Disney musical’s success stuns movie’s young stars
Posted on Sunday, May 21, 2006
LOS ANGELES — Who would have thought that High School Musical, a sweet story about a couple of high school kids trying to realize their dreams, would become the highest-rated original programming in the history of the Disney Channel ? Certainly none of its young stars.
“We knew it was going to be a good movie, but we didn’t expect this,” says Vanessa Anne Hudgens, 18. She plays Gabriella, a smart student with a pretty voice who, after transferring to a school in Albuquerque, N. M., decides to break out of her brainiac mode and audition for the school’s annual musical production.
“I was excited to be a part of a Disney movie, but I never thought it would do what it’s done,” says Zac Efron, 19; he plays high school basketball team captain Troy, who conceals his passion for singing behind an all-jock exterior. “None of us did.” “No, we never thought it would be as successful as this,” says Ashley Tisdale, 21, who plays perennial high school stage diva Sharpay, who is dismayed to see her star status challenged by newcomer Gabriella. “We liked the music, but we didn’t know if anyone else would.” The role of Sharpay’s brother Ryan, who wears stylish hats and has appeared in nearly as many high school stage performances as his flashy sister, is played by Lucas Grabeel, 22. He’s a native of Springfield, Mo. (where he attended the same high school as Brad Pitt ). “I got lucky,” says Grabeel 1 who moved to Los Angeles 2 / 2 years ago to pursue an acting career. “I’m sitting in a good seat.” “ It’s unbelievable, ” says Monique Coleman, 26, about what the success of High School Musical has meant to her career (she portrays Taylor, a girl with a formidable grade point average and an outgoing nature that leads her to befriend newcomer Gabriella ). “Right now, stuff is coming up that I would never have expected.” Among that stuff: A sequel to High School Musical. A script is in the works, and most of the original cast will return. Why did the film draw such a strong reaction from young viewers ? “Kids enjoy this movie because they can say ‘Hey, that’s what high school is like, ’” Tisdale says. “Everyone has a Sharpay in their school.” “ The only difference about this movie and other kids’ movies is the music and the chemistry, ” Efron says. “The music has been missing from kids’ movies and we brought it back. The average kid can enjoy it. And the fun we had making the film translates onto the screen.” The songs — which climbed with amazing speed up the Billboard charts — are what set High School Musical apart, the cast believes. “After I started singing those songs in my sleep — and that’s what happens after weeks of going over them again and again — I realized hey, they are kinda cool songs,” Efron says.
“We recorded the soundtrack in only five days,” Hudgens says. When the album went platinum, “it came out of nowhere.” To open a copy of Rolling Stone “and see your name on the Billboard charts — wow,” Efron says.
The popularity of the songs is evident. “We’ll be out somewhere and off in the distance we’ll hear groups of girls singing the songs,” Efron says. “We get recognized. It’s great to be able to talk to fans. All kids can relate to this; there are kids in every school that could play these roles.” The actors agree that all their years of dance lessons, singing lessons, community theater productions, and every other bit of stage work they could get paid off with High School Musical. “I started as a little kid; every spare minute I was in a play, a musical, an opera,” says Grabeel. “This felt like going back to high school. It’s nice to know you’re working on something that will mean something to kids.”
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