During the 2013 D23 Expo, I had the pleasure of attending a session called “Voices of the Disney Parks,” which featured an amazing panel of voice-over artists who lend their talent to attractions, shows and announcements at Disney Parks. While I didn’t recognize their faces, hearing their voices made them seem like old, familiar friends, and it was heartwarming to hear their behind-the-scenes stories.
I’ve attended the D23 Expo every year since the inaugural
event in 2009, and a new feature added this year which I really found helpful was StagePass. Attendees could choose to claim up to two StagePass tickets for each day of the Expo to guarantee seating at select sessions. Like the similarly-named FASTPASS service, StagePasses were included with the cost of D23 Expo tickets and helped to streamline our experience. My husband and I attended the Expo with our 3-year-old son in tow, so StagePass certainly came in handy! Instead of waiting in a long line for sessions we wanted to attend, we simply visited the ticket distribution area in advance to obtain StagePass tickets and arrived at the session location 15 minutes in advance to claim our guaranteed seats.
As the session began, a familiar voice on the speaker system asked the audience to “remain seated, keeping your hands, arms, feet and legs inside the theater” and the panel, moderated by Imagineer Brian Nefsky, introduced the session’s cast: Yeni Alvarez, Corey Burton, Camille Dixon, Peter Renaday, Fabio Rodriguez, Bill Rogers, Mark Silverman, Stephen Stanton and BJ Ward.
Among my favorite voices to hear was that of Bill Rogers, the current “Voice of Disneyland” we hear during all of the English-language announcements throughout the park. His wife, Camille Dixon, is the signature voice of Disney California Adventure Park. I also loved hearing the stories of Fabio Rodriguez, who got his big break when he was asked to audition for Disney. He reminisced about the first time he was at Disneyland Park with his family and heard his very own voice boom throughout Main Street, U.S.A., announcing that the fireworks show was to begin in 15 minutes. He shared how surreal it was to have his decades-old dream realized in that moment. He has also voiced many attractions in Spanish, such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion.
I was thrilled to meet Mr. Rodriguez face-to-face the next day while we were both eating at a Disney California Adventure Park restaurant with our families. I heard a familiar voice behind me (speaking Spanish, even though I don’t know the language!) and realized who it was. I introduced myself to him, explaining that I recognized his voice from the park attractions and his Expo presentation the day before. He was very gracious and was happy to spend a few minutes chatting with us about his amazing experiences as a voice-over artist for Disney Parks.
Below are short videos of my favorite live readings from the session. I know that the next time I ride an attraction or hear an announcement at the Disneyland Resort, I’ll think about the faces behind those well-known voices!
Fabio Rodriguez performs a live reading of his work from Pirates of the Caribbean.
Stephen Stanton is the voice of Scuttle for The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure attraction.
Yeni Alvarez’s voice is used for the Spanish safety instructions heard on the parking lot trams.
Bill Rogers is the current “Voice of Disneyland,” lending his talent to daily announcements heard in the park.
In addition to being a Babes In Disneyland contributor, Courtney is a Disneyland Resort Specialist on the Disney Parks Moms Panel. You can also find her on Instagram and Twitter (@2Courtney).
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