It's not unusual for little girls to dream they will grow up to be princesses.
Amanda (Kochanny) Knowles ‘13 is living that dream.
Knowles has built upon her St. Ambrose theatre background and cinema's ever-growing stable of mythical princesses to create a successful business performing in fairy-tale character at children's parties.
"I saw a cousin's friend in a picture on Facebook dressed up like Belle," she said. "And I thought ‘That looks like so much fun - how does she get to do that?"'
After some initial research and experience working for two different party places in Omaha, Knowles created her own princess business after moving to Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
"It's really a dream come true," she said. "It combines a love for performing with a love of kids."
Her usual crowd consists of 3- to 5-year-old children, and almost always includes a birthday girl and the occasional family pet. The true magic of the party comes to life the moment the birthday girl realizes the princess has come in her honor.
"Every party is different," Knowles said. "So I'm never really sure how the girls will react, but it is always great fun."
Knowles said reactions range from shy and shocked to excited and enthralled.
She calls upon her St. Ambrose theatre experience almost every time.
"It's refreshing to get butterflies before I walk into the party," she said. "That's one thing I'll always remember from (SAU Theatre Professor) Cory Johnson: the day you stop getting those butterflies is the day you stop performing."
A pitfall of this fairytale existence? Potential pratfalls.
"The only possible downfall is trying to navigate glass slippers on Iowa ice," Knowles joked.
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