 |
Brigid is "Koko" on the hit Disney Channel animated series "Chuggington"
Brigid always wanted to be the voice of an animated cartoon character. Her dream came true in 2010 when Chuggington debuted on The Disney Channel. Produced by Ludorum PLC, Chuggington is broadcast in 175 territories throughout the world, and follows the adventures of three young railway locomotives or "Trainees", named Koko, Wilson, and Brewster.
When Chuggington prepared for release in the USA a search went out to find real American kids to do the voices for the US audience. Brigid auditioned for the voices of Wilson (a boy) and Koko (a girl), To Brigid's delight she was called back to read more for the female part. Having played a number of boy roles including (chip in Beauty and the Beast, and Tiny Tim in Scrooge on stage) Brigid was looking forward to playing a girl, and Koko turned out to be a wonderful female role model to play. A strong lead character that appeals to both boys and girls, Koko is fast, confident, adventurous, and sometimes fearless. She has a good heart and is brilliantly written by the Chuggington  Creative team. Brigid is so much like Koko that she just had to be her voice, but the process seemed to take forever until Brigid would find out if she got the role or not as hundreds of actors auditioned for the part.
Writer and Director Sarah Ball said in an interview when talking about casting the original series, "Koko was a particularly difficult search, but when the right voice comes along you just know it. You also have to be very aware of finding distinctive voices that will stand out." Well a little girl is short on patience when her dream role is in front of her, and Brigid was thrilled when she received word that she was the voice of Koko.
|
|
The people behind Chuggington are "Traintastic!!"
|
Brigid Harrington recording the voice of Koko in Chuggington
|
Brigid recording at Beatstreet Productions
|
Brigid, Sarah Ball (Creator & Director), & Tony Terraciano (Wilson)
|
Chuggington has an extremely talented group of creators, directors, writers and animators to produce this feature-film quality 3-D CG animated show. The voice recording process can be demanding, but Brigid is always up for the challenge. As Chuggington completes its 3rd season the whole "Traintastic Crew" is going strong.
Brigid's signature squeak and many catch phrases will hopefully stand the test of time as Chuggington becomes a cartoon classic that her own children will someday enjoy.
|
A full line of products with Brigid's voice!
As Chuggington has grown in popularity so has a long list of merchandise related to the show. Everything from clothes to books to games.
When Brigid was only a few years old she loved the cartoon "Bob the Builder". She had all the talking character toys and would play with them endlessly. Ironically the writer for many of those shows was Sarah Ball (Brigid's writer/Director now on Chuggington). Brigid is now the voice on interactive Chuggington toys for a whole new generation of kids.
Brigid's voice - as Koko - can be found in toy trains, online, in Apps, on DVD's, in books, and many other items. Brigid's biggest thrill though was when she recorded the theme song. Brigid has sung almost everywhere from Broadway to television, to CD recordings, but it is always a thrill for her (and millions of kids throughout the country) when that theme song starts up on the Disney channel every day.
|
|
|
|
