Here is more intel regarding HSM2 "cultural phenonemon".....
http://www.denverpost.com/ci_6692231
Disney mining "High School Musical 2"
By Joanne Ostrow Denver Post TV Critic
Article Last Updated: 08/23/2007 08:45:08 PM MDT
Kelli Baker, Tanya Michelle, McCall Clark, Lucas Grabeel and Ashley Tisdale in "High School Musical 2." (The Disney Channel | Adam Larkey)You want fabulous?
The sequel lacks the air of spontaneity that distinguished the original, as if the players are concentrating too hard, knowing how much is riding on the project. Some of the Wildcats have aged out of their roles. And the country-club setting is too retro-preppy to feel relevant.
But "High School Musical 2" is a hit even bigger than the first, and the Disney marketing machine shows no signs of slowing.
Can a "Middle School Musical" and theme-park ride be far behind?
"HSM2" is sweetly energetic, although the songs don't stick in the head of the post-teen viewer. I can't summon many lyrics beyond "Fabulous," but I can still see the aerobic production numbers in all their cheerleader-jumps-meet-hip-hop exuberance.
Last week's debut of Disney's tween sequel was the highest- rated basic cable telecast of all time, with 17.2 million viewers tuning in.
More kids watched it than saw any hour of "American Idol." Nielsen reported two out of three kids age 6-11 and tweens age 9-14 watching television were tuned to "High School Musical 2." The share was even higher among girls 6-11 (four out of five of those watching TV).
Disney executives are heralding their latest success as evidence that cable has closed the gap with the broadcast networks. Among "HSM2's" coups:
Its debut was the most-watched telecast on network or cable since the finale of "House" in May and drew the biggest Friday-night audience for anything since an episode of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" five years ago. It outperformed the most-watched network show on Friday - ABC's "20/20" - by more than 10 million viewers.
In terms of driving eyeballs to other shows (hello, Miley Cyrus) and bringing in revenues across the board,
"HSM2" is Disney's Super Bowl.
Whereas kids made "HSM" a surprise gold mine for the company last year, "HSM2" was a tightly scripted corporate production involving every Disney division. A stage show opened this month; an ice-skating extravaganza launches next month; a theatrical film is due next year.
Some 300 licensed products - DVDs, CDs, books, video games, ring tones and more - will be in stores, driving the franchise to omnipresence.
For the week of the premiere, the Disney Channel ranked as the No.3 network, beating NBC.
So how are Troy (Zac Efron), Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens) and Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) doing this time around?
Their love triangle is still holding the story together, their moral lessons are
Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron are two parts of the love triangle in "High School Musical 2." (The Disney Channel | Adam Larkey)still overshadowed by director Kenny Ortega's high-octane choreography.
The standout production number has been relocated from basketball court to baseball diamond, but the film only makes audiences wait one minute before launching into the trademark musical glee ("What Time is It? Summertime!").
High School Musical' is Disney's accidental icon
TV MOVIE-TURNED-MEDIA PHENOMENON KEEPS GETTING BIGGER
By Charlie McCollum
Mercury News
Simons is one of the millions of 'tweens - generally, kids between the ages of 10 and 14 - and teenagers who have turned "High School Musical," a
modest made-for-TV movie, into a cultural phenomenon - a "Grease" for the age of "American Idol" - and a $1 billion-a-year business for Walt Disney. The 'tweens are now being counted on to show a similar devotion to the film's sequel, simply named "High School Musical 2," which debuts next Friday.
Since its premiere in January 2006, the original film about a jock who breaks down the clique structure at his high school by becoming the star of the school's annual musical has been viewed by 45 million on the Disney Channel and more than
160 million worldwide.
Made at a cost of $4.2 million, it has sold millions of DVDs, CDs and novels.
A concert tour with the original cast sold out
42 shows in 40 U.S. cities. A stage adaptation has or will be produced by 2,000 high
"What started out as a TV movie turned into a
cultural phenomenon. When does that ever happen?" said Gary Marsh, entertainment president of Disney Channel Worldwide.
"Who could predict this? You can only dream about capturing people's attention, about capturing lightning in a bottle," Marsh said. "But this is so far beyond the television screen and into every aspect of kids' lives."`
So, while "High School Musical" arrived with relatively little fanfare, the sequel is getting the full treatment with a major promotional campaign and tie-ins with Wal-Mart and Dannon. The soundtrack CD is scheduled for release next week, more novels are on their way and two video games for Nintendo and PlayStation will go on sale soon.And Leslie Simons, the girl from San Carlos, will be there for all of it.
"Some friends are coming over to watch the very first night," she said eagerly. "And we're going to record it and then we're going to watch it again."
HSM quickly joined the mega-popular ranks of pop-culture trends such as J.K. Rowlingâs Harry Potter, the biggest-selling book series ever, and American Idol, the most successful network TV show ever based on ratings. All of these focus on everyday people (or wizards) reaching for something better. They promote a message of being true to yourself and striving for your own personal goals, something anyone can relate to.
â(HSMâs) whole notion to be yourself ... was an empowering message to kids,â Palmer said. âKids everywhere took it to heart.â
Idol, Potter and HSM represent cultural events that most parents have no problem letting their children participate in, and more importantly, participate in themselves. For HSM, itâs an extremely clean-cut story that the whole family can enjoy, raising its popularity, said Robert Thompson, director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University.
âTo tell a story about high school kids with virtually no sex in the 21st century is basically unheard of. ... Itâs incredibly old-fashioned,â he said. âIf you are an 11-year-old, you watch it with absolutely no irony. If you are an 11-year-oldâs parents, you may watch it with some irony, but either way youâre watching.â
Family interaction doesnât end with the filmâs closing credits; parents have used HSM as a way to keep connecting with their children. The popularity of the first film has made the coming of HSM2 into a nationwide household event. Film release parties have been in the works for months among fans of all ages.
One of these is being held by Hannah Wolfe, who will be a fifth-grader at Thornell Road Elementary School in Pittsford. She will be celebrating her 10th birthday with 14 or 15 of her friends at a High School Musical 2 party. On tap: film-themed relay races, karaoke to the songs from the original HSM and, of course, the movie.
