Aurora (Sleeping Beauty)

Conception and writing Filmmaker Walt Disney had long been struggling to adapt the fairy tale "Sleeping Beauty" into a full-length animated film for several years, intending to base the project on both Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm's versions of the story. Disney was considering abandoning work on the film altogether until singer Mary Costa was discovered, the casting of whom as the film's heroine finally allowed the project to graduate from development to production. At the time Aurora was conceived, there had only been two prior Disney princesses: Snow White and Cinderella, the heroines of Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Cinderella (1950), respectively. but several strong similarities remain between the two characters and their respective stories. Gary Susman of Moviefone observed that both films feature "an evil witch jealous of a young and beautiful princess, the princess hiding out in a woodland cottage with a group of comic-relief caretakers... and the witch putting the princess into a deathlike sleep, from which only true love's kiss can awaken her." In the original fairy tale, the princess actually sleeps for 100 years before she is finally awakened by the prince's kiss; this detail was adjusted for the film in favor of having Prince Phillip introduced earlier, and thus Aurora is awakened much sooner. Tchaikovsky named the princess "Aurora" in his ballet, whereas "Briar Rose" is the name of the character from the Brothers Grimm fairy tale. Disney utilized both names in the film, with the princess's birth name being Aurora, and her assumed name while living as a peasant being Briar Rose. who was 22 years old when she was cast as the character in 1952. Costa had grown up a fan of Disney films, the first of which she saw was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Costa described herself garnering the role of Aurora as simply "being in the right place at the right time." The filmmakers had long struggled to cast Aurora, having been searching for the right voice for the character for three years. Disney himself had been considering to shelving the project unless a suitable voice actress was found, insisting that the same performer provide both the character's speaking and singing voices. The performance was heard by film composer Walter Schumann who, impressed by her vocals, approached Costa about possibly voicing Aurora and inviting her to audition the following morning. which she immediately accepted. , who feigned a British accent for the role. Costa communicated with Walt Disney at least twice a week for nine months, and ultimately died before the film was completed.and has absolutely no dialogue once she is awakened from her deep sleep. Walt Disney introduced Aurora to Costa as "a very layered character", describing her as "different. She's calm, yet she's playful. She has a sense of humor, and she has an imagination." inspired Aurora's physique. Walt Disney challenged his animators to make the film's characters appear "as real as possible". Animator Marc Davis was the supervising animator for Aurora, responsible for animating the character's most important scenes who also animated the film's antagonist Maleficent. By the time he started working on Sleeping Beauty, Davis' prior work experience had already established him as "one of Walt Disney’s go-to animators for pretty girls," having previously animated Snow White and Cinderella, as well as Alice from Alice in Wonderland (1951) and Tinker Bell from Peter Pan (1953). Although heroines are among the most difficult characters to animate, Davis' knowledge of the human body and anatomy "brought these iconic female characters to life and made them believable", according to The Walt Disney Family Museum. While other Sleeping Beauty animators struggled to adapt to artistic director Eyvind Earle's unprecedented preference for detailed backgrounds, Davis himself rather embraced this new style. With a dignified, angular shape that complemented Earle's vertical and horizontal backgrounds, the princess was "more refined" than preceding Disney heroines, and thus required much more attention to detail than any animated character before her. Notably, Davis animated Aurora throughout the entire film as opposed to eventually being replaced by another animator which, according to Costa, would have altered the appearance of the character for the worse. Walt Disney strongly encouraged Costa to work closely with Davis while he animated Aurora so that she could learn as much as possible about her character and familiarize herself with "all aspects of her." Davis incorporated Costa's habit of gesturing with her hands while speaking and singing into the character's design, and defended the singer's performance when it was incorrectly referred to a voice-over by a fan, explaining that Costa's voice was "the ocean of sound upon which we animated." To complement the "tapestry pattern" of the film's backgrounds, Estes agreed to design the dress to "move like [the tapestry] was animated." Estes and Davis eventually got married. Meanwhile, British actress Audrey Hepburn served as Oreb's inspiration for Aurora's body type, from whom they borrowed the princess' "elegant, slender features". The studio disagreed about whether Aurora's gown should be pink or blue, a conflict that was written into the film in the form of an argument between Flora and Merryweather. Aurora has a total of only 18 minutes of screen time. ==International versions==

