Abstract
This chapter charts four moments in the development of the Disney diva. In The Little Mermaid movie in 1989, Ursula was a new kind of Disney villain, a featured character who sings one of the musical’s most memorable songs. Belle in Beauty and the Beast (1991) is a character type we call the prindiva, a combination of princess and diva, a diva-esque princess. Over the history of her figurations as an animated character, a Broadway star, and a live-action movie heroine, Belle is a Disney Renaissance princess who also integrates diva characteristics. The 1998 Disney-produced, made-for-TV movie Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella features a multiracial diva ensemble and reveals how diva traits can adhere to both good and bad female characters. The animated movie Frozen (2013) stars a diva heroine, Elsa, yet still shores up the princess rather than supplanting her.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | The Oxford Handbook of the Disney Musical |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
| Pages | 375-405 |
| Number of pages | 31 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9780197633526 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9780197633496 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 1 2025 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- General Arts and Humanities
Keywords
- Beauty and the Beast
- Cinderella
- Diva
- Feminism
- Frozen
- Princess
- The Little Mermaid
- Villain