High School Musical

Home , Ashley Tisdale, Bart Johnson, Breaking Free, Lucas Grabeel, Olesya Rulin, Stick to the Status Quo

張嘉惠。國立彰化女中。二年十三班蕭力曼。國立彰化女中。二年十三班

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I. Introduction:

High School Musical is one of the most successful movies in Disney original movies, which was broadcast in 2006.People near one in every sixty people all over the world have watched High School Musical and a lot of people have seen it more than once. High School Musical won not only viewers' heart but many prizes, 2 Emmy Awards included. According to Zac Efron, it has caused a great sensation called “High School Musical Phenomenon” among those who adore High School Musical. Thus, we want to research the kind of phenomenon and explore the reason why it is so popular.

II. Thesis

1. Introduction

High School Musical was originally made for TV film, first released on January 20, 2006. After broadcasting, its fascinating plot, pretty characters and catchy songs capture viewers’ heart. “High School Musical effect” includes its soundtrack, DVDs, Concerts etc.

The movie makes six young actors and actresses famous and its popularity keeps growing. High School Musical 2 was released on Aug 17, 2007 and a future film is in a planning process. We will put the focus on High School Musical 1.

2. The Characters and the plot

1.1 The Director

Kenny Ortega is the one who directs High School Musical. He shoots his movies in his humorous and creative way. He is also good at looking for new movie stars.

1.2 The Lead Characters

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical Zac Efron stars as Troy Bolton, who is the captain of East High Wildcats and the hottest topic of the school, but once shares a duet with Gabriella. He finds there is more to life than basketball.

Vanessa Hudgens stars as Gabriella Montez, who is new to East High, sure to dazzle with her math and science genius. After one song with Troy Bolton, she is ready to break out the old mold and sing a new tune. She is shy but brave to pursue what she really wants.

Ashley Tisdale stars as Sharpay Evans, who has been starring in school plays since kindergarten. She is an experienced actress, so she is sure to snag the lead again this year along with her singing and dancing brother, Ryan. But the story isn’t as beautiful as she thinks. The smart Gabriella and the athlete Troy will beat them.

Lucas Grabeel stars as Ryan Evans, who can move and groove with best of them, and he loves to knock them dead in the school musical every year,. But if anyone gets in his way of stardom, he will do what it takes to shove the competition right out of the way.

Monique Colemen stars as Taylor Mckessie, who captains High School Scholastic Decathlon Team, and she needs academic superstar Gabriella to focus on the important competition. She is Gabriella’s new best friend in East High.

Corbin Blew stars as Chad Danforth, who is Troy’s best friend. He takes it as a joke that Troy gets ideas about singing onstage. He will risk a lot to put Troy back on target---because it is all about a crucial basketball game.

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical 1.3 The Support Characters

Olesya Rulin stars as Kelsi Nielsen, who is a composer as well as a pianist. She thinks of music as her favorite. She helps Troy and Gabriella a lot in the audition.

Alyson Reed stars as Mrs.Darbus, who is the drama teacher. She thinks she is the high priestess of the temple known as Theatre. She abhors cell phones and primitive activities like sports. She will give talented singers a break, but she will not ease up on her nemesis, Coach Bolton.

Bart Johnson stars as Coach Jack Bolton, who has trained his son Troy to be a basketball star and win a big college scholarship. Singing in the school musical will only get in the way. He will not hesitate to push Troy in the right direction. But there is more to Troy than his dad knows.

2. The Story

The movie starts with two strangers, who both love singing, accidentally meeting each other during a karaoke contest on New Year's Eve. After the holidays, Gabriella transfers to East High, which Troy attends, due to her mother’s job. Gabriella is a chemical genius, loving to do experiments and solve complicated questions. She also wins lots of trophies of various competitions. Troy Bolton, the captain of the school team” Wildcat”, is not only the soul of the team, but the topic of girls. His father as well as coach, Jack Bolton, has a great expectation on him. They are both outstanding in different aspects, but they are eager to extend to another field they love---to sing in their own happy way. So they decide to participate in the audition of the upcoming high school musical. However, Gabriella had promised Taylor to join the chemical club before and the competition in the near future .Troy will have an important game soon. Their friends Taylor and Chad are strongly opposed to their decision and discourage them from moving toward their plans. However, it’s Sharpay and her brother Ryan---considered the top theatrical talents of the school---who really try to thwart Troy and Gabriella’s efforts. With faith and persistence, Troy and Gabriella 4

