Disney's 'High School Musical' director Kenny Ortega recalls cast of film

Khaleej Times

29-04-2025

High School Musical director Kenny Ortega revealed that he had a premonition while filming the movie's final musical number, and it ultimately came true in a big way.
High School Musical is a 2006 American musical television film produced by and aired on Disney Channel as part of the network's slate of original television films.
The first instalment of the series was directed by choreographer and filmmaker Ortega from a screenplay by Peter Barsocchini. It stars Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, Alyson Reed, Corbin Bleu, and Monique Coleman.
Ortega attended the opening night of Stranger Things: The First Shadow on Broadway at the Marquis Theatre. During the conversation, the famed director, choreographer and producer recalled one of his most vivid memories from the High School Musical set.
"There are a lot of them [memories], so many of them," said Ortega, adding, "But we were filming High School Musical 1, and we were filming the finale, We're All in This Together. And we had all these cameras going, and the cast and the dancers, and I looked into the gymnasium and I said, 'Man, if Disney does the job we're doing here, this is going to reach a lot of people'."
"And I took the cast, and I put them in a circle, and I said, 'Get ready. I think your lives are going to change.' And they remember that moment as I do," he continues. "I just had this premonition, this feeling that we were up to something that was going to matter."
High School Musical became one of the most successful Disney Channel Original movies of all time and launched the careers of stars like Efron, Hudgens and Tisdale. It also generated two popular sequel films, the third of which was released in theatres in 2008 and earned over $250 million (Dh918 million) worldwide at the box office.
Ortega also shared one of his all-time favourite songs from the franchise. "Oh, well, so I like Get your Head in the Game," he said. "There are so many fabulous songs. I couldn't even begin. We had three albums, and all of them just eclipsed anything that had ever happened for a television soundtrack."
"And the writers that we had working with us on were of the great composer lyricists, working in film, and television and theatre. So yeah, an endless list of favourites," he said.