The underground bunker ☢️

Hello, it's me Arts Simone, and I'm taking time out of my very exciting and extremely interesting life to introduce you to some average, ordinary people. But there's something about these regular joes that makes them fascinating the catches.

I don't know what it is, and neither do you.

We're going to figure it out together, but I'm doing most of the heavy lifting. Don't say I never do anything for you. This is concealed with me, Arts Simone.

Roll the tape.

Hi, I'm Dom I'm twenty eight years old from Sydney. I've recently done a marketing degree over in the UK and now work in the alcohol industry. I love creative writing, traveling the world, themed parties, and drinking spicy muggaritas. I also love true crime documentaries. But I'm I'm feeling something about a period of my.

Life and I can't let it go.

Hollo, Tom, how are you hi? How are you look? Amazing? Thank you very much? And so do you?

Here you are in your greenest of greens, fifty shades of green. I'm seeing there's any clues today. Also, don't hide your hands under the desk. There might be something under that I don't want to hide. Nothing to hide but an orange nail polish. So with the orange nail polish, you are giving carrot at the moment, So that could be a clue. Okay, I once dressed up as a sexy carrot. Speaking of themed parties, what do you like about a themed party?

I love a themed party, any excuse to dress up, and I'm sure we both probably have that in comments.

I don't know what you're talking about.

I have come dress as a television screen today, but I don't like theme parties only because I get very angry when people don't put the effort in, Okay, and I don't want to be in a room where I'm beginning to feel a little bit uncomfortable because Sandra is put on a harness and like a like a headpiece which is just a piece of cardboard, and said, oh, look at me, I'm a sexy sauce pan.

Now you're not. You're just wearing a harness.

You're your last minute put together. That's what you are, Sandra.

Yeah, exactly.

So I don't know how I feel about themed parties because I'm the one that puts in too much effort and I stand there. You know, it's like that scene from Mean Girls where she rocks up full Halloween mode and everyone else is just looking pretty and she looks see.

I respect it. I respect people that go hard. There's thought, there's effort, go them sleigh.

Spicy margaritas and true crime. I think we're going to be best friends after this.

Amazing. I'm so glad to hear it.

That is my heaven.

I'm one of those psycho people that I get, like the spiciest margarita than I can. I'll eat the chilies if they have chili and scarnishes, and I just munch on chilies and tequila, and I think that is a wonderful afternoon activity or breakfast.

I don't know, whatever you want.

Whatever floats bot. We have the same DNA. I'm exactly the same. Spicy, the better.

If you're on UK time, you can have Marcarena whenever you get into So what I'm going to do is ask you Threa questions, and from the answers to those three questions, I have to determine what it is that you are concealing from me today.

Are you ready?

I'm ready?

Good luck?

Okay.

Question number one, what is your favorite season?

Okay, So I think that I'm a part of the minority. I love autumn winter. Oh my goodness, absolutely do it.

We are the same person. Is the reveal today that you were actually me?

Well, just pull my mask off and I'm your biological twin.

I was hoping you were going to say chicken salt is your favorite season, but that's okay. Autumn winter it is the best, you know, because you can always get warm, you can't get colder. So my favorite Okay, question number two, if you could live in any fictional world from a TV show or film, what would it be?

I would have to say probably in Hogwarts Harry Potter, Oh, yes, world, realm, magic, witchcrime.

Magic, worst Witch vibes. I loved the Worst Witch. That was a good one, okay, magical things beautiful. And the last question, what was the first concert you attended?

So the first concert that I attended art.

Was the Hilary duff Ah did she actually tour? She toured back in the day. I'd have to say it was probably circa two thousand and seven.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, Oh my god, I'm jealous, two.

Thousand and eight. We might have to call Hillary and confirm.

Yeah, Hey, he'll's hills.

How you're going, yeah, I know you're really busy, but can you just go back through your diary.

And just when were you in town.

It's really important for my birth chart because I was reborn then, so I just wanted to know whether the moon was at the time.

