Stage Version of High School Musical to Debut at Stagedoor Manor

The stage version of Disney’s popular television movie High School Musical will premiere next August at Stagedoor Manor, the renowned summer theater camp in Sheldrake, New York that was the basis for the movie Camp.

The show is available in both a one-act and a two-act version. It is expected to receive productions at some 2,000 schools by the end of 2007, says Thomas Schumacher of Disney Theatrical Productions; among those already confirmed are productions at Green Valley High School in Henderson, Nevada, James H. Blake High School in Silver Spring, Maryland, and Woodhills High School in Pittsburgh.

The TV film High School Musical stars Zac Efron and Vanessa Anne Hudgens as students Troy and Gabriella; the two fall in love and want to star in their school musical, but they face opposition from friends and enemies alike. Since its premiere on January 20 on the Disney Channel, High School Musical has been televised 13 times and has been seen by more than 37 million unduplicated total viewers. By the end of the year, it will have been televised in 100 countries worldwide. The soundtrack, which has already sold more than 2.7 million copies, is the top-selling album of the year-to date, and the DVD has sold more than 2.3 million copies since its release on May 23.