When Sleeping Beauty was released in 1959, a dubbing process was started which, in the space of one year, brought the film to number 10 dubbings by 1960. Along the years, Disney's expanded its market to new countries, having the film dubbed into a constantly growing number of dubbings, as well as a starting massive re-dubbing process which regarded many of the oldest dubbings. To this date, only five of the 10 dubbings initially released are still in use and were never redubbed. To this date, the animated film numbers a total of 34 dubbings currently in use in as many languages, and 9 more versions which were later substituted by newer dubbings. Originally, in the Danish and the first Latin American Spanish dubbings, Aurora's speaking voices, Ellen Winther and Estrellita Díaz respectively, were meant to sing the princess' songs as well. But while Winther was replaced by Inge Stauss because the Danish directors thought that her voice didn't suit Aurora's singing well enough, Díaz didn't get to sing because she died short after having recorded her spoken lines, without having recorded the songs. ==Characterization and themes==

Aurora is a member of a trifecta known as the "Golden Era" of Disney heroines. Alongside her two predecessors Snow White and Cinderella, Aurora is one of the three original Disney princesses. By default, Aurora is usually considered to be the film's main character. Leigh Butler of Tor.com argues that the role of "protagonist" rightfully belongs to the three good fairies because they "make all the critical decisions in the film, the ones which drive the action", while Aurora acts as little more than a pawn. Anibundel does agree that although Aurora is Sleeping Beautys title character, she can hardly be considered the film's protagonist, believing instead that the film actually lacks one completely. Munro concluded that Aurora specifically can appear both spoiled and childish in demeanor at times. Similarly, Carrie R. Wheadon, writing for Common Sense Media, interpreted Aurora's arousal by a handsome prince as being symbolic of a young woman's "transition to adulthood and sexual awakening." According to Multiculturalism and the Mouse: Race and Sex in Disney Entertainment author Douglas Brode, Aurora is "torn between childlike loyalties and adult instincts", ==Appearances==

Sleeping Beauty Aurora debuted in Sleeping Beauty (1959) as the only daughter of King Stefan and Queen Leah. Angered at not receiving an invitation to her christening, an evil fairy, Maleficent, places a curse on Aurora; before the sun sets on Aurora's 16th birthday, Aurora will prick her finger on a spinning wheel's spindle and die. Fortunately, one of the three good fairies, Merryweather, alters the curse so if Aurora pricked her finger, she would not die, but be put to sleep until she is awakened by a kiss from her true love. Merryweather and the other two fairies, Flora and Fauna, take extra precautions by raising the princess in a secluded cottage under the alias/nickname Briar Rose to protect her from Maleficent until her sixteenth birthday arrives. Years later, a 16-year-old Aurora meets a handsome man in the forest. Unaware that he is actually a prince named Phillip, to whom she has been betrothed since infancy, the two fall in love and agree to meet again. However, the fairies finally reveal Aurora's true identity to her and thus forbid her from seeing him because they plan on returning the heartbroken princess to her parents. While Aurora is left alone at the castle, Maleficent appears as a glowing green ball of light that calls to Aurora, and hypnotically beckons Aurora to a tower room, where she is lured to prick her finger on a spinning wheel's spindle (which is really Maleficent herself), which puts Aurora in a deep sleep. After Maleficent reveals herself and the sleeping Aurora to the fairies, the fairies place Aurora on a bed in the highest tower to sleep peacefully and put the entire kingdom to sleep until the spell is broken. Meanwhile, Maleficent has captured Phillip, whom the fairies release upon realizing that he is in fact the same man Aurora met in the forest earlier that day. Along with everyone else in the kingdom, Aurora is successfully awakened by Phillip's kiss and is finally reunited with her parents. Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams In Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), Aurora, voiced by actress Erin Torpey, stars in the segment "Keys to the Kingdom", in which her parents leave her responsible for running the kingdom in their two-day absence with assistance of their majordomo, Lord Duke. Declining assistance from the fairies, they give her her own wand instead should she need help. At first reluctant to use it because she is determined to accomplish everything on her own, Aurora eventually succumbs when her duties prove overwhelming. However, her inexperience with magic leads to several consequences, which forces Lord Duke into warning Stefan, Leah, King Hubert, and Prince Phillip, who were all coming back from a royal conference, about the giant chickens, green pigs, and cows. She is then forced to solve without magic before the others came in the throne room. She hosts a banquet for her parents, King Hubert, Prince Phillip, Lord Duke, Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather. Maleficent film series Maleficent played Aurora in Maleficent and its sequel. In Maleficent (2014), a live-action re-imagining of the animated film, the Sleeping Beauty story is retold from the villain's perspective. Here, Aurora is portrayed by Elle Fanning, while Janet McTeer portrays a narrator who turns out to be Aurora as an elderly woman. As an infant, the princess is cursed by Maleficent in order to avenge a years-old betrayal by King Stefan, Aurora's father. Three quarrelsome pixies are charged with raising the princess, but their glaring ineptitude threatens to kill Aurora long before her 16th birthday. Maleficent's pity for the princess overcomes her rage toward Stefan; along with her minion Diaval, Maleficent herself brings up Aurora albeit covertly. When the young princess ultimately encounters Maleficent for the first time, she is touched by Aurora's affectionate nature; the girl, who has never known her biological parents, regards Maleficent as her fairy godmother. When Aurora pricks her finger on a deformed spinning wheel's spindle and falls asleep, despite Maleficent's efforts to revoke it, she herself (rather than Phillip) breaks the spell with a remorseful kiss on Aurora's brow. Aurora then saves Maleficent from her royal father by returning Maleficent's wings to her. The princess is subsequently crowned queen of both her own human kingdom and the fairy kingdom known as the Moors. Fanning's performance was generally well received by critics. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil Fanning reprises the role in the sequel, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019). Five years have passed since Aurora became Queen of the Moors. One day Phillip finally asks for her hand in marriage, which she gladly accepts. Despite Maleficent initially not accepting Phillip's blessing, she agrees to go have dinner at the castle in Ulstead, Phillip's kingdom, to meet Aurora's future in-laws. Maleficent is then wrongfully blamed for cursing Phillip's father, King John, and Aurora refuses to go back home with her. Eventually, Aurora begins to miss her godmother as well as her life in the Moors. She soon discovers that it was Phillip's mother, Queen Ingrith, who cursed the king and that a trap is being set to kill the creatures of the Moors. Aurora and Phillip help Maleficent stop the war against Queen Ingrith, and they are finally married. Critics praised Fanning's performance in the sequel for having, "quite a bit spunk and fight," as well as "useful," and "charming as ever." Once Upon a Time An alternate version of Aurora appears as a recurring character in the fantasy television series Once Upon a Time, portrayed by Sarah Bolger. Sofia the First Aurora made a guest appearance in a Sofia the First episode "Holiday in Enchancia", called on by the mystical amulet of Avalor to assist young Princess Sofia in finding her missing stepfather, King Roland II. She assured Sofia that she could rely on her animal friends' to help just as she had long ago. It was announced in April 2026 that Aurora will appear in the sequel series to Sofia the First, entitled Sofia the First: Royal Magic, with Aurora providing "wisdom and guidance" with the protagonist, Sofia. Ralph Breaks the Internet Aurora, alongside other Disney Princesses, appeared in the film Ralph Breaks the Internet, as was announced at the 2017 D23 Expo. Once Upon a Studio Aurora appeared in the short film Once Upon a Studio standing with Prince Phillip in the group photo. Miscellaneous Aurora appears as a non-player character in the Kingdom Hearts video game series, depicted as one of the seven Princesses of