Costa showed her musical ability at an early age, singing Sunday School solos at the age of six. At 14, she moved to Hollywood with her parents and soon won a Music Sorority Award as the outstanding voice among Southern California High School seniors.
While studying for the concert stage, she performed with Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy on radio, and with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis on stage. In 1952 after attending a party with her future husband, director Frank Tashlin, she found herself auditioning for the part of Disney's Princess Aurora. Walt Disney called her personally within hours of the audition to inform her that the part was hers.
Costa went on to become "one of the most beautiful women to grace the operatic stage," according to The New York Times. She performed in 44 operatic roles on stages throughout the world, including Jules Massenet's Manon at the Metropolitan Opera, and the lead in La Traviata at the Royal Opera House in London.
Jacqueline Kennedy asked her to sing at a memorial service for her husband, U.S. President John F. Kennedy, from the Los Angeles Sports Arena in 1963. Nine years later, she starred in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer feature The Great Waltz, depicting the life of Austrian composer Johann Strauss.
Costa dedicated her later years to inspiring children and teenagers, giving motivational talks at schools and colleges across the country. She is also an Ambassador for Childhelp USA, which ministers to the needs of abused children.
Sleeping Beauty Overture
Mary Costa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I walked with you once upon a dream
I know you
The gleam in your eyes is so familiar a gleam
Yet I know it's true
That visions are seldom all they seem
But if I know you
I know what you'll do
The way you did once
Upon a dream
But if I know you
I know what you'll do
You'll love me at once
The way you did once
Upon a dream
I know you
I walked with you once upon a dream
I know you
The gleam in your eyes is so familiar a gleam
And I know it's true
That visions are seldom all they seem
But if I know you
I know what you'll do
You'll love me at once
The way I did once
Upon a dream
The song "Once Upon a Dream" is a romantic ballad that was first featured in the Disney animated film Sleeping Beauty. The song is sung by Princess Aurora (Mary Costa) and Prince Phillip (Bill Shirley) after they meet each other in the forest and dance romantically. The lyrics of the song suggest that the two have met before in a dreamlike state, and Aurora believes that their connection is so strong that he will love her once again, just as he did in the dream. The song is full of hope and a sense of longing, capturing the essence of a fairytale romance.
The opening lines of the song "I know you. I walked with you once upon a dream." suggest a sense of familiarity between the two characters, almost as if they have met before. The repeated line "I know you" reinforces this idea of familiarity, suggesting that Aurora recognizes the prince from her dreams. The line "the gleam in your eyes is so familiar a gleam" further supports this idea that their connection is strong and recognizable. The lyrics "But if I know you, I know what you'll do. You'll love me at once the way you did once upon a dream" reveal Aurora's hope and belief that their love is meant to be and that he will love her again.
Line by Line Meaning
I know you
I recognize you
I walked with you once upon a dream
I have had a dream where I have encountered you before
The gleam in your eyes is so familiar a gleam
The look in your eyes is something I recognize
Yet I know it's true
I understand that things are often not what they seem
That visions are seldom all they seem
Dreams can often be misleading
But if I know you
However, I believe I understand who you are
I know what you'll do
I trust that I know how you will act
You'll love me at once
You will immediately fall in love with me
The way you did once
Just like you did before in my dream
Upon a dream
During that previous dream encounter
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: NORRIE PARAMOR, RICHARD B. ROWE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
El1000Toritos
distributed by
Buena Vista
flim distribution co.. inc.
Walt Disney
Presents
Sleeping Beauty
Technirama® Technicolor®
With the Talents of
Mary Costa Bill Shirley
Elenor Audrey Verna Felton
Barbara Luddy Barbara Allen
Taylor Holmes Bill Tompson
Productor Supervisor....Ken Peterson
Sound Supervisor....Robert
Q. Cook
Flim Editors....Roy M. Brewer,
Donald Halliday
Music Editor....Evelyn Kennedy
Special Processes....Ub Iwerks
© Copyright MCMLVIII ~ WALT DISNEY PRODUCTIONS ~ ALL RIGTHS RESEVED
Music Adaptation George Bruns
Adapted
MovieTitles
👍 Don't forget to like and subscribe https://bit.ly/2EwI5L6
🎥 Check out the most recent video https://bit.ly/2DUUAzc
❣️ Support the collection here https://www.patreon.com/MovieTitles
Evan Halsey
"Sleeping Beauty," "Sword in the Stone," and "Cinderella" all have similar scenes to start and end the story with a fancy book.
molly nicholson
Shrek too
cakecrumb095
Don’t forget Snow White
Dorianne Grima
I think even Snow White and Robin Hood
Sam Heyl
Sword in the Stone begins with the book but not the ending
xenotypos
Here it was directly inspired by that medieval book "Les Riches Heures du Duc de Berry" : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tr%C3%A8s_Riches_Heures_du_Duc_de_Berry
Or more accurately, it was inspired by the manuscript illuminations of that book, which are very famous.
RubyGrace Moseley
The beauty, talent, care and time put into the intro to this movie alone is beyond insane. Movie’s are never opened with this much intro let alone with this much talent in that one intro. I absolutely adore and always will adore the old Disney movie openings
proud.lioness
Oh my god! This film! My childhood 😍😭
Stephen Luke
That’s right Emma, I never seen this film until 2019.