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical successfully win not only Mrs.Darbus’ favor but the audiences’ applauses. What they do causes an effect on their friends to show their hidden potential and interests. Finally, the story ends with a hilarious occasion that everyone sings and dances happily.

3. Other features:

3.1 Songs

Soundtrack and brief introductions

01. Start of Something New

It starts the movie and the opening of friendship between Troy and Gabriella.

02. Get’cha Head In The Game

At that moment, Troy was so confused about whether to sing or focus on the basketball game.

03. What I’ve Been Looking For

Ryan and Sharpay are highly confident to sing this song in the audition for high school musical.

04. What I’ve Been Looking For

Troy and Gabriella follow their feelings to sing .Although they nearly miss the audition, they still sing happily and win the opportunity to the second audition.

05. Stick to the Status Quo

They show their worry that everyone one is afraid of changing and sing to express their emotion.

06. When There Was Me and You

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical Troy and Gabriella have some misunderstanding. Gabriella feels sad and reconsiders whether or not to continue pursuing her dream.

07. Bop to the Top

In the second audition, Ryan and Sharpay show their talent and desire to the fullest and are eager to win the main characters of the musical.

08. Breaking Free

Troy and Gabriella declares to people that they don’t fear others’ judgments. Showing that being themselves is the most comfortable and important thing in the world.

09. We’re All In This Together

The song combines encouragement and union of the school. It can really affect everyone to sing or dance with it!

10. I Can't Take My Eyes Off You

An extra song contained in the CD.

3.2 Books

Disney Press, a department of The Walt Disney Company specifically used to produce books of various genres and for various groups, published High School Musical: the Junior Novel in June 2006. This novel hit number one on the New York Times best-selling list and remained on the list for sixteen weeks. It has sold more than 4.5 million copies with the novel’s follow up, High School Musical 2: the Junior Novel. Disney would begin publishing a book series which entitled Stories From East High in February until July, 2008, with a new book being published every 60 days. The Complete Book List:

Novels:

High School Musical: the Junior Novel( June 1,2006)

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical Stories from East High: Battle of the Bands (February 1, 2007) Wildcat Spirit (April 1, 2007) Poetry in Motion (June 1, 2007) Crunch Time (August 1, 2007) Broadway Dreams (October 1, 2007) Heart to Heart (December 1, 2007) Friends 4Ever? (March 1, 2008) Get Your Vote On! (May 1, 2008)

4. Awards and Nominated List

According to IMDB 2007, High School Musical won 2 Emmys, another 8 wins and 13 nominations.

Year Award Category Result

2006 Artios Award Best Children's Television Programming Won

Billboard Music Award Soundtrack Album of the Year

Outstanding Children's Program - tie[12] Emmy Award

Outstanding Choreography

Television - Choice Breakout Star (Zac Efron)

Teen Choice Award Television - Choice Chemistry (Vanessa Anne Hudgens & Zac Efron)

Television - Choice Comedy/Musical Show

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Television Critics Outstanding Achievement in Children's Association Award Programming

American Music Award Best Pop Album Nominated

Billboard Music Award Album of the Year

Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries, Movie, or a Special

Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie, or a Dramatic Special Emmy Award Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics ("Get'Cha Head In The Game")

Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics ("Breaking Free")

Satellite Award Best Motion Picture Made for Television

Television - Choice Breakout Star Teen Choice Award (Vanessa Anne Hudgens)

Outstanding Director - Television Series, 2007 ALMA Award Mini-Series, Television Movie Kenny Ortega won Tied with Edward James Olmos for Walkout (2006) (TV).

