High School Musical Movie Fever: Two Years And Counting!

Such is the success of the High School Musical movie that kids talk about Gabriella and Sharpay like they were next-door neighbors. Some might even be willing to fight for their idols. The original High School Musical movie was released January of 2006. The rest is history.

MERCHANDISING, CONCERTS, TOURS, ETC.

Let’s give it to the executives of Disney Channel. They hit the big time when they came up with the first High School Musical movie as it raked in millions of US dollars for them (and they don’t even have to play commercial advertisements for additional revenues!) Such was the success of Disney Channel’s promotional campaign for this movie that on the date of it’s premiere, kids (and some adults too) were all indoors huddled in front of the TV—all 7 million of them! The High School Musical movie easily became the highest rating television premier in the US ever.

The same feverish response was also gained from children of all race and religion when the High School Musical movie held separate premieres in Asia, UK, and Australia. It also gained the highest rating tv broadcast in Asia for this movie. Pandemonium in the cash registers of Disney Channel ensued, what with the equally record-breaking soundtrack sales, memorabilia, posters, Troy and Gabriella dolls, even a Sharpay doll and a small replica of the Lava Springs country club and a swimming pool are feverishly grabbed from store shelves they sell like hot cakes!

Concert tours, TV guestings, magazine enterviews, etc. also propelled the cast to unquestionable stardom. Ashley Tisdale, Zac Efron, and Vanessa Anne Hudgens became instant record artists too.

The High School Musical movie has already crossed-over to concert tours, musical on ice, and even spread over to board games! Such was the prevalence of this movie that instead of making the kids get tired of it, their anticipation was further fueled by the news of a sequel in the pipeline.

Our genius Disney executives further made a killing when they scheduled the premier of the second High School Musical movie on August—summer break for kids! The result: it more than doubled the viewership record of the first movie. In US alone, more than 17 million people were glued to their TV sets to watch Troy, Gabriella, and the rest of the cast impatiently counting the seconds on the clock and burst out in the “What Time Is It?” song and dance number—it’s summertime! Summer break for both the story and the viewers—what a genius!

That night of August 17, kids were at sleep-overs, none were on the streets as they get carried away with the ups and downs experienced by their High School Musical heroes as they worked in Lava Spring Country Club.

The days and weeks following that premier saw the second wave of High School Musical movie mania. More soundtracks were sold, more DVD’s, games, and more awareness were given to the on-going concert tours, High School Musical on Ice tours, etc.

Now it’s 2008, and as of last count, Troy and the rest of the gang were just second year high school. Does it mean we are we going to have more High School Musical movies?