Okay, right, what have I got? All right?

UK not UK alcohol, crime, Autumn, Winter, Hogwarts, magic, dragons, Hilary Duff. It's a lot now I'm going to piece it together, all right. I'm like, you know that meme of the lady looking really confused and there's all the symbols going around her face.

That's me right now, Okay.

All right, UK not UK alcohol, Margarita's yummy spacey wanted to be hot on the tongue but cold on the body. That could be a thing you carrot? Okay, Hillary Duff, you're next door, Hilary Duff. Winter. Okay, what happens in winter? Lots of fun things, dragon r. I think I've put it together, all right. I think here that you were a I think that you're a child magician because you know you're staying inside it's cold.

What do you do? Oh nope, maybe watch a bit of Harry Potter. Oh I could do magic?

And then what was on the TV during the time while you were practicing your magic as a child? Hilary Duff. She was the only person around at the time. So, Dom, were you a child magician?

Oh?

Also, I have to say all pretty close.

I portrayed the character of Princess Anna from Frozen on Disney cruise Lines during.

My nine months on the ship.

I also portrayed Ahsoka Tana from Star Wars series, Chippendale, and many Disney junior characters. It was such a great way to see the world and enjoy the magic of Disney. For nine months straight, I had kids constantly ask me where else there.

Is ah a Disney brings eggs on a cruise ship.

A Disney princess.

Oh my goodness.

We've got a lot to talk about, don't you worry. Oh she's a different kind of magic, the kind of Frozen magic. She's a Disney princess.

Oh my goodness.

Am I going to be up to the stage in my own podcast?

I'm prettier? All right?

We are back here with Dom, and we have just found out that no. Dom is first of all, not my biological twin Sad also not a child magician, but is in fact a former Disney princess. Okay, we need to get into this. So you said you were princess Anna. Okay, all your clues are starting to make sense now by the way, I almost put them.

Together almost you were so close.

Close.

So was this like a wish of yours being like I want to do that one day or you know what got you into the field.

So I've got a performing background.

I auditioned for multiple Disney theme parks, Disney Cruise Line included.

And it's tricky. You know, Disney very very particular about who.

They employ and how you have to match the briefs of the characters that they have to portray.

It's true because a lot of the ones that aren't like a mascot character, you need to have like physical attributes that you can match up to.

Yeah, your face has to match the measurements per centimeter and.

All the golden ratio.

The ratio has to be on point.

I mean that's also good.

Though if you get knocked back, you're like, well, I guess it just wasn't cut out to be the Hulk. Oh well, when they're doing their casting, is it for like every single Disney like park or this or that, and you're in like a database or like, how's it work?

Correct, So if you get employed by any Disney park, you're officially in the Disney database.

I'm just in the I'm in the Disney database.

D double D.

Double dbabe double D.

The casting process is vastly different for each park because they're looking for different characters, and I know that the casting directors are different, so they have a different way

You are you ready to go? It was like, whoa, Okay.

I have seen that film with the Pirates, I record I could do it. Yes, yohih you just drop what you're doing and you go all right, I'll do it.

Look, Disney don't really let you kind of put your feet up and ruminate on it for too long. You have essentially forty eight hours to decide because If it's a no, they're like, Okay, next, who can we get to fill the spot. So it's a very quick kind of decision making process.

So you go, yeah, I'm going to do it. So you get shipped off to where.

Shipped off to Toronto, which is where we rehearsed for three months.

Three months.

Oh yeah, when I was training in Toronto, the Disney training facility was underground.

I mean, are we surprised, No.

Of course it is underground.

The three months in Toronto, let's go. Your family and friends are like, where's Tom gone? We don't talk about it.

She's underground, just underground somewhere. It was just like a you know, nonchalant, just commercial building. Walked through.

There was a security guard by a particular lift we had to get in, and it was down like maybe three or four levels underground, and then he would then open up the gates for us and we'd walk.

