Song and dance phenomenon takes Atlanta by storm

It started as a Disney Channel original movie and has become a hit sensation with people of all ages across the nation. Now a new full length musical adaptation of Disney’s “High School Musical” will make its world professional premiere in Atlanta.

The production is brought to Atlanta by Theater of the Stars and will run at the Fox Theatre Jan. 12-28. The production will run five more performances than originally announced due to the popularity of the show.

“Due to the overwhelmingly positive response to our upcoming production of Disney’s High School Musical we’ve decided to add more performances to our January schedule,” stated Christopher B. Manos, producer of Theater of the Stars. “We are thrilled to be one of a handful of regional theaters which were chosen by Disney Theatricals to produce this marvelous new musical sensation.”

Disney’s “High School Musical” tells the story of a group of high school students who are struggling with issues of popularity, first love, balancing education with extra curricular activities, and the value of friends and family. With positive themes like the importance of expressing yourself, believing in yourself and following your dreams, this new family-friendly musical is sure to be enjoyed by audiences of all ages.

Disney’s “High School Musical” has broken records in television viewership and in CD and online sales. The first broadcast on January 20, 2006 garnered more than 7.7 million viewers in 5 million households. Within 24 hours, the show’s Web site received more than 500,000 hits with visitors downloading lyrics to the song “Breaking Free.”

The soundtrack climbed to number one on the Billboard Charts in March and the single “Breaking Free” has since been certified platinum, along with five other songs on the soundtrack going gold.

For this production of Disney’s “High School Musical,” John Jeffrey Martin will portray basketball star Troy Bolton.  Martin’s Broadway credits include “The Rocky Horror Show,” “Hairspray” and “Good Vibrations.” Regionally he’s appeared in “Grease” at the Papermill Playhouse. This multi-talented performer is also a songwriter and painter. For more information about Jeff visit his web site at www.johnjeffreymartin.com.

Arielle Jacobs will star as beautiful brainiac Gabriella Montez. Her theater credits include “Crazy for You,” “A Chorus Line,” “Babes in Arms,” “Cinderella,” “FAME” and “The Rose of Corazon.” She is currently involved in readings for the new Broadway musical “MASK,” to be directed by Richard Maltby, Jr. She has also been seen on the silver screen in “The Stepford Wives.” For more about Jacobs, visit www.ariellejacobs.com.

Other cast members include Ron Bohmer as Troy’s dad, Shakiem Evans playing Chad Danforth, Alison Fraser as the effervescent drama teacher Ms. Darbus and Shaullanda Lacombe portraying Gabriella’s new best friend and fellow brainiac Taylor McKessie. A full list of cast members can be found at www.theaterofthestars.com.

The creative team for the stage adaptation was announced in early January. The team is headed by Broadway’s Jeff Calhoun as director. Calhoun is the award winning director and choreographer of the ground-breaking Deaf West production of the hit musical “Big River,” ”Brooklyn” and the previous Broadway revival of “Grease.”

Joining Calhoun are Bryan Louiselle as music director and Lisa Stevens as choreographer. Louiselle was hired by Disney to adapt the music for “High School Musical” from the screen to the stage. He is the resident music supervisor, adaptor and recordings producer for Music Theatre International and Disney Kids, Jr. His work includes Cole Porter’s 100th Birthday Celebration at Carnegie Hall. Stevens’ work includes choreography for the recent national tour of “Bombay Dreams” and the Best Choreography Award for “Common Grounds” during the New York Theatre Musical Festival 2006.

Coca-Cola is the Presenting Sponsor of the Theater of the Stars production of Disney’s “High School Musical.” The dates of the show are January 12-28 at the Fabulous Fox Theatre, 660 Peachtree Street, Atlanta, Ga. Tickets are available now at www.ticketmaster.com, by phone at 404-817-8700 and at all TicketMaster outlets. 

The Citizen is partnering with Theatre of the Stars to offer some lucky fans the chance to win a pair of tickets to the January 14 showing at 7 p.m. To enter, send an email to hsmusical@thecitizen.com telling us something that you accomplished at school that nobody thought you could do. Be sure to include who helped you accomplish this goal and how. Include your name, age, address, phone number and e-mail address. Entries must be received by January 9. A drawing will be held for the most exciting and well written stories. The selection of winners picked are the the final decision of The Citizen Newspapers. Winners will be contacted January 10 via e-mail and must pick up their show tickets at The Citizen Newspaper offices. No prizes will be mailed. For full contest rules, see the ad in today’s paper or see it on The Citizen’s Web site, www.TheCitizen.com.

Theater of the Stars is celebrating its 54th anniversary this year as one of the nation’s premier regional theater companies. A civic non-profit cultural organization, Theater of the Stars is dedicated to presenting and producing the best in musical theater. To learn more about its history of excellence, visit www.theaterofthestars.com.

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