5. Questionnaire

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical To understand Taiwanese students’ feeling about High School Musical and the influence of the movie on their life, we request those who have watched High School Musical to fill the questionnaire. There are totally 30 people, who are all students. Their ages ranges from 11 to 20.

5.1.1 Questionnaire 1 ---about the movie favorites

1. Gender

□ male □ female

2. Who impresses you the most?

□ Troy Bolton □ Gabriella Montez □ Sharpay Evans □ Ryan Evans □ Taylor Mckessie □ Chad Danforth □ Kelsi □ Another :(______)

3. Why does he/she impress you most?

□ He/She is good-looking. □ He/She is my Snow White/Prince Charming □ Another :(______)

4. Whose personality do you think is more like you?

□ Troy Bolton □Gabriella Montez □Sharpay Evans □ Ryan Evans □Taylor Mckessie □Chad Danforth □ Kelsi □Another :(______)

5. Did you buy any High School Musical product?

□ No, I did not. □ Yes, I did. : □ CD □DVD □Book □Music Score

6. Please choose three songs as you mostly prefer in High School Musical soundtrack.

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical □ Troy and Gabriella-- Start Of Something New □ Troy-- Get'cha Head In The Game □ Ryan and Sharpay-- What I've Been Looking For □ Troy and Gabriella-- What I've Been Looking For (Reprise) □ High School Musical Cast-- Stick To The Status Quo □ Gabriella-- When There Was Me And You □ Ryan and Sharpay-- Bop To The Top □ Troy and Gabriella-- Breaking Free □ High School Musical Cast-- We're All In This Together □ Troy, Gabriella, Ryan, and Sharpay--I Can't Take My Eyes Off You

7. Why do you choose the three songs?

□ It is good to listen to. □ It is my music type. □ I like the meaning of the song. □ Another :(______)

8. Do you expect the sequel?

□Yes, I am looking forward to their following steps. □No, I do not expect it at all.

5.1.2 Studying the questionnaire

Gender Male♂ Female♀ Quantity 12 18 Who Troy Bolton 4 2 impresses Gabriella Montez 2 6 you Sharpay Evans 3 6 the Ryan Evans 1 1 Chad Danforth 2 1 most? Taylor Mckessie 0 1 Kelsi 0 1 Another :(______) 0 0 Why He/She is good-looking. 5 4 does he/she 10

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical He/She is my Snow White/Prince Charming 2 3

Another :(______) 5 11

Whose Troy Bolton 4 5 personality Gabriella Montez 2 8 do you Sharpay Evans 1 2 think is Ryan Evans 1 1 Chad Danforth 1 1 more like Taylor Mckessie 1 1 you? Kelsi 1 1 Another:(______) 1 0 Did you buy NO, I did not. 4 1 any High Yes, I did. CD 8 9 School DVD 4 6 Musical Book 3 5 Music Score 2 2 product? Please Start Of Something New 7 11 choose three Get'cha Head In The Game 3 2 songs that you What I've Been Looking For 2 5 most What I've Been Looking For (Reprise) 1 7 prefer in High Stick To The Status Quo 2 4 School Musical When There Was Me And You 2 4 soundtrack. Bop To The Top 4 2

Breaking Free 7 11

We're All In This Together 4 4

I Can't Take My Eyes Off You 4 4 Why do It is good to listen to. 5 5 you choose It is my music type. 1 3

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical I like the meaning of the song. 4 6 Another :(______) 1 4 Do you Yes, I am looking forward to their following 13 16 expect the steps. sequel? No, I do not expect it at all. 0 1

According to the result of our questionnaire, we find the rate of females liking High School Musical is 20 ％higher than males. We regard High School Musical as an inspiring and romantic movie. Girls tend to love watching romantic movies. On the contrary, boys prefer action movies. Therefore, High School Musical attracts more female viewers.