Through and it was all underground. What yeah, what.

You're in like a doomsday prepping bunker?

Correct.

We got a bind our first day, which is a thick, thick binder with all sort of the go tos that guests would ask lines about your story.

And is this just for characters that are verbal, Like, would a mascot character be a lot more slim lined process because they're not talking?

Well, I did both, so it was essentially a three months of unpacking both suit characters and face characters. And because I did a lot of the shows in suits. If anything, I spent more time training in suits than I did actual face because you're working the muscles, you're learning the discipline, learning how to breathe.

Oh my goodness.

Oh yeah, because you said you're Chip and Dale, so they're like four mascot costumes.

Yeah, the Chipmunks.

Did you alternate between Chip and Dale or were you just one?

Correct? No, we would alternate.

Would you fight over it? Like one suit smelt worse than the work?

You can be Chip today?

Yes, And even where we'd have to do the character signing, sometimes I'd forget who.

I was and.

Then I'd the book.

And then'd be like, okay, they did the others and then you take the head off and be like, oh okay, whoop.

See I was that one. What's it like getting into like one of the suits for the first time. Yeah, because they look scary.

It's it's a process, and I especially when we started doing three to four minute dances.

So we do intro shows. Autro shows.

I like you come in and be like hello, e D D DA da da.

Day dancing with flags in the sun on deck.

Eleven, opening party things, don't they like sail away parties?

Correct?

But as you're doing the four parties, you're doing shows and you're in a giant suit, can you see anything?

Vision is minimal and depending on the suit that you're in, the vision varies as well, so you have to get used to eye lines and where you're looking, especially with shows like that where you've got vocals. So the characters have vocals and you have to be moving your head and doing the gestures at the same time as the words and the inflections.

So you're training with a binder. You're like, all right, I'm going to learn to be Ana. Al Right, I've got to learn her signature. Do they give you like a print out, They're like, I have to go in this order, or they just go just make it look the same.

It's make it look the same, even if you want to do it backwards upside down.

Just make it look like what is written.

Okay, But it was a lot of improvisation because you can never expect predict what someone is going to say to you. Yes, and a lot of the times they try and catch you out, it would be like, oh, so where are your friends?

Where's you know, o La force ven? Where are they? And you'd have to just come up with them.

Now, listen, here, we're on a ship in the middle of the ocean.

You little rat, shut right, damn it. It's a long queue of little people who on photos right there.

We got to move I want.

To break yeah, but you know, I've always got to keep it polite.

And it was great that we always had people to move it along.

Oh good.

Yeah, it's good to have what I call the bad guy in any type of meat and greet situation where you can.

Just be like.

The princess laugh and then the yeah, they.

Do the rest.

Yeah, I could kind of late to you on a like, not as more of an intense level, but like I was a vampire for like seven years of my life, but I just understand the type of questions that people would ask and they'd be like, yeah, but what about this and what if you did this? But I was lucky because like I was essentially my own caaracter, so I could just tell them to get fucked.

So, yeah, you.

Didn't have a script. You got to say whatever.

I'd like, eat your bloody coffin dessert now and move on right. Yes, I've got people's next to suck on your little bitch and they'd be like, you're so funny.

Oh my god, you're so funny. You know.

That's why I just moved into like my own drag full time, because I was like, I just want to be myself again.

Totally yes, and just be at liberty to say and do whatever you whatever you want.

Creative freedom the.

Only limiting thing when I was a vampire.

For some reason, when I first started, I gave myself a high pitched voice.

Why so then I was stuck to it, like, oh, hello, how are you going? And I had to stick with that.

But if you ever came and I said that I loved you, you know, people.

Want to talk about everything.

I've heard those rules about crossover in terms of what's happening in the real world, but also like characters not meant to know each other, like, is what's the law behind that?

So because Frozen was such a recent friend, they essentially never knew any of the Cinderella's Rapunzel's aerial characters. So on the ship that we were on, there was no way that we could have our characters and the more traditional princesses ever cross over or be seen together at the same time. So they were quite strict on that we had our own section of the ship and the other princesses would congregate on another section.

