High School Musical
July 21, 2008
Venue: Theatre Royal , Newcastle
Date Reviewed: 21st July, 2008
As Disney’s High School Musical settles in to the Theatre Royal, for a two week run, it is hard to believe that Kylie appearing across town at the same time will get a better welcome than the cast of this all singing and dancing show.
As expected from Disney, there is a selection of merchandise on sale in the foyer and auditorium to accompany the high quality production on stage. But as High School Musical has become such a phenomenon the buzz before the show is quite tangible.
Disney have certainly hit the jackpot again with the show as High School Musical One and Two are on TV all the time with number three released in the cinemas in October, on top of this we have the ice show ( which is returning to Newcastle in January) and not only is this show on tour, but it is playing London’s West End at the same time.
This show is the Grease of today and appeals to children of all ages, as well as a lot on Mums and a few Dads as well, judging from last night’s audience.
The story is simple and familiar, with Troy Bolton being the school basket ball star, whose Father is the coach who wants him to focus totally on the sport. Meanwhile Troy meets new girl Gabriella Montez and together they audition for the School Musical Juliet and Romeo. This really upsets twins Sharpey and Ryan Evans who are used to having their own way and go out of their way to stop Troy and Gabriella winning the lead roles. But we know good will conquer evil and Troy will get his girl and the lead role in the school musical.
The stage version sticks fairly closely to the TV version, which allows the audience to identify with the characters and to be familiar with the songs. This means from curtain up, there is an instant chemistry between the cast and audience which does not stop until the final curtain.
The original TV cast are replaced with lookalike actors and Troy is successfully brought to life by Ashley Day, just as Lorna Want makes a credible Gabriella. However, and unusually for Disney, the other two leads miss the mark as nasty twins Sharpay and Ryan. Although Lee Honey-Jones as Ryan is the more successful of the two, he fails to wear the trade mark hats of his character and misses the mannerisms of Ryan. While Helen George, who is no doubt a talented actress and singer, totally fails to find the bite and sarcasm required to pull off the roll of super bitch Sharpay.
With this show aimed at young children there was one particular line in the second half that Sharpay uses which I felt was totally unsuitable for the young audience regarding a dogs skull. From the reaction of other parents around me, I was not alone and although the tour is well underway I would like to feel someone decides to replace it for something else as it really jars with the rest of this family show.
The staging and the dance routines are slick, as you would expect, during the two and a quarter hour show and the packed audience went home very happy, which is the main thing.
This is an in your face, loud, brash show, which is a perfect way to start the summer school holidays and will no doubt keep fans happy until the cinema release in October of High School Musical 3
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