To our surprise, the most impressive character is neither Troy nor Gabriella. It’s Sharpay. We think there are several reasons that can explain this. First, we think that they like Ashley Tisdale more than the character Sharpay. Those who have watched the movie are mostly Disney Channel-lovers. Ashley Tisdale stars as Sharpay in High School Musical but also stars as Maddie in The Suite Life of Zack and Cody---Disney another successful sitcom. We find that two rules are completely different--- Sharpay is a rich girl who is spoiled by her parents but Maddie is a hard-working candy girl. Ashley interprets both characters successfully. That wins her lots of applauses. Second, Sharpay’s exaggerating performance makes viewers more impressive than any other characters in the movie.

Most people think their personality like Troy and Gabriella-the most important characters. That consequence corresponds to our conclusion. The movie is made for them.

Most viewers choose to buy CD and DVD as the proof that they support this movie because the songs, the plot and the young performers are the main features. There are lots of clichéd songs on market. The CD is different from those because every song has its relevant meaning. That’s why the CD occupied Billboard for a long time and almost sold out everywhere. Start of Something New and Breaking Free win the same rate in most –loved section. Now, the teenagers have the desire to jump out of their regular circle and do whatever they are good at without limitation. High School Musical resoundingly captures most viewers’ taste.

5.2.1 Questionnaire 2--- 12

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High School Musical is a movie which revolves around teenagers so that we can see some issues that happen to teenagers. As a result, we discuss the other extended questions about the movie. The questionnaire is designed for students so we invite other 38 people to answer our questionnaire.

1. What kind of attitude do your parents hold toward your future? a. Fully interfering b. Half interfering c. Liberal d. Ignoring

2. How much influence do your friends have on you? a.100% b.75% c.50% d.25%

3. Do you want to be the Mr. /Ms. Famous? a. Yes b. No

4. What will you do if your siblings are more outstanding than you? a. becoming jealous or rebellious b. becoming much more outstanding c. doing nothing about it

5. What’s your view- point about your parents’ interfering in your future plan? a. feeling uneasy and refuse to follow them b. feeling uneasy but follow them c. completely following them

6. What will you react when your friends interfere in your hobbies? a. hoping they support b. hoping they mind their own business c. don’t mind at all

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical 7. Do you think a talented person will surely become Mr. /Ms. Famous? a. Yes b. No c. other opinions: ______

8. Are you afraid of changing the current situation? a. Yes b. No

5.2.2 Studying the questionnaire

Questions a b c d 1. What kind of attitude do your parents hold toward your 0 26 12 0 future? 2. How much influence do your friends have on you? 1 21 13 3 3. Do you want to be the Mr. /Ms. Famous? 11 27 4. What will you do if your siblings are more outstanding than 3 25 10 you? 5. What’s your view- point about your parents’ interfering in 8 24 2 4 your future plan? 6. What will you react when your friends interfere in your 17 10 11 hobbies? 7. Do you think a talented person will surely become Mr. /Ms. 4 23 11 Famous? 8. Are you afraid of changing the current situation? 16 22

We divide the eight questions into five categories to discuss the teenagers’ issue.

A. Parents’ attitude

According to our research, most parents hold an attitude that they do not fully interfere in children’s future plan. For example, on knowing Troy attends the interview of the singing contest, Troy’s father gets really angry and persuades his son to give up. Nowadays, some parents also hope their children can follow what they expect. However, in our point of view, it is because they used to live in a high pressure society which is contrary to ours. People now have more rights to decide what they want. However, they both want to provide what children want but also have 14

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical concern and worry about their future. They may give some proper advice when it comes to children’s future. As for children, most of them feel uneasy when their parents interfere in their future. Nonetheless, they still accept what their parents tell them. That’s because they most believe that parents are more mature, experienced and wiser than them.

B. Friends’ roles

We can prove that friends play a crucial role in teenagers’ life based on our study. What their friends think about them has something to do with their interests. Most of them want to win friends’ recognition. In the movie, Troy and Gabriella are set up by their friends, for their friends do not want them to join the singing competition which is the same date as Troy’s basketball game and Gabriella’s chemistry contest. Troy and Gabriella are both swayed by their friends. Friends do influence every decision we make. Therefore, we consider it is extremely important to choose the kind of friends you make since friends can cause such great influence on teenagers.

