Disney, Globe Team Up For ‘Disney Princess: I Dare To Dream’

Mirroring the journeys of Disney Princesses who overcome great trials to realize their true potential, six young Filipinas undergo their own journeys of self-discovery in the web series “Disney Princess: I Dare to Dream.” Globe Telecom and The Walt Disney Company Southeast Asia collaborated to launch the digital reality series, which airs its first episode on Feb. 25. They hope “I Dare to Dream” will empower girls around the Philippines to strive for their dreams.

‘Disney Princess: I Dare To Dream’

The digital reality series produced by Globe Studios will span 12 episodes and air from Feb. 25 to Mar. 22. Apart from the six girls, “I Dare to Dream” also stars Broadway legend Lea Salonga as the overall mentor and vlogger Janina Vela as the series’ host. The girls will go through challenges issued by their own individual mentors.

On Mar. 22, the winner of the series will be announced at a live concert at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay. The concert will include performances by Lea Salonga, Christian Bautista, Tippy dos Santos, Morissette and Aicelle Santos. Fittingly, songs from various Disney Princess movies will feature in the concert.

The winner of “I Dare to Dream” will enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime prize: two tickets and a walk down the red carpet of the Tokyo premiere of the live-action adaptation of “Beauty and the Beast” in March. Truly a prize fit for a princess.

Nothing can stop our #DreamBigPrincess girls from turning their dreams into reality! 💙 Watch their #iDareToDream journey this Feb 25! ✨ pic.twitter.com/zeNn9hfgCx

— Globe Telecom (@enjoyGLOBE) February 15, 2017

Six Young Filipinas On A Magical Journey

“I Dare to Dream” follows the stories of six young Filipinas who will all live under one roof as they strive towards their dreams. Each will be paired with and guided by a mentor who specializes in the field or area they aspire towards. So basically each princess will be given her own fairy godmother (or father). How magical is that?

But the reward of a fairy godparent is well-deserved. Hundreds of young hopefuls attended the two-day audition process for ‘I Dare to Dream’ last Oct. 22 and 23. The first day of auditions took place at Alabang Town Center in Metro Manila; the second at Ayala Mall in Cebu City. Six talented young girls between the ages of 9 and 16 were chosen from among these hundreds: Hya Leonardo, Sirach Catipay, Liana San Diego, Jaden Narvios, Stephanie Jordan, and Alexi Tan.

Each girl has her own unique aspiration. Hya dreams of becoming an actress and singer on Broadway. Sirach, who discovered her love of cooking when learning from her mother, wants to be a chef. Liana aspires to become a veterinarian. Jaden wants to one day become president of the Philippines (talk about dreaming big). Stephanie dreams of becoming both a newscaster and a TV host. Alexi aspires to become an animator (no doubt that Disney can help her out there).

The Inspirational Mentors Of ‘I Dare To Dream’

Who are the fairy godparents that will guide these six lucky princesses? Disney and Globe found six inspirational mentors who can guide the girls towards their dreams. Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, a musical luminary and the so-called first lady of Philippine musical theatre, acts as the mentor to Hya. For aspiring chef Sirach, there’s the world-famous Jessie Sincioco. Jessie became the first Filipina Pastry Chef in 1990; she also served as the chef for Pope Francis during his visit to the Philippines.

Nielsen Donato, a wildlife veterinarian known for wrangling snakes and crocodiles on his show “Born to be Wild,” will guide Liana. Social educator Efren Peñaflorida will serve as Jaden’s fairy godfather. Efren earned recognition as CNN’s Hero of the Year in 1990 for his pushcart classroom which directly brought education to impoverished children.

The famous YouTuber and host Charis Lincoln (better known as Charisma Star) will show Stephanie the ropes of being a TV host. Tito Romero, who worked on the animated movie “Niko: Journey to Magika” and the fantasy drama series “Wako Wako,” will guide Alexi to becoming an animator.

Disney Legend Lea Salonga Acts As Overall Mentor

Real-life Disney Princess Lea Salonga will also serve as a special host and overall mentor for the girls. Known as the singing voice of Mulan and Jasmine, Lea more than most knows exactly what it takes to be a Disney Princess. In a conference for “I Dare to Dream,” she encouraged the girls to “embrace their weird.” What set Disney princesses like Belle, Merida, Rapunzel, Tiana and (most recently) Moana apart from the others? They broke the mold. Lea encourages the six dreamers to do the same.

“Disney Princess: I Dare to Dream” will air on Globe Telecom’s YouTube channel and idaretodream.ph. After the series concludes online, Disney Channel will start airing episodes both on television and on its mobile app starting in May.