Finding Belonging on the Cinderella Castle Stage: Meet Stella
Magical work location? Check! Reaching career goals? Check! Meet Stella Crall, a dancer in Mickey's Magical Friendship Faire at Walt Disney World Resort!
“Working for Disney has always been a career goal of mine. I grew up visiting Disneyland throughout my childhood and always thought it would be incredibly special to work there,” said Stella.
Stella first began attending auditions while majoring in dance at the University of California, Irvine.
“Although my first few Disney auditions did not result in an opportunity to work for the company, I continued to dance and gain other professional performance experience. A friend encouraged me to submit for Disney World again and I am grateful to now have the opportunity to dance on the castle stage.”
Working for Disney fulfills a goal for Stella to continue to perform professionally and be part of the Disney magic at a dream stage. While it can be a challenge to keep each show as exciting and fresh as her debut, she is motivated by the thousands of guests in the audience.
“The most rewarding aspect is when I look out and see the excitement on the guests’ faces, especially knowing that for many of them, it is their first time experiencing the show or even being at Disney World. Remembering those moments inspires me to strive to make each show special.”
In addition to the live reaction of the crowd, Stella recalls advice she received earlier in her career:
“My favorite saying is one my dad said to me before my first professional show, ‘May every dance be your best dance.’ For me, it's a reminder to make each moment onstage meaningful and to dance as well as I can.”
One of Stella’s favorite parts of working at Disney is performing with her fellow cast members. Though they all had different paths to their careers at Disney, they have endless support for one another onstage and backstage.
“Inclusion represents a commitment to creating an environment where people feel like their ideas and unique selves can be seen and heard. My favorite line in Mickey’s Magical Friendship Faire is ‘a hope and a wish and off we go to a place we all belong.’ I think that is what inclusion means to me, belonging.”
Stella is hopeful that Disney’s stories and the representation seen on stage at Disney parks are a source of encouragement for future generations.
“With so many different cultures, backgrounds, and perspectives being shown, it allows people to find a story they can relate to. I hope our stories encourage people to find uniqueness and confidence in themselves and promote empathy towards others with stories different from their own.”
Stella is inspired each day by thinking back to her younger self who dreamed of a professional dance career.
“I have achieved so much more in my dance career than I ever imagined was possible and that motivates me to continue to keep working as hard as possible.”
For audition hopefuls, Stella shared this advice: keep going and put yourself out there!
“A successful audition is one where you leave feeling happy with how the audition went. It can be easy to get caught up in callbacks or not receiving an offer, so I’ve tried to change the narrative to focus on feeling good about what I was able to present. Things can sometimes work out in the way they need to, even if it does not seem so at the time, so just keep striving for your aspirations.”
