Interview: Susan Egan, Arielle Jacobs, Anneliese Van Der Pol, Syndee Winters, Adam J Levy, Benjamin Rauhala of DISNEY PRINCESS - THE CONCERT at State Theatre

I was so fortunate to see Disney Princess - The Concert in Minneapolis at the State Theatre last night. It was such a fun magical Broadway Disney evening! Check out my review here! The cast was so talented and the production was just everything a diehard Disney fan could ever want!

The cast includes Susan Egan, Arielle Jacobs, Anneliese Van Der Pol, Sydnee Winters, Adam J. Levy, and Benjamin Rauhala. Thank you for taking to do an interview with me about Disney Princess - The Concert!

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE DISNEY MOVIE?

Susan: Up

Anneliese: Cruella

Syndee: Coco

Adam: Ratatouille

Arielle: Tangled

Benjamin: The Little Mermaid

WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE DISNEY PRINCESS AND WHY?

Susan: Rapunzel, because she's hilariously neurotic.

Anneliese: Belle... because she's a reader, and adventurous and because she saves the guy, as opposed to the other way around!

Syndee: Mulan and Nala because they are warriors who serve their people.

Adam: Moana, because she longs for adventure and she has a special connection to the ocean.

Arielle: Jasmine, because she is strong, speaks her mind, and stands up for herself and others.

Benjamin: Ariel, because she's a hopeful romantic - she believes in the impossible, and she believes in her dreams with so much strength and heart that she makes the impossible possible.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE DISNEY SONG?

Susan: "Beauty and the Beast"

Anneliese: "Over It" by yours truly ?

Syndee: "Shadowland" from The Lion King on Broadway

Adam: "We Don't Talk About Bruno" from Encanto

Arielle: "Colors of the Wind" from Pocahontas

Benjamin: "Home" from "Beauty and the Beast" on Broadway! The first Broadway show I ever saw!

WHAT HAS IT BEEN LIKE TO PERFORM INFRONT OF A LIVE AUDIENCE AGAIN?

Susan: I'm incredibly grateful - so happy seeing the faces in the audience, and so thrilled to bring joy with this particular show and score.

Anneliese: It has been rewarding and emotional.

Syndee: The most fulfilling. It feels like such a privilege to be back and spreading joy to families who could use some after being apart.

Adam: Our audiences are so connected to this music and it's so beautiful to watch them reminisce alongside their children, friends, lovers, etc.

Arielle: Magical! It's been two years of waiting to perform in a theatre again, and now the audiences are so enthusiastic that it makes me even more grateful to be back onstage.

Benjamin: Every audience has been incredible - we get to be many folks' first show back in the theater, and some children's first concert EVER! It's such a gift to get to share the joy of this music and these stories with a new city every night with these incredible iconic women (and Prince Adam) on stage with me! There is SO much love in the room!

FAVORITE TOUR CITY SO FAR?

Susan: I love Minneapolis!!

Anneliese: Ashland, Oregon, we had an amazing day off there!

Syndee: Albuquerque, New Mexico

Adam: Anaheim, California because I got to see all of my family and friends!

Arielle: Anaheim, California was fun! We had a memorable day greeting tons of Disney fans at Downtown Disney!

Benjamin: I'm holding out for Medford, Massachusetts at the end of this spring leg, because that's where I grew up and I have lots of family and friends coming!!!

FAVORITE SPOT IN MINNESOTA THAT YOU WERE ABLE TO CHECK OUT WHILE YOU WERE HERE?

Susan: Mall of America, baby!! Hahaha! We love to shop!

Anneliese: The super Mall of America... of course!

Syndee: Target!

Adam: Mall of America!!

Arielle: Bambu is such a cute Vietnamese tea house!

Benjamin: The Mall of America!!! Endless shopping AND an amusement park? Iconic!

DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE MOMENT IN THE CONCERT?

Susan: Singing Benjamin's four-part harmonies with these powerhouse women - I live for it!!

Anneliese: Top of Act 2...when we are more relaxed and in tune with the audience, and we get to ALL be on stage together. We sing "That's How You Know" from Enchanted and have fun dancing and interacting with each other.

Syndee: Act 2 during Anneliese's big number. I'm not going to give anymore details away.

Adam: Singing "Love Is An Open Door from Frozen with Syndee Winters! We get to be silly.

Arielle: "In Summer" from Frozen is my favorite because it's sort of a surprise for the audience since it's not technically a Disney Princess song. And I love the complex jazz harmonies we get to sing as a quartet. It's like a 1940s Andrews Sisters vibe!

Benjamin: My favorite musical moment is our quartet arrangement of "Part Of Your World (Reprise)" - it's like the musical detail Olympics for the girls with all of the specific rhythms, straight tones, vibratos, and diction choices I've given them, and they conquer it every day! But my favorite moments are the small moments of connection with the cast - a kiss blown to Susan, a quick wink with Arielle, some sass with Syndee, an extra giggle with Anneliese, a smile at Adam... it's such a gift to share the stage every day with people you love so much!

ANY SPECIAL OR FUNNY MOMENTS THAT HAVE HAPPENED AT THE CONCERT?

Susan: Hahaha! I fell UP the stairs, got up, then fell again! Grace personified!

Anneliese:a??a?? I'll let Arielle answer that one. ;)

Syndee: When Arielle lost her lyrics.

Adam: When Arielle Jacobs forgot the lyrics to "How Far I'll Go" from Moana and sang "Every road I take, every road I take, every path I make, every road I take."

Arielle: I once forgot the words in the middle of "How Far I'll Go" from Moana. The words go so fast in that particular song, and I missed one... then my mind went blank and I repeated the same lyric over and over, "Every road I take, every road I take. Every path I make, every road I take..." I knew it was wrong and kept looking at Benji thinking "Dear God- help me!"

Benjamin: On my birthday in Boise, the girls and Adam surprised me during the transition to "For The First Time In Forever" - they came out and surprised me with a Princess birthday cake and had the entire audience sing "happy birthday" to me. I cried! It was so unexpected and so sweet!

Thank you so much to the Disney Princess - The Concert cast for the interview! For more information and tour stops, click here

Photo by Nathan Johnson

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