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'High School Musical 2' Finds Record-Breaking Audience

By: Aug. 19, 2007
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Zap2It.com reports that "High School Musical 2," the sequel to Disney's smash TV hit, broke a number of viewership records.  "High School Musical 2" premiered on the Disney Channel on Friday, August 17th at 8 PM ET.

According to the article, "The follow-up to the phenomenon that was 'High School Musical' drew an estimated 17.2 million viewers on Friday night, a figure Disney Channel boasts makes it the most-watched basic cable telecast ever....'High School Musical 2' became the most watched basic cable movie of all time in total viewers by a margin of almost two million over 2001's 'Crossfire Trail' on TNT."

With 6.1 million kids between the ages of 6 and 11 watching, as well as 5.9 million in the 9-to-14 demographic, "High School Musical 2" also made records as the entertainment telecast drawing in the most tween viewership ever. It also found the largest audience for any Friday night telecast in over five years and "directly contributed to a night of low ratings on the major networks."

Press notes on "High School Musical 2" state: "School's out and summer's here! The East High Wildcats are gearing up for three sun and fun-filled months of...work?  Troy, Gabriella, Chad and Taylor have scored sweet summer gigs at the Lava Springs Country Club, owned by the family of the showtune-singing Sharpay and Ryan Evans. Sharpay's world.  Sharpay's rules. Rule #1: get Troy.  She she introduces East High's primo boy to the most important people in the city, Troy learns being friends with the Evans family offers mondo rewards, like a college scholarship and chilling with college basketball hotshots.  But will he give up the Wildcats and Gabriella to rise to the top?"

"High School Musical" premiered on Disney Channel on January 20th, 2006, and became the highest rated original movie up until that time. It won the Television Critics Association Award for Outstanding Children's Programming, and received two Emmy Awards (of its total 6 nominations), a DGA Award, an Imagen Award for Best Children's Program, and a Humanitas Prize nomination. The soundtrack received a Billboard Music Award for Soundtrack of the Year, and was nominated for an American Music Award in the Favorite Album (Pop/Rock) category. The film even earned an entry in the Guinness World Record Book as the first TV movie to deliver nine concurrent singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

"High School Musical 2" stars, in addition to Grabeel, Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Corbin Bleu, Monique Coleman, Bart Johnson and Matthew Miles Carter, among others.

BroadwayWorld Editor-in-Chief Robert Diamond's exclusive "High School Musical 2" piece can be read at this link.  Charles Isherwood's New York Times review of the High School Musical tour can be accessed here.  Virginia Heffernan's New York Times TV review of "High School Musical 2" can be read here. Craig Brockman's interview with "High School Musical 2" star Lucas Grabeel can be viewed here.







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