Julie Pici Unmasked

While “Cinderella’s Surprise Celebration” was on hiatus (usually Christmas time or if they had to do work on the stage) I would be billed out for what we called Streetmosphere.  Characters of all sorts (non-Disney animated ones) would interact with the guests in different parts of the park.  We would also be a source of entertainment while the guests would wait for the parade to start.

This was the hardest part of my Equity contract.  I was not blessed with the talent of improvisation and had to quickly learn how to react and support other actors within the improv circle.  It’s one thing to “improv” on stage if you forget your lines, or if someone else does, or if something goes wrong.  It’s completely another skillset if you’re sent out with a name, a costume and a very general character analysis and are told “Go make magic.”  It sounds easy, but I quickly saw that it’s a team effort - if you’re working with a team.  If you’re on your own, you can do whatever you want.  If you’re working with someone else, there is a skill that you need to learn to “set up” your other team members, and never let them falter, in order to have a successful “skit”.  There are no scripts, no rehearsals, just a basic knowledge of what to do and what not to do + just about anything goes.

 Here are a few pictures of me as Rhoda Gravure (a gag name from Roto Gravure, a magazine from the early 1900’s).  The character analysis was I was a fashion journalist commenting on guests resort wear.  When I first started out, I tried very hard to be that character, but found it difficult and a lttle unnerving to call-out one’s choice of clothing.  You had to do it right, or you could easily hurt the guest’s feelings. No one got the name or what I was trying to do - in fact I would get hounded for autographs from children calling me Mary Poppins or worse, one of the ugly stepsisters (although I think it would be a blast to play one of them).

They had the 4 day equity Cindy playing the part of a young tom-boy girl who didn’t want to be prissy, or grow up.  She got to have the Nellie Olson blonde hair with curls and the long dress. I also thought that we should’ve been switched as characters.  I play the Peter Pan girl and she play the working girl, due to our costumes. If I was an older girl, who was working, I didn’t think that I would be wearing a shorter dress - but the longer one. But to no avail, they wouldn’t switch us. She and I both just didn’t fit our characters analysis when we put on our costumes.  We just weren’t feelin’ it.  So, against their wishes (and to my demise) I would call myself Rhoda Horsensteer, and portray my character as a young girl who just got off the train, from the country, to live in the big city of Main Street USA. I had so much fun going up to guests and asking what this was and what that was and if they could tell me where so-in-so was, or what did they do for a living here, etc…It was so much better than ragging on people’s clothing.  The funny (and I don’t mean laughing) thing is that not once did “they” (the powers that be at WDW) give me notes on what I could do or not do, while I was doing it.  In fact they said “great show”. I wish, so much, that they had sat me down and told me certain things, but since I didn’t hear anything bad, and I was following other veteran’s leads, I figured I was doing well. 

Actor’s Mental Note:  Always make the first move for notes.