High School Musical The Series: Hitting the TV Show Jackpot

When people outside the U.S. think of American culture, it’s a combination of world politics, Disneyland, sports and music entertainment. However, another aspect of America is the high school experience. It’s been seen hundreds of movies, but the latest and probably most powerful Hollywood representation was in Disney’s High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.

As a musical, the show was already a harder combination of acting and singing, but to win over the American TV audience for four seasons and enough that they felt bad the show was ending would be considered an epic win, even by the most critical Hollywood standards. And that definitely was the case. High School Musical, produced by Tim Federle, not only proved to be a winning gamble on the part of Disney management, it was also a chapter in entertainment history too.

Going From a Crazy Idea to a Cultural Hit

High School Musical by all TV standards shouldn’t have happened. In fact, many in Disney management thought it was literally, “a crazy idea, but just crazy enough to work.” So, they took a chance on it. And, after the first season, the show established itself and scored a second season after that. Through that story arc and trip, the audience latched on and made the show a big Disney success. People sang the songs, they rooted for the characters, and High School Musical started to represent the ideal of what people wanted to remember from their own American high school experience.

When the show completed its fourth season and wrapped up the story, it was a bit like seeing the curtains close on a stageshow that immediately had everyone standing for applause and hollering for an encore. The response was visceral and emotional. And it was also a recognition of a TV show that was going to leave its mark. Not only is High School Musical going to rewrite the textbook of how to put together a successful TV musical show, it’s probably going to fill up a few chapters on successful TV series-making in general as well.

Success has a Legacy

Of course, actors are famous for having concerns about too much success and then being cast-typed into a rut based on that same success. The prime actors for High School Musical have found themselves in that particularly odd situation and are looking for new acting paths to move on. However, for the show itself, it’s been solidified as a Disney success. And that title, which was hard won, is going to stick with High School Musical for a long time, well after its actors have finished their careers even.