Whilst it is not the first initial fact about myself that I tell people upon first meetings, ‘princessing’ is possibly my most interesting asset. On a weekly basis, I spend copious amounts of time perfecting makeup and brushing and styling wigs in order to fulfill the dreams of Princess-loving children, and in some cases adults across the city of Plymouth. This is a magical and fascinating industry to be involved in, although it requires thick skin and copious amounts of hard work, but it is not without its rewards.The feeling you are greeted with after a magical, ideal party, after receiving the biggest hug from a child that shows you just how much they believe in the wonder, and on rare occasions, even the hug that you receive from the parent of a birthday child tells you just how much they needed to see their little one happy. The small details make all of the hard work in vocal training, makeup, costume maintenance and wig-upkeep feel absolutely necessary to bring light and magic to a family’s life in what can only be described as the somewhat gloomy waters of today’s society.
After being a princess character performer and entertainer for around 2 and a half years now, I have been to my fair share of children’s birthday parties to have experienced some that are nothing short of magical, and some on the opposite end of the spectrum that make to be interesting ice-breakers as a first year university student. On one occasion that fits into the latter, I was in the middle of singing as a certain “Tangled” princess, dancing around as gracefully as one can when holding up a five-foot plaited wig with only their neck for support. Thankful of the pre-party vocal warm-up I had completed and nearing the end of the song, I heard the words from a child’s mouth that no performer wants to hear: “Rapunzel, catch this!” In an almost cinematic state of slow-motion replay, my short-lived confusion was rudely awakened by the feeling of a small smack across my face, looking to the once clear floor to see a chicken nugget. A child had launched a chicken nugget at me, and I have since considered this an act of reward for my musical efforts. I did, understandably, not eat the chicken nugget.
However, for every funny story I have to tell, there are ten adorable and heart-warming ones, these have come to be my favorites. Some of the parties that I have attended as a princess have caused me to leave with such an extensive sense of pride, and it is purely because of this job that my confidence is so vastly improved than before. One example of this is one of the more magical memories of this job, performing as Anna with my incredibly talented colleague as Elsa, visiting a set of sisters to give them both advent calendars and spread some Christmas magic after a very difficult and trying few years. Taking things like this into account is what makes the memories for these children so much more enchanting, and these days of ‘princessing’ at Christmas, especially as the Frozen sisters are possibly my most treasured days to work.
As the Winter period closes, I have begun to reflect on just how lucky it is to be a part of such a wonderful industry that creates the magic I dreamed of growing up watching Disney movies as a child, thinking about how a younger and notably sassier me would react if told about the things she would grow up to do, the friends that she would find in the loveliest company as a result of it. In today’s society, there is an awful lot of negativity and deep sadness in current events, but in light of this, taking inspiration from the icon that is Hugh Grant in Love Actually, I have found that if you look for it, magic can be found in the darkest of times, all around.