Heart. Aurora also appears in the prequel Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep (2010), which retells the story of the original film. Aurora appears in Kinect Disneyland Adventures (2011), asking players to collect items various items, including songs performed by birds. Performers dressed as Aurora make "fairly regular" appearances throughout several popular locations at the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, specifically Walt Disney World's Epcot France Pavilion, Cinderella's Royal Table, Disney Dreams Come True Parade, and Princess Fairytale Hall in the Magic Kingdom, Fantasyland's Princess Meet 'n' Greet at Disneyland California, Fantasyland's Princess Pavilion and Auberge de Cendrillon at Disneyland Paris, Fantasyland and World Bazaar at Tokyo Disneyland, and the Wishing Well at Hong Kong Disneyland. Aurora appears as a playable character in the video game Disney Magic Kingdoms. Books Mistress of All Evil: A Tale of the Dark Fairy Aurora appears in the fourth book of Serena Valentino's Villains series. In the book she has been cursed by Maleficent to remain in slumber and is trapped in the realm of mirrors with the Odd Sisters, who constantly torment her during the course of the book. It is revealed during the course of the novel that Aurora is actually the daughter of Maleficent, who was created by the Odd Sisters from the remaining best parts of Maleficent. However rather than a feeling of love for her, Maleficent only feels a powerful urge to protect her from developing powers, which will manifest on her sixteenth birthday similar to Maleficent, hence the Sleeping Curse. After Maleficent dies, Circe is able to bind Aurora's powers and wake her from her slumber. Once Upon A Dream: A Twisted Tale In the second book of A Twisted Tale, written by Liz Braswell, the question is asked What if the Sleeping Beauty never woke up? Aurora is trapped in a dream world of Maleficent's design, and when Phillip tries to awaken her with a kiss, he becomes trapped in the dream world as well. Aurora eventually becomes a warrior in her own right and rises up against Maleficent to break herself out of the Dream World. ==Trademark==

The Walt Disney Company currently has a trademark with the US Patent and Trademark Office, filed March 13, 2007, for the name "Princess Aurora" that covers production and distribution of motion picture films; production of television programs; production of sound and video recordings. This has caused some controversy because "Princess Aurora" is the name of the lead character in The Sleeping Beauty ballet, from where Disney acquired the name and some of the music for its animated film, and which is performed live on stage and sometimes television and often sold later as a recorded performance on video. The trademark was granted on January 17, 2012. ==Reception and legacy==

Initial critical response towards Aurora was generally unfavorable, with film critics complaining about Aurora's passivity and overall similarity to Snow White. Time Out dismissed Aurora as a "delicate" and "vapid" character. Bustle's Mary Grace Garis wrote that the character "suffers from having very little definable personality and ... serious Damsel-in-Distress syndrome". Similarly, Bustle also ranked Aurora the least feminist Disney Princess, with author Chelsea Mize expounding, "Aurora literally sleeps for like three quarters of the movie ... Aurora just straight-up has no agency, and really isn't doing much in the way of feminine progress." Dismissing the character as "barely more than a cipher", Leigh Butler of Tor.com panned Aurora as "a Barbie doll knockoff who does nothing the whole film but sing wistfully about Finding Her Man, before becoming the ultimate passive Damsel in Distress". However, Butler went on to defend the character somewhat, writing, "Aurora’s cipher-ness in Sleeping Beauty would be infuriating if she were the only female character in it, but the presence of the Fairies and Maleficent allow her to be what she is without it being a subconscious statement on what all women are." Similarly, Refinery29 ranked Aurora the fourth most feminist Disney Princess because "Her aunts have essentially raised her in a place where women run the game." Aurora was Disney's last princess created before Walt Disney's death in 1966. Meanwhile, David Nusair of About.com attributes the film's failure with "the familiarity of its storyline, as the film boasts many of the elements contained within both of its predecessors – including the revelation that Princess Aurora can only be awakened from her deep slumber by a kiss from her one true love" similar to Snow White. At one point, the name "Aurora" became a popular baby name, with parents often naming their daughters after the character. While creating the Disney Princess franchise, Disney Consumer