HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL THE MUSICAL THE SERIES IS SOARING AND FLYING

By Danielle Dennehy, 2022

Published 12/08/20

In the midst of the countless reboots, remakes, prequels, sequels, and spinoffs that Hollywood has been churning out, the streaming service, Disney+ released its original "High School Musical: The Musical: The Series" last year. In honor of its upcoming holiday special and second season, I investigated whether or not it lives up to the originals.

Similar to its name, "High School Musical: The Musical: The Series" is anything but average. The show is set at East High, where the original movies were filmed, and it follows a group of high-school kids putting on a production of the first movie. The main character Ricky Bowen, played by Joshua Bassett, is a skate-rat who joins the musical in an attempt to woo his ex Nini (Olivia Rodrigo) back. Over the summer, Nini, a shy musical theater lover, finds new confidence to get the lead and a new boyfriend EJ (Matt Cornett), the senior class president and water polo captain. Similar to Ricky, EJ is also vying for the role of Troy. To make matters worse, the new girl and triple threat, Gina, (Sofia Wylie) also has her eyes set for the role of Gabriella. Other characters include the choreographer Carlos (Frankie Rodriguez), EJ’s singer-songwriter cousin Ashlyn (Julia Lester), Ricky’s best friend Big Red (Larry Saperstein), and Nini’s sassy BFF and costume designer Kourtney (Dare Renee). There is also tension between the drama teacher Miss Jenn (Kate Reinders) and the STEM teacher Mr. Mazzara, who detests the drama club.

One of the reasons why this series has exceeded expectations is simply because it is not trying to “ruin” the originals with a reboot using the same characters. By creating a new set of characters, it provides interest while respecting the original movies. Although its docu-style provides hilarious moments and constant fourth wall breaking, the show also deals with real issues faced by everyday teens. Both the comedic and dramatic aspects of the show are carried by an excellent cast. Unlike other high school shows, the teens are not played by people who are bordering their thirties. The teens not only look, but talk, dress, and overall act like normal teenagers. Casting actual teenagers adds onto the show's realism and is refreshing to see. The characters themselves are diverse and represent a variety of everyday people. The actors perfectly fit their roles and are extremely talented, and dare I say, some even being better singers than those in the originals. Each episode has a new rendition of a song from the original movie and one new song, ranging from the catchy "Born to Be Brave" to the emotional "All I Want," which you've probably heard on Tik Tok. The latter was actually written by Rodrigo, who also wrote "Just For a Moment" with her co-star Joshua Bassett. The show’s writers were really able to draw in viewers and make them care about their characters. At the end of many episodes, you’re left grappling with a variety of feelings for characters as they get their hearts broken or finally find their moment of redemption. These characters aren’t one sided stereotypes, they are dynamic and go through a lot of development. Characters you once hated, you root for, and even the best characters make mistakes, however it's not something that defines them. The actors have such great chemistry with each other and it's nice to see a high school show that isn’t trying to make them overly mature. At the same time, the show isn’t too childish, especially compared to other Disney shows. It is perfect for its target audience. While it may have gotten hate in the first place, the show has proven itself to be worthy of all the hype it has received.