My goodness, wow, I've heard there's two little icy bitches down that end. Don't you dare go down there. I don't trust him. I don't trust she shoots stuff out of her hands.

It's cooked. Don't go down there.

It's crazy.

And the amount of kids that like, like they loved her, they genuinely loved her, and not to be jealous, because I'm not, but it would be like, do you know how dangerous she is?

Well, I remember in the first time, this is like a slight Disney tangent. But the first time I ever a soft throes. It took me yeared to watch it and I finished it, and I was like, why is anyone like Elsa's She's like Arna's the main character. Like Arna's literally the main character. It's her journey to find a stupid frozen sister.

Like watching her life.

Literally, I love Elsa. Let it go, Let it go.

No, you don't know, No, what would your roles as like Arnabe? Was that just more meet and Greek situations? Was she in a show like Tell me so?

Meet and greets? Mostly so.

The ship that I was on, we had seven day cruises, so essentially seven day cycles. We would have probably three to four meet and greets a week, and then during the Christmas season where Anna and Elsa from Frozen would make an appearance for a Christmas.

Show, Ah beautiful.

Okay, meet and greets would be so long that my Australian accent would start to come through from fatigue. So there'd be moments where the greeters would sort of look at me and be like, we're not in the outback, but let's get back to aarondell.

Oh sorry, you go from Anna to Anna.

Slipping my knee.

We don't have snow where I come from. This exciting a dog and shnow man.

The buckeros.

So when you're working on the ship, are you only performing or Because I've worked on a ship before briefly, and I clocked on very quickly that staff members have to have a thousand different jobs, even if they're in the show or they're doing this in that they're meeting greeting people at the beginning, they're helping with service, Like did you have other jobs as well?

So we were greeters as well, So we also were at you know, the front and back of lines for meet and greet experiences.

We were doing.

Strolls with characters, so we were able to show face as ourselves. Yes, So there were quite a few times where guests would recognize me as a character and I immediately would sort of go into what are you talking about, silly.

Woman, Yeah, it's crazy. I've bit like one cruise and the cruise had for three days, and I was like.

Yeah, that's enough, it's enough for life.

Well, because I performed on the cruise, right, So even I found it a bit like there's no where to hide.

No, but it's so true though, like you are always on because even employees that are you know, in the deep dark tunnels of the cruise ship keeping everything running, they.

Still would look up to us as characters.

So they would still be excited when we'd be walking through crew area, and that you still had to act professional and you know, couldn't sort of take you your head off and walk with your head. It had to be in full suit, still interact, and then until you got to where you could undress.

Then it was like, oh my god.

Do they have anyone to like within the suits and everything to keep you cool because they're like covered in fur or even as I don't think Anna has like a summery outfit, does she?

No? Unfortunately it was keep upon Cape. Yeah, So for suit characters, they can only stay up for thirty minutes.

That's still a long time.

It's a long time. You just had to get used to sweating.

You had to just love the feeling of taking it off and just being drenched.

Did it seem like hell? Towards the end? It just seems like this like groundhog Day, where you just like the same thing every seven days, you're on a bloody boat you can't get off. Did it seem like you were trapped in hell for a bit?

Look, there were tough days. Definitely. When I got off the ship, was I relieved? Yes?

It was.

It was an amazing experience, though I think for me, you know, you have just you've done the job for so long and you're like, yep, I've nailed it. I know how to do my job. I've aced it. Boom, I was ready for my next adventure.

Yeah.

Now I have to ask, is there any horror stories? Because you're surrounded by children on a ship, there has to be some things that have gone wround?

Oh goodness, yes, like when you're on ships and because I guess it's a kids, you know, the kids everywhere, there would be like it's called you call it age age where it was it's a virus, but it would just give you severe diary. It was so contagious you had to be put in like isolation. So any guests or crew that had it.

