High School Musical - June 2007

Cast | Rehearsal Photos Act 1 | Act 2 | Story | Song List | Review

Things That Were Done Well

The pace of the show moved very well - didn't notice the time fly by. This driving pace was empowered by skilful direction and a well-prepared stage team.

Choreography was very energetic and some nice movement that was portrayed remarkably by the cast. Certain parts appeared familiar from the movie version - but this worked as everyone recognised it and could relate to it. Some nice lifts - fish lifts, bucket lifts, pinwheels and nice height differences in place.

This show is very musically demanding with high register timbres for both principles and chorus but this company did no show one sign of sweat reaching the notes! Harmony lines were brilliant and in particular the a cappella lines were well held by all of the chorus - remarkable chorus singing!

The cast were of a wide age range - from 16 to mid-late 20s. Troy had an excellent vocal ability and held his character well while there was a definite likable quality about Gabriella- shy yet confident. Ryan had excellent stage presence, as did Sharpay. The 4 leads had excellent vocal range and did an excellent job in this department. Taylor was comic and added to the show and had excellent presence as did Chad. Ms Darbus was excellent and kept the show moving in every scene she was in - excellent comic timing! The Coach kept the show on the road and there were some intense moments between him and Troy that worked very well. Jack Scott was comic and livened up his dialogue and played to the audience brilliantly! Zeke worked well alongside the other characters, as did piano player Kelsie - very believable as she kept looking down to make sure she was playing the right notes!

Martha shone at the end of the show with her solo and Ripper also kept the entertaining the audience.

Costumes were uniform and bright and colourful with very few changes throughout - this worked well due to the nature of the show. Sharpay's blue dress was very catchy!

Lighting was excellent with some strobe effects and 2 well-mastered spots. An excellent effect created to represent past/present and also in the power cut scene in the gym/triathlon/call-back.

The set was simplistic yet effective - I liked the 3D effect of the bookcase and other small details that were included such as the gong etc.

The venue is an intimate theatre in which the audience can feel to be part of the action and this was the case when the cast came out into the audience to watch 'the call back'.

An excellent and really enjoyable show guys. What stood out for me was the superb chorus singing with all vocal harmonies etc!

Things That Could Be Improved

At times, some mics faded in and out but the times that this happened were few and far between!

Some age differences could have been made more distinct - in particular, the coach and Troy.

Perhaps some more levels - different heights/dimensions could have been given to the set.

The show itself is very 'cheesy' and may not be everyone's cup of tea - but once again this is the nature of the show!

Overall Comments

For a Northern Ireland Premiere of such a demanding show, this was top class!! From the moment I set my foot in the theatre, I had a feeling this was going to be a good show! As soon as the curtains opened and the female chorus appeared on stage, everything just went right and fitted into place.

After doing over 1 week of the show and still another 3 nights to do you have really proven the quality of theatre that the company can do.

Top-notch show!