C. Talents and Fame

In the movie, Sharpay, whose desire is much more than talents, wants everyone to regard her as drama princess. On the contrary, Kelsie is a really talented pianist and composer, however, she is only known by few people. Why do some people want to be famous? Why don’t some talented people become famous? The majority of interviewees have little interest in becoming Mr. /Mrs. Famous on their campus and they do not think that a person with various talents would become Mr. /Mrs. Famous. However, according to Freud, everyone wants to be the center of the public. In our opinion, the reason why they are not interested in being Mr. /Mrs. Famous is that they are afraid that fame would cause lots of inconvenience in their private life. Also, Mr. /Mrs. Famous can be both liked and hated by different people. They are always the topic so that they are often under a great deal of pressure caused from people’s gossips. However, some people are born to hold a low-pitched attitude.

Why does not a person with various talents become famous among a group of ordinary people? Some of them may be hated by their proud attitude while some of them are too low-pitched or humble to show their talents to others. We find that some famous people are actually good for nothing. They are just flattered by others or they want to be the center of attention.

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D. Sibling Competition

It is inevitable that there is competition among siblings. Take Sharpay and Ryan for example, Sharpay is always the center of attention when they show up at the same time. Ryan is trying very hard to attract people’s attention. Therefore, when one is more outstanding than the others, others will try their best to strive for excellence and win the attention back to themselves. Such things can be observed when we are still babies.

E. Changes in life

There is a song in High School Musical called “Status Quo”, which describes everyone is afraid of showing the other side of them because they feel scared about the changes in the current life. However, according to our research, most people are not afraid of changes in their life while there are still lots of people who are afraid of changes. Most people have faith in themselves and hold a positive attitude when it comes to changes. They usually think that their situation will turn from worse to better. On the contrary, those who are afraid of changes lack confidence in themselves and may feel scared about whether they would fit in the new situation. They are also unsure about every decision they make. Or they are quite content about their current life.

III. Conclusion:

According to our research, we find the reason why the movie is so popular is that it combines singing, dancing and youthful energy. However, in our opinion, it is because the movie revolves around teenager’s issues that have close relationship with teenagers nowadays, which makes the movie so popular with teenagers. The issues include the conflict between patents and children, friends and themselves. Besides, the movie provides us with an example about how to rise above those conflicts that are happening in our life and solve it with our own perspective, faith and courage. Teenagers may feel confused about their core values toward their lives and the movie also present the problem and stimulates teenagers to think more. The movie helps teenagers realize that “Life’s challenges are not supposed to paralyze them, they’re supposed to help them discover who they are”, which is a famous quote. If you are

PDF created with pdfFactory trial version www.pdffactory.com High School Musical willing to add a few different elements and lots of effort, you can find your own sky, too. High School Musical is not just a movie; it offers us space to think what we really are and go for it.

IV. Reference: (一) 書籍 Grace, N. B.。High School Musical: The Junior Novel (U.S.A： Disney Pr，2006/06/01) (二)影音媒體 Zac Efron/ Vanessa Hudgens/ Ashley Tisdale/ Lucas Grabeel/ Monique Colemen/ Corbin Blew。電影原聲帶 / 歌舞青春 (台北市：EMI，2006/9/15)。

Zac Efron/ Vanessa Hudgens/ Ashley Tisdale/ Lucas Grabeel/ Monique Colemen/ Corbin Blew。歌舞青春 DVD (台北市：台灣華特迪士尼，2006/12/15) (三)參考網站 1. Disney Official Site: http://tv.disney.go.com/disneychannel/originalmovies/highschoolmusical/。〈檢索日期 2007/5/10〉 2. 2006 美國最熱門青春偶像電影-歌舞青春 http://mikeshome.dyndns.tv/moviechanel/HighSchoolMusical/〈檢索日期 2007/5/11〉 3. IMDB http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0475293/〈檢索日期 2007/5/13〉 4. Rai http://www.junior.rai.it/highschoolmusical/〈檢索日期 2007/5/14〉 5. Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_School_Musical〈檢索日期 2007/5/15〉

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