It’s many a tween’s dream: to be plucked from obscurity and transformed into a sparkling young Disney star – the next Selena Gomez, Hilary Duff or Zac Efron.
But the event had no connection with the Disney organisation, and angry parents say the organisers proposed to charge up to US$15,000 for children who auditioned successfully to appear in a US-only streaming show. But many, including Moore and her daughter, did not end up taking part. Upon arrival, parents were issued with an information sheet setting out a schedule of fees they would be required to pay, depending on what level of role they wished to secure for their child.
“When I got that piece of paper [the schedule of fees] and looked at it properly with my husband, we actually had a giggle,” Moore said. When Moore asked an organiser what payment a child would expect to receive for appearing in a production, she was told cast members received “valuable credits” – their name listed in the opening or closing credits of the show.
When they returned home, Alonso’s Facebook feed was already abuzz with sceptical parents who had also attended. By the following day the bemusement had turned to anger, with copies of the Premiere+ material circulating on social media.