection, could carry me to safety in the event of a house fire… And come see Who Killed Ariel playing at the Phoenix Theater in October!