What ‘H.S.M.’ May Do for the Arts, Kids — It’s Not Enough Just to Whet Teens’ Appetite for Drama

By Christopher Blank

Like many drama critics, my theatrical pretensions were born in high school, the day I asked to try out for a school play and the teacher bared her teeth at me.

“Actors do not try out !”

She held up her hand and waited for the pain to subside. Chunky, wooden bracelets rattled down her arm.

“Actors audition ,” she said. “Tryouts are for sports people, which clearly you are not.”

Thus was my introduction to the world of the theater, a place where pasty-faced underachievers had the potential to become teenage superstars without having to throw a ball in a hoop, stay on the honor roll, or make posters and run for something.

In the bosom of our proscenium, we wore tights and quoted Shakespeare without embarrassment. We put on wigs and makeup and sang music that no one had ever heard.

We were rabidly territorial, indignant when the principal used our holy sanctuary as a prosaic assembly hall. For that matter, we didn’t care for the groundlings forced to sit through our shows either.

I completely understand the villain in a children’s musical I saw Friday night at Circuit Playhouse, who laments the arrival of amateurs into her realm of high school theater: “I’m not a jock, I’m not a brainiac, but I am a star ! Take that away from me, and I’m nothing!”

Thanks to the broad reach of the Disney Channel, however, the lines between jocks, brainiacs and emoters are blurring in schools around the world.

“Disney’s High School Musical” is likely the most produced show in the country today, appealing to the natural curiosity of young people who have yet to surrender to the status quo.

In the Emmy-winning made-for-cable musical that was later adapted for the stage, a jock and a math geek discover they both have a secret love of singing, but their peers just don’t get it. The star- crossed crushes support each other and audition for their high school musical, “Juliet and Romeo.”

Along the way, they pose a threat to the resident drama queen, Sharpay, who, like her namesake, is the guard dog of her private artistic empire.

Educators praise the musical’s impact on young people. It shows that the arts can be cool. And if cool-factor would generate more arts funding in public schools, then it would certainly serve a noble purpose.

However, I wonder if in time Disney’s very popular, G-rated show will become an educational cop-out – a show cranked out by schools because it touts the warm-and-fuzzy benefits of being artsy and popular without the danger of producing legitimate art.

One reason musical theater has such a bad rep with young people is because of the fusty repertoire to which students are limited . High school theater departments, where they still exist, are often locked into the innocuous carousel of “Bye Bye Birdie,”"Seussical,”"Joseph,”"Pirates of Penzance” or “Godspell.”

Although “Disney’s High School Musical” is a great introduction to the stage, the real way to keep teenagers interested in the arts long term is by showing them that not only does musical theater rock, it is also relevant.

Shows like “Rent” or “Dreamgirls” could definitely generate some interest in the cafeteria. “Saturday Night Fever,” with all the bell bottoms and disco balls, would be an improvement on yet another production of “Grease.”

But any of these shows could freak out a protective parent. “Drugs in a teen musical!? That only happens in teen movies!”

Right now, you can buy tickets to at least three different versions of “Disney’s High School Musical” in the area – including one done on ice skates. Maybe your kid in elementary or middle school will be envious of the actors and want to audition for something in the future.

As for actual high-schoolers, don’t expect to see too many in the audience.

Maybe it’s because, for older teens, Disney’s musical already seems a tad cheesy – a show that a teenager might watch with the kids she’s babysitting.

When the novelty of “H.S.M.” wears off, I hope educators can keep the jocks and brainiacs coming back to the arts with programming that teens actually want to perform . There are many musicals that have a cool-factor – “Sweeney Todd,”"Hair,”"Ragtime” – that would give young adults access to the lessons theater teaches about confidence, empathy and problem-solving.

The benefits of having an arts education are well-documented, even by the Bard of Avon, who long ago noted, “The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems and spoils.”

-Contact performing arts writer Christopher Blank at 529-2305 or blank@commercialappeal.com.

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‘Musical’ madness

At Circuit Playhouse:

“Disney’s High School Musical” continues through Aug. 24. Shows are 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays. Tickets $30; $20 seniors, students, military; $15 for children under 18. Call 726- 4656.

At Collierville’s Harrell Theatre:

“Disney’s High School Musical 2: Live Onstage!” Final weekend is 8 tonight, 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $15; $12 students and seniors. Call 853-3228.

Coming to FedExForum:

“Disney’s High School Musical: The Ice Tour.” Shows are 7 p.m. Sept. 4-5; 2 and 6 p.m. Sept. 6-7. Tickets: $6 to $55 plus service fee. FedExForum. Call 205-2640 or 525-1515.

Originally published by Christopher Blank .

(c) 2008 Commercial Appeal, The. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.