Products decided that Aurora should be marketed wearing the pink version of her dress in order to further distinguish her from Cinderella, who also wears blue. BuzzFeed readers voted Aurora their sixth favorite Disney Princess, who garnered 7% of the 9,554 votes. Time reported that Aurora was the seventh best-selling Disney Princess on eBay in 2014, having sold $215,856 in merchandise that year. However, Seventeen argues that Aurora is one of Disney's most famous princess[es]". Similarly, BuzzFeed also ranked Aurora last. Moviepilot placed Aurora last on the website's "All of the Disney Princess Ranked from Worst to Best" ranking, with author Kristin Lai dismissing the character as "a snooze." Meanwhile, MTV ranked Aurora 12th on the website's "Ultimate Ranking Of The Best Disney Princesses Of All Time". Similarly, E! also ranked Aurora 12th, with author John Boone elaborating, "She's not a bad princess, per se. She might actually be the prettiest of all the princesses ... But she's asleep half the movie! Pretty...but so, so boring." Zimbio ranked Aurora the second worst Disney Princess, However, the character has garnered recognition for her beauty and fashion, with Stylist extolling Aurora's "blowout" as "the ultimate hairstyle when it comes to being a princess" while ranking it among Disney's "Best beauty looks", and Bustle dubbing her "the hottest Disney Princess". Oh My Disney ranked the pink and blue versions of Aurora's dress 15th and 16th on their countdown of every Disney Princess outfit, voicing their preference for the character in blue. Marie Claire ranked Aurora's outfits among "The 20 Greatest Movie Dresses of All Time", writing, "Of all the Disney princesses, Sleeping Beauty's Aurora had a fashionable edge" potentially worthy of being imitated by singers Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj. Aurora was ranked first on Moviepilot's "Which Outfit is Fairest of Them All? 13 Disney Divas Ranked" list. Author Mikayla Sloan enthused that "The lines of Aurora's dress are flawless and her shoulders are set off beautifully" while "Her hair is effortlessly wavy and her accessories accentuate her features perfectly." According to Bustle, the character is the third most stylish Disney Princess, while E! believes that Aurora owns the sixth greatest Disney Princess wardrobe, voicing their preference for the character in pink. BuzzFeed ranked Aurora's ballgown 11th on their "Definitive Ranking Of 72 Disney Princess Outfits". According to Seventeen, the character underwent the fifth greatest Disney Princess makeover. On Cosmopolitan's list of "the 14 Hottest Disney Princesses", Aurora was ranked 12th, with author Frank Kobola dismissing the character as "a snoozefest" and comparing her to "that girl in college who was always taking naps". Costa has garnered widespread acclaim for her performance as Aurora. BuzzFeed ranked Aurora ninth on the website's ranking of Disney Princess singing voices, with author Kelcie Willis awarding it "Extra props for bringing operatic vocals to Disney." Variety complimented Costa's "rich and expressive" performance, praising the singer for providing Aurora with both "substance and strength". John Clark of SFGate credited Costa's vocals with "manag[ing] to make an enchanting impression in just a few onscreen minutes without being pushy or saccharine." The role has since had a profound impact on Costa's career, allowing her to successfully transition from animated to operatic roles. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy personally requested that Costa perform at the memorial service of her late husband, United States President John F. Kennedy. In 1997, Costa hosted a theatrical screening of Sleeping Beauty in her hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee to commemorate the film's home video release. In 1989, Costa sued Disney for royalties owed since the film's 1986 home video release, claiming that her contract with the studio prevented them from producing "phonograph recordings or transcriptions for sale to the public" without her permission, although Disney claimed that the video tapes are simply versions of the film. The case was settled out-of-court in favor of Costa for an undisclosed sum, provided she relinquish all future rights. Costa continued responding to all fan letters for nearly 60 years after the film's original release, until she found that she had become too elderly to continue responding at the age of 86 in 2016; she continues to meet fans and sign autographs at conventions. Elle Fanning's performance in Maleficent earned her a nomination for Best Performance by a Younger Actor at the 41st Saturn Awards as well as nominations for the "Choice Movie Actress: Action" at the 2014 Teen Choice Awards and "Favorite Movie Actress" at the 2015 Kids' Choice Awards. ==See also==