What it's REALLY like to be a part-time 'princess'

Jenna Bell

Just like some of the characters she plays, Jenna Bell never set out to become a princess. It was a happy twist of fate that led her to become a princess-for-hire on the children's party circuit.

With a degree in animation from Ringling College of Art and Design in Sarasota, Florida, Bell moved to Atlanta, Georgia, to start her career as a 3D artist for Turner Broadcasting.

It was in Atlanta during a Halloween parade that she was discovered.

Dressed as the Snow Queen, Bell says she couldn't walk ten feet without people stopping her for pictures, and she was eventually approached by someone holding children's events at a nearby ice-rink — they needed a Snow Queen character for their parties.

"At first I was timid about it all. I've never acted in my life, I'm terrible in crowds, and I kept asking my friends, 'Is this weird? Do people do this?'"

Upon the encouragement of a good friend, Bell decided to give the gig a try. "Everything just spiraled from there," she says. Along the way she's made many friends in the industry, including her business partner, who originally hired her to work princess parties with Ever After Entertainment, "and it's become a part of my life I don't think I can live without now."

Bell currently splits her time between working as a graphic artist on weekdays, playing a princess on the weekends, visiting sick and underprivileged children with a nonprofit called Princesses With A Purpose in her spare time, and planning the opening of fairytale party venue The Enchanted Cottage with her business partner.

In addition to scouring Bell's recent Reddit AMA, we spoke to her to find out what it's really like to be a part-time princess. Here's what she said:

A typical day as a 'princess'

"If the event is small, like a birthday party, then we will arrive with some entertainment like books, music, and face paints. We start by greeting the children with hugs and 'hellos' so they warm up to us.

"Many parents ask for us to just come in with this grand entrance of singing and dancing, but we have to explain, even though we are the child's 'favorite character,' that will still scare them and they will hide behind your leg the whole time. It's better to ease into it, because the kids can be nervous too!

"From there we read stories, sing songs, take pictures, and participate in games. It takes about an hour per party, and if you have a full day, then you have to calculate driving times between events.

"If it's bigger events, or meet and greets, then usually we are ushered into an area that is designated for our character set up by the people hosting the event. They'll have a line ready to go, and instead of providing entertainment we just take a few moments with each child, give them a warm hug and take a picture. We may be there for anywhere from an hour to four hours, and we have to always be in character and make sure each family walks away with a smile."

Requirements of the job

"Having poise, an infectious laugh, a great smile, and a lovely singing voice always helps. Who doesn't love to hear a princess sing?

"You definitely also want princesses to follow certain requirements for appearances. We want the princess to look similar enough that each child believes they're always meeting the same Cinderella."

Playing different princesses

"While I mostly play the Snow Queen, how I play each princess depends on the attitude and mannerisms of that character.

"The Snow Queen for example is very calm and collected, while her sister is much more silly and playful.

"If you are a mermaid character, then you have to pretend to like things mermaids would like. You have to actually put yourself in that princess's headspace, take in her story and what she has experienced, and think, 'How would she act right now? How would she answer this question?' So if someone asked my favorite food, as a mermaid I may say my favorite food is seaweed salads, while other princesses may favor chocolate."