Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour Adds New Level of Cool to the Hit Musical Phenomenon
The cultural sensation "High School Musical" reaches a whole new level of "cool" with Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour. This ice spectacular is premiering September 29th, it was announced today by Thomas Schumacher, president of Disney Theatrical Productions, and Kenneth Feld, chairman and CEO of Feld Entertainment.Tickets for the U.S. tour will go on sale at http://www.highschoolmusicaltheicetour.com on Monday, April 2, while the European, Canadian and Mexican dates will be released later this spring.
The ice tour will feature a live fusion of songs, dance and team-spirited fun to celebrate the music of the original Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel movie, and its sequel "High School Musical 2," which is set to debut on the Channel this summer. Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour is being produced by Feld Entertainment and Kenny Ortega and mounted in cooperation with Schumacher and his team at Disney Theatrical Productions.
Commenting on the announcement, Schumacher said, "'High School Musical' has been a smash hit in virtually every area of the entertainment spectrum from television and home entertainment to soundtracks, and live concert tours. The ice tour celebrates the fun and music in a whole new and exciting way. Feld Entertainment is the undisputed expert in its field, and we're working closely with them and the movie's original creators to make this a fantastic experience for audiences of all ages."
Kenneth Feld, a Tony(R) Award-winning producer, said, "We brought together a creative dream team who will deliver a top-notch production that celebrates moments from the movies in an ice spectacular that will fill arenas with lights, music, dancing, and spirit. Kenny Ortega has pumped incredible genius into this production and we're thrilled to be collaborating with him."
The global tour, comprised of three companies, is expected to play more than 100 cities in its first year alone, including the worldwide premiere at Madison Square Garden (on September 29th and 30th) and the Staples Center in Los Angeles (on October 5th) in addition to cities in Europe, Canada and Mexico.
Feld Entertainment's award-winning creative team includes some of key talent associated with the original "High School Musical" films and concert tour:
-- Kenny Ortega (Producer) Emmy(R) Award-winning director and
choreographer, Disney's High School Musical, High School Musical 2,
2002 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremonies, Dirty Dancing, Ferris
Bueller's Day Off
-- Jeff Calhoun (Director) Tony(R) Award-nominated director, Brooklyn the
Musical, Grease, Annie Get Your Gun and the Deaf West production of
Big River as well as Theatre of the Stars's production of "High School
Musical" in Atlanta
-- Peter Barsocchini (Writer) Disney's High School Musical, Disney's High
School Musical 2, Drop Zone, The Merv Griffin Show
-- Jeremy Railton (Production Designer) Emmy(R) Award-winning designer,
2002 Winter Olympics Opening and Closing Ceremonies, Billboard Music
Award, Miss Universe / Miss USA Beauty Pageant
-- Patrick Woodroffe (Lighting Designer) the Rolling Stones, Elton John,
Genesis, Bob Dylan and High School Musical: The Concert
-- Erin "Topaz" Lareau (Costume Designer) Emmy(R) Award-winning designer,
Disney's High School Musical: The Concert, Benise: Nights of Fire,
Gwyneth Paltrow, John Mayer, Brad Pitt
-- Charles Klapow (Choreographer) Emmy(R) Award-winning choreographer,
Disney's High School Musical, Disney's High School Musical 2, Cheetah
Girls 2
-- Cindy Stuart (Skating Choreographer) Disney On Ice, Olympic Gold
Medalists Jamie Sale and Davie Pelletier, Six-time Canadian National
Champion Jennifer Robinson, Stars On Ice with Olympic Gold Medalist
Christopher Dean, Co-Choreographer with Olympic Gold Medalist Robin
Cousins
"We'll be recruiting some of the world's most talented skaters to play East High School's own Troy, Gabriella, Ryan, Sharpay, Chad and Taylor," said Nicole Feld. "They'll be heating up the ice performing chart-topping tunes and signature choreography, and with the ice as the dance floor, this event will be an unprecedented twist on a fan favorite."
Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour will feature music from the popular "High School Musical" soundtrack, including "We're All in This Together," "Get'cha Head in the Game," "Start of Something New," "Stick to the Status Quo," along with new music from "High School Musical 2."
Rich Ross, president, Disney Channel Worldwide, said, "We are so proud to have introduced 'High School Musical' to the world and to see its popularity continue to grow in so many ways. The ice tour is a fantastic way to build upon the experience for its millions of fans worldwide while introducing the music and dancing to a new audience."
"High School Musical," an Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel Original Movie, premiered in January 2006 in the U.S. and through the year, on 25 Disney Channels and free-to-air broadcasters, reaching over 100 countries and over 100 million unique viewers worldwide. In the U.S., its soundtrack was the #1 album of the year in 2006 (certified quadruple Platinum by the RIAA), and broke records on the Billboard charts with an unprecedented nine original songs making the "Hot 100." It was the #1 TV movie on DVD for the year and sold 7.2 million units have been sold around the world. In fall 2006, Disney Theatrical adapted the teleplay for local school productions, and it is anticipated that 2000 schools will produce stage versions in the first year alone.
Schumacher added, "The first of our regional professional theatre licensed productions was a huge success earlier this year during its five-week run in Atlanta's Theatre of the Stars, and we're currently in discussions on how to tour that production starting later this year. Additionally, by June of this year, more than 1,000 schools will have licensed and staged the show, representing an unprecedented 5,000 performances."
Internationally, "High School Musical" has aired on Disney Channels (26 worldwide) and free-to-air broadcasters, reaching over 100 countries. For the September 2006 premiere in India, the music was re-recorded in Hindi with Indian instrumentation and more rhythmic beats to achieve a "Bollywood" sound.
Adding to its success, "High School Musical" has spawned a #1 New York Times bestseller -- "High School Musical -- The Novel," which has sold over 1.2 million copies. "High School Musical" was also the first TV movie to be offered on the iTunes Music Store. "High School Musical" themed shows have also proven to be popular at the Disney Theme Parks and Resorts, including Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, and an upcoming production at Disneyland Paris.
Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour
Schedule is subject to change
City State Start End Venue
Date Date
Lakeland FL 08/31/07 09/01/07 The Lakeland Center
Orlando FL 09/07/07 09/09/07 Amway Arena
Tampa FL 09/07/07 09/09/07 St. Pete Times Forum
Fort Myers FL 09/14/07 09/16/07 Germain Arena
Nashville TN 09/14/07 09/16/07 Gaylord Entertainment Center