One of the most classic Disney tales, Princess Cinderella, has a lot in common with the newest of Disney princesses. Princess Tiana from the new movie, The Princess and the Frog, takes aspects of the exceptional story of Princess Cinderella and adds a refreshing, modern twist.

Both stories begin with working young women. Cinderella works too hard, trying to meet the demands of her stepmother, stepsisters, and the seemingly endless tasks they assign her. The death of her newly married father left Cinderella with her new family, and she wants to fulfill her father’s wish to be good to his new family.

Similarly, Princess Tiana is also overloaded. The story begins with her working two jobs in 1912 in New Orleans. Tiana tries to save money to buy an old sugar mill to create her own restaurant, which was part of her father’s dreams. Both girls tell their stories overworked and true to their father’s wishes.

The opportunity for a dance also enters both girls’ lives quickly, and so does Prince Charming. Cinderella is captivated by the idea of ​​a dance and immediately begins working on a simple dress to wear. Just before it’s time to go to the dance, Cinderella’s stepsisters ruin her dress and leave her with more chores than she can handle. A fairy godmother steps in and, bippity-boppity-boo, allows Cinderella to attend the ball in a beautiful blue dress. The Prince fell in love with Cinderella immediately.

Unlike the prince in the Princess Cinderella story, Prince Naveen did not fall in love with Tiana right away. Tiana intended to go to the costume party to help work on it, and after a ruined costume, she felt unable to attend. A friend lent her a tiara and Tiana was able to attend the party dressed as a princess. Mistaking her for a royal princess, Prince Naveen, in frog form, approaches her.

The Disney princess costumes for these two princesses are incredibly similar. It’s almost like Tiana is dressing up as a Cinderella princess at the ball! Both Disney princesses wore a pastel blue dress with a contoured bodice and a long, full skirt. A Disney princess costume for Cinderella could be used as a princess Tiana costume in the first dance scene. Although the sleeves and accessories of the dresses differ for Disney princesses, it is notable that both girls meet their prince charming and enter the dance scene in a similarly shaped pastel blue dress.

Princess Tiana and Princess Cinderella also had a host of animal friends. The animals were drawn to Cinderella’s kind and loving nature and became useful friends to her. The children loved the characters of these animals. Once Tiana becomes a frog, she also befriends animals and other unusual beings. The relationship between humans and animals makes these Disney princesses unique.

Despite similar story elements and similar Disney princess costumes, only time will tell if Princess Tiana will hit the epic spot as a favorite Disney princess like Cinderella. Both stories feature elements that will delight children and foster the value of friendship and a strong work ethic. As the newest Disney princess, I think we all hope that Princess Tiana will live up to her predecessor, Princess Cinderella.