'High School Musical' busts a move - USATODAY.com 5/22/06

[ALIASd]

'High School Musical' busts a move

Updated 5/23/2006 11:53 AM ET

Disney
They're all in this together: Zac Efron and Vanessa Anne Hudgens
play pals Troy and Gabriella in the Disney Channel movie High School Musical.
A sequel is in the works.

BY THE NUMBERS
34 million: Unique viewers in 10 airings since Jan. 20. If that many people paid to see High School Musical in theaters, it'd be a box-office smash of $200 million-plus.

2 million: Copies of the Walt Disney Records soundtrack sold.

No. 1: Where the soundtrack hit on Billboard's top 200 March 1, seven weeks after its release. It reclaimed the top spot on March 22.

1 platinum leap: The first single, Breaking Free, went platinum and made the biggest jump in the history of the Billboard Hot 100, shooting to No. 4 from No. 86 in one week.

4 gold singles: Get'cha Head in the Game, What I've Been Looking For, We're All in This Together and Start of Something New

By Thomas K. Arnold, Special for USA TODAY

Madison Ongstad was thrilled to attend the May 13 Hollywood premiere of High School Musical, the TV movie that has teens and 'tweens alike in a tizzy not seen since the early days of Britney Spears.
"I'm a devoted fan of the Disney Channel, and of this movie," says Madison, 9. The Costa Mesa, Calif., third-grader has the CD soundtrack, "and I play the songs all day when I'm not in school. I know all the words and all the dance moves."
She's making sure her mother buys the movie Tuesday, when it arrives on DVD (Disney, $27). As for the sequel? "I can't wait."
All this hoopla is for a movie that grossed exactly zero dollars in theaters. The "premiere," at Hollywood's historic El Capitan, was for a DVD launch party, a one-time big-screen showing for the TV movie.
As part of the network's original movie franchise, High School Musical has been nothing short of a phenomenon. Since its first airing Jan. 20, the film has been shown 10 times, with 34 million unique viewers, according to Disney.
Zac Efron, one of the stars of the film, says he and his fellow cast members are prepping for the sequel, "which starts filming later this year or early next year."
High School Musical, for those of you who are over 14, follows two teens, Troy and Gabriella, who meet at a karaoke contest and discover they both love singing and dancing. They become fast friends, despite coming from different cliques. (He's a jock, she's a brain.)
"I am thrilled that this movie has turned into such a big hit," says Vanessa Anne Hudgens, who plays Gabriella to Efron's Troy. "I'm now working on a solo album, and then I'll be back to start filming Part 2 of the movie."
Given the success of the TV airings and soundtrack, Disney is taking no chances with the DVD. The High School Musical Encore Edition DVD includes two versions of the film — the original telecast version and a sing-along version that also has aired and displays the lyrics on the screen during all songs.
The DVD's extras include a "Learning the Moves" dance instructional featurette led by director and choreographer Kenny Ortega; a new music video, I Can't Take My Eyes Off of You; the music video We're All in This Together; and a making-of documentary.
The same day the DVD arrives in stores, Disney is releasing a beefed-up two-CD soundtrack, High School Musical Special Edition, with karaoke versions of eight of the film's most popular numbers.
Michaela Comstock, 9, of Oceanside, Calif., had her mom tape High SchoolMusical — "and now she watches it over and over and over, ad nauseum," says mom Betsy Comstock.
"The songs are cool, and it's cool how they do all the dances," Michaela says. "My friends come over, and we do all the dances, and we know all the songs."
The best song? Bop to the Top, she says. "It's, like, tropical and stuff."
Not all fans of High School Musical are kids. Kim Roehricht, 31, a trade-show operations manager in Santa Ana, Calif., plans to nab two copies of the DVD, one for her 12-year-old niece in Chicago and the other for herself.
"The music is so awesome, and the cast is great," Roehricht says. "It's just one of those movies that makes you feel good, and when it's over, you want to watch it again."

http://www.usatoday.com/life/televis...-musical_x.htm

[Hilsbro]

I hate this movie...yes I still have the urge to watch every TV airing...and I need the DVD...is that bad??

[mamabot]

My kids want this DVD soooo desparately! My five year old daughter knows practically all the words to the songs. She sings it all the time. My son is a fan of the dance-a-long version of the show.

[PumpkinKing!]

Um at BestBuy when you buy the DVD with the new special edition CD you get them both for $20. I did, and have been listening to the soundtrakc since lunchtime.