McALLEN -- When it came to anything Disney, there was a time when a certain big-eared mouse was the star.
These days, thanks to a rockin' 15 year-old named Hannah Montana, a trio of Cheetah Girls and a pack of high school balladeers, Disney's star on the map shines a whole lot brighter while the dollar bills keep coming in.
The High School Musical craze, in particular, has become a household name here but has also stretched to an eager global market.
High School Musical, the Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel Original Movie, premiered 2006 in the United States and through the year on 25 Disney Channels. It reached more than 100 countries and more than 100 million unique viewers worldwide.
In the U.S., its soundtrack was the No. 1 album of the year in 2006 (certified quadruple Platinum by the recording industry), and broke records on the Billboard charts by charting nine original songs on the Hot 100.
Though originally written for the big screen, the musical switched gears to television with High School Musical 2 premiering on the Disney Channel in 2007.
From there the craze spread to the stage musical and now an ice tour.
In India "All For One" from High School Musical 2 became "Aaja Nachle." For German audiences, "You Are the Music in Me" turned into "Du Bist Wie Musik". Even internationally the soundtrack topped the charts. In 2006 the soundtrack peaked at No. 2 on the United World Charts and reached No. 1 on the Mexican Top 100 Albums Chart.
The New York Times reported additional productions were stretched to Argentina, Denmark, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Philippines and Switzerland.
Aside from the multi-million dollar on-screen franchise, there are dolls,T-shirts, boardgames, Internet communites and enough merchandise to fill a small country.
The musical also spawned a No. 1 New York Times bestseller, High School Musical - The Novel, which has sold more than 1.2 million copies.
No longer does Disney depend on Mickey and Minnie Mouse to grasp your child's attention. Fasten your seatbelts parents and unknowning bystanders, High School Musical is for the spunky 21st Century tween, so keep up.
So far, Disney has licensed the first installment of HSM 2,500 times, with more than 10,000 performances performed in schools and amateur theatres around the world,Disney Theatrical Group, in partnership with Music Theatre International, also announced that the performance rights to HSM 2 will be made available for performances starting in October of 2008.
In fall 2006, Disney Theatrical adapted the teleplay for local school productions, and it is anticipated that 2000 schools will produce stage versions in the first year alone.
Including here in the Rio Grande Valley.
Last year Weslaco High School Theater Department put on High School Musical to a packed house each night.
"It went really well; all of the kids knew all of the songs," said Kisella Cardenas, 17, who played the lead role of Gabriella in the musical. "I remember seeing the commercials on the Disney Channel but after performing it and dancing to the music it makes you happy. I can see why kids like it. I'm so obsessed with it now."
Cardenas, who is also a fan of Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers, said HSM might not be for every teenager.
"It all depends on the kind of person you are," she said. "Some think it's stupid but if you're into happy music, it makes you happy.
"It's about dancing, having fun and for all age groups."
Adrian Rodriguez, theater arts teacher and director of the play considers HSM this generation's Grease. In fact, some of the students involved took a greater interest in live performance.
"Everybody knows the actors but there's a lot more entertainment value for kids these days," he said. "For us it was Grease even though it came out before our time. Maybe it's Disney's proliferation of all of the markets. (High School Musical is) worldwide, it's everywhere."
Ask anyone ages 3 to18 about the drama at East High involving Troy, Gabriella, Sharpay, Chad and Taylor. They're likely to defend their territory by the repsonse ‘this school rocks like no other,' the HSM mantra.
Just last year, Disney launched High School Musical: The Ice Tour, taking the East High Wildcats from the school grounds to the ice rink. The ice tour is based on the plot of both HSM and its sequel HSM 2 but doesn't feature any of the actors from the movies.
No worries kids.
It will be the same Wildcat experience featuring all of the songs, dances and characters from both hit movies.
"(High School Musical) is a totally different vibe than any other Disney show," said Dale Harrison, one of the skaters on the ice tour in a phone interview from the production stop in New Orleans. The tour makes its stop at Dodge Arena May 14 through 18. "It's not a cartoon it's a whole new element and pop phenomenon that is taking over everywhere.
"Kids are so excited about it."
So far fans aren't disappointed, Harrison says. Throughout the hour and 45-minute show screaming audiences still go wild for "What Time Is It?" and "We're All in This Together" even without the help of teen sensations Zac Efron or Vanessa Hudgens (who play Troy and Gabriella. respectively).
The premise of the show is also the same which many critics hail as a great way to promote diversity, acceptance and loyalty in today's impressionable youth.
Cliques still divide the high schoolers at first but eventually the brainiacs learn to co-exist with the jocks and the skaters with everyone else.
"Everything is the same; the characters, the moves," Harrison said. "Suprisingly we've been getting very diverse audiences, it's great to see. So many people look up to this movie and these kids.
"It's a rock show on ice and it's good knowing that the show is so special."
The ice tour was expected to play more than 100 cities in its first run, including Madison Square Garden and the Staples Center in Los Angeles in addition to cities in Europe, Canada and Mexico.
The highly anticipated High School Musical 3: Senior Year movie began shooting on Saturday in Salt Lake City this passed weekend with most of the stars of the movie requiring a police escort. The movie is set to premiere in October 24.
-----
Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour
WHEN: May 14 - 18
WHERE: Dodge Arena
COST: $17 and $26
Miriam Ramirez covers features and entertainment for The Monitor. You can reach her at (956) 683-4468.