It was like, oh god, she's got a.

Else it's gone down.

We have to lockerrood. If we've got the understudy Elsa and.

She's a man with a wig on, ally children play it guy guy.

So yes, there were some horror stories. I mean some things that kids would say to you as well. We're just some of them really just didn't believe in the magic and all would come straight at you and be like take your wig off, and it would be like, oh my goodness.

To me, they're like that's not your real hair. I'm like who cares paid for it?

It's mine.

Shut up, it's not real.

Like and I'm like, oh, come, and i'd look be looking at the parents and I'm like, you're responsible for this.

Are you proud of this?

Let's love it? Though.

They love to see you like oh well, They're like, they're like, this is your problem for the next two minutes with.

The entertaining them.

Come on, We've paid a lot of money. It's our ninth time on this courts. Come on, is there any moments where things are going wrong? Could we something issue with the ship where that send out you know, some Disney characters just to be like everything.

Is fine, it's all okay, we're having it.

It's very much like The Titanic, you know, when the people are playing the string quartet on the Titanic ause it sinks, you know.

Being on a cruise ship, you can never predict whether or whether we can port. They always say, you know, we try and make it a guarantee. But if it's rough seas or winds and the ship can't physically port and make it safe for the guests, then it'll be another day at sea, which will then mean that our character manager of contact us be like, hey, guys, sorry, so it's not really going to be a relaxing day for you. We need you out, We need you out

We need to make the guests happy.

So if there were any issues on the ship, technical or otherwise, it would always be, oh, well, we've got Disney characters, they can go fix it.

It's fine, magic moment.

It's a magical moment.

Moment time go on, go make.

Some magic babes.

Was there any staff members or princesses or characters that didn't quite follow the rules and had to be removed from the ship or fire? Yes, can you give me a character? I just liked the visual of a character big fired. I want to have the visual of what character it was.

Okay, So there was a goofy that got too drunk while we're on port, and he was too intoxicated to come back onto the ship. So essentially he the next day got the four o'clock knock. The captain would come at four o'clock in the morning, knock on your door and basically be like, pack your stuff, you're out, we're dropping you off.

He got fire like next morning, like, where's goof got Oh?

No, no, Goof is gone.

Goof has fallen overboard, so he won't be making it today. Yeah, they have their little Disney minions just escorting, making sure that they get off, up and away, never to be seen again.

The little Mouseketeers come along, They're like, all right.

Let's girl take care of this long.

Oh my goodness, what happened to your big binder of information?

Did you have to hand that back in.

At the end, yes, or if we needed to take it, we had to make sure that it was in a bag that you know, no one the naked eye would be able to read or disclose to any of the plubs out there.

It really does sound like a cult, doesn't it does? Do they have rules about you talking about things like this, like, you know, should we be blurring your face out and changing your name like I'm my age?

You know? Could the minions come and get you?

Indians come and find me? Give me that four am knock on the door.

Back to the bunker.

So before you go, Yes, you are a former Disney princess, so I want you to give me like a crash course in disney training so I can become a Disney princess.

Okay, I like this game.

Well, let me ask you if you were to tell me your favorite Disney princess.

Yeah, who would that, Beesler, She's not princess, will be snow.

White, snow white, beautiful, Yes, I can see it.

Beautiful, So snow white.

She wears gloves, So clasping your hands very gently is something that snow white tends to do.

Yeah, got that? Yeah?

Yes. So she's very softly spoken, always in a high.

Pitched Oh, I've got that from being a fair by her a perfect.

White.

And you always will talk about your your friends, the seven Dwarves or your forest friends.

Oh, I've got lots of little men that follow me around all.

Oh, don't feed me anapple.

I think I'm pretty close so you I would pass you immediately.

Tom isn't a child magician. No, she is a former Disney princess. I don't know about you, but all this talk of Frozen makes you want to margaritea real babe. You've been listening to an iHeart Australia production concealed with artsimone. Want to check out a princess and a queen?

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