High School Musical 2

**High School Musical 2** is a Disney Channel Original Movie that was released on August 17, 2007. It is the second installment in the High School Musical Franchise.

The film was written by Peter Barsocchini and directed by Kenny Ortega.

## Plot

The school year ends with everyone at East High School looking forward to summer vacation ("What Time Is It?"). Troy Bolton is still dating Gabriella Montez, who decides to stay in Albuquerque with her mother. Troy eventually decides to look for a summer job to gain money for college.

Sharpay and Ryan Evans plan to spend part of the Summer at their family's country club, Lava Springs ("Fabulous"), but Sharpay's Summer plans also include pursuing Troy, whom she has arranged for to be hired at the club. However, Troy convinces the club's manager, Mr. Fulton, into hiring Gabriella and their close group of friends as well, including Taylor and Chad. Sharpay is enraged upon learning that Gabriella is working as one of the lifeguards but is unable to get her fired, so she orders Fulton to give them difficult tasks so they would want to quit. Fulton attempts to intimidate the group, but Troy rebuilds their confidence and convinces them that they can persevere ("Work This Out").

Troy continues to worry about funding for college. Sharpay senses his need and arranges for Troy to be promoted, hoping that this will convince him to sing with her at the talent show. Meanwhile, Kelsi writes a ballad for Troy and Gabriella. Troy agrees to sing with his friends in the show ("You Are the Music in Me"), not knowing that Sharpay is vying for his attention. (In the extended version, Sharpay and Ryan trap Troy as he prepares for a date with Gabriella and perform their potential show-stopper ("Humuhumunukunukuapua'a").

Ryan realises he does not mean much to Sharpay anymore, as she is ready to blow her brother aside for the opportunity to perform with Troy. This leads to tension between the twin siblings and Ryan angrily informs Sharpay that he will no longer obey her orders. Taylor and Gabriella invite Ryan to the baseball game, where he persuades the Wildcats to take part in the talent show ("I Don't Dance").

Troy and Gabriella's relationship is strained when Troy sees Ryan with Gabriella, sparking jealousy. Owing to a "promise" from Troy, he and Sharpay practice their song for the Midsummer Night's Talent Show ("You Are the Music in Me (Reprise)").

When Sharpay discovers that Ryan and the Wildcats are putting together their own performance in the show, she orders Mr. Fulton to ban all junior staff members from performing. Gabriella angrily confronts Sharpay about her interference and quits her job at Lava Springs. Troy overhears the exchange and tries to persuade Gabriella to change her mind. Gabriella expresses her loss of trust with Troy ("Gotta Go My Own Way"), leaves Lava Springs and gives him the necklace back.

Troy returns to work the next day to find that his friends refuse to talk to him. Kelsi silently shows Troy the notice from Mr. Fulton, causing Troy to question his own motivations ("Bet On It"). He begins to reconcile with Chad and his other friends. Troy confronts Sharpay, informing her that he will not sing with her. The Wildcats forgive Troy for his absence and convince him to sing in the talent show, which he does only under the condition that they are all allowed to perform as well.

At Sharpay's supposed instruction, Ryan gives Troy a new song to learn moments before the show. As Troy goes onstage, he asks Sharpay why she switched the song and Sharpay is shocked to find that her brother tricked her. Troy sings the song ("Everyday") alone until Gabriella surprisingly joins him onstage. In the end, Sharpay proudly presents her brother, Ryan, with the award for the talent show. After the talent show, all the Wildcats go to the golf course to enjoy the fireworks.

Everyone celebrates the end of the summer with a pool party ("All for One").

## Cast and Characters

* Zac Efron as Troy Bolton
* Vanessa Hudgens as Gabriella Montez
* Ashley Tisdale as Sharpay Evans
* Lucas Grabeel as Ryan Evans
* Corbin Bleu as Chad Danforth
* Monique Coleman as Taylor McKessie
* Mark. L Taylor as Mr. Thomas Fulton, is the manager of Lava Springs.
* Bart Johnson as Jack Bolton, Troy's father and the coach of East High's basketball team.
* Jessica Tuck as Darby Evans, Sharpay and Ryan's mother.
* Robert Curtis Brown as Vance Evans, Sharpay and Ryan's father.
* Alyson Reed as Ms. Darbus, the drama teacher at East High.
* Olesya Rulin as Kelsi Nielsen
* Chris Warren Jr. as Zeke Baylor
* Kaycee Stroh as Martha Cox
* Ryne Sanborn as Jason Cross
* Tanya Chisholm as Jackie, one of Sharpay's friends and a "Sharpette".
* Leslie Wing Pomeroy as Lucille Bolton, Troy's mother.
* Kelli Baker as Lea, one of Sharpay's friends and a "Sharpette".
* McCall Clark as Emma, one of Sharpay's friends and a "Sharpette".
* Miley Cyrus as a Cameo

## Music

See Also: High School Musical 2 (Soundtrack)

## Sequels

### High School Musical 3: Senior Year

High School Musical 3: Senior Year is the third installment in Disney's High School Musical franchise. It was released to theatres across the United States on October 24, 2008. Kenny Ortega returned as director and choreographer, as did all six primary actors.

## On Stage Performances

See Also: High School Musical 2: On Stage!

Like the original High School Musical, the sequel has been adapted into two different theatrical productions. A one-act, 70-minute version and a two-act full-length production. This stage production includes the song "Hummuhummunukunukuapua'a" that was left out of the original movie but included in the DVD. Through Music Theater International, Disney Theatrical began licensing the theatrical rights in October 2008. MTI had originally recruited 7 schools to serve as tests for the new full-length adaptation, but due to complications with multiple drafts of both the script and the score, all but two schools were forced to drop out of the pilot program.

## Broadcast

The premiere of High School Musical 2 aired at 8:00pm Eastern Time on August 17, 2007 and included a telecast hosted by Kenny Ortega and the movie's cast. On Saturday, August 18, Disney Channel aired "High School Musical 2: Wildcat Chat", in which the stars of the movie answered questions posed by fans. On August 19, Disney aired a sing-along version of the movie. On May 23, DirecTV announced that they would be hosting an exclusive high-definition airing of the movie a few days after the August 17 premiere on its network-only channel, The 101.

Disney Channel aired a weekly program called Road to High School Musical 2, beginning on June 8, 2007 and leading up to the premiere of High School Musical 2 in August. The show offered viewers a behind-the-scenes look into the production of the movie. The world premiere of the opening number "What Time Is It" was on Radio Disney May 25, 2007 and similarly "You Are The Music In Me" premiered on July 13, 2007.

On December 11, 2007, the movie was released on DVD and Blu-ray titled High School Musical 2: Extended Edition. On September 15, 2008, a 2-disc special edition of the movie was released titled High School Musical 2: Deluxe Dance Edition.

## Reception

The first broadcast of the film on August 17, 2007 broke records, receiving 17.2 million viewers. This number made it, at the time, the most-watched basic-cable telecast in history (the previous record was held by an edition of ESPN's Monday Night Football between the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys on October 23, 2006, which attracted 16 million viewers), the most-watched made-for-cable movie ever (the previous record was held by TNT's January 21, 2001 airing of Crossfire Trail, which brought in 12.5 million viewers) and the largest audience of any program on broadcast or cable in the 2007 Summer television season, along with Friday nights for the past five years. Ratings for the second showing of the movie fell to 8.4 million and the third showing fell to 7.4 million, totalling the premiere weekend to 33.04 million viewers.

In Latin America, the premiere of High School Musical 2 was seen by 3.3 million viewers in the north region. The film was the most-watched in its schedule, among all cable channels and produced the highest rating of the channel, surpassing all original films of Disney Channel. Among other records, the premiere in Argentina surpassed the debut of High School Musical the last year, in a 107 percent, while in Brazil the sequel reached 208 percent and Mexico did so with 61 percent. In the United Kingdom, the movie became Disney Channel UK's most viewed program ever, totaling 1.2 million viewers in its first showing.

The film received mixed to positive reviews from critics, gaining a score of 57% on Rotten Tomatoes while gaining a score of 72 out of 100 at Metacritic. USA Today's Robert Bianco awarded the film three stars out of four, saying High School Musical 2 was "sweet, smart, bursting with talent and energy, and awash in innocence". While critics enjoyed the film, they noted that the timing of the movie's premiere seemed odd, premiering just when school was about to start up again, while the movie's plot involved the gang going on Summer vacation. High School Musical 2 won the "So Hot Right Now" award at the Nickelodeon Australian Kids' Choice Awards 2007, in which High School Musical castmate Zac Efron hosted with The Veronicas.