The stage adaptation of the Emmy Award-winning “High School Musical,” the movie that smashed all records on the Disney Channel, has arrived in Washington for two weeks, followed by two more in Baltimore.
Musical director Robert Sprayberry gets a kick out of conducting the orchestra and vibrant cast of Broadway veterans. He cautions that most adults attending will know few details about the plot or the teenage characters, but their youngsters will have memorized every line and lyric sung by their idols.
“Even in big theaters, I see lots of very young kids,” Sprayberry says. “The actors are all pleasantly surprising in the waythey contribute to the story by making the material seem deeper.
“None of the characters are carbon copies, and there are some new numbers that build momentum. Although the kids in the audience are used to the film actors, when this cast comes out for bows, it’s bedlam. They embrace all the characters and the actors playing them.” Sprayberry, a Louisiana native, grew up in a musical family and was involved in the theater from childhood. Since completing postgraduate work at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, he has worked extensively as conductor and composer. His honors include the Dramalogue Award for conducting the national tour of “Rent” and the Richard Rodgers Award for his stage musical adaptation of “They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?” which played at American University in October 2006 before heading to Russia for an international theater festival.
“Conducting and being part of ‘Rent’ was inspirational because of the whole history of the show and Jonathan Larson’s legacy,” he says. “Like ‘High School Musical,’ it was a generational piece, but it’s dark and adult, more like a modern ‘Hair.’
“I enjoy the crossover between film, TV, modern dance and theater. One feeds off the other. The music of ‘HSM’ helps you feel the flow and how the pacing and timing connect. Every generation has a favorite show that touches them, and this seems to be one that will mean a lot to today’s kids for a long time because it’s so upbeat.”
If you go
Disney’s touring stage version of “High School Musical”
» When: Tuesday to Feb. 17; 7:30 p.m. Tuesday to Friday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday
» Venue: National Theatre
» Tickets: $41.50 to $86.50, also premium seats at $126.50; at National Theatre box office or Telecharge at 800-447-7400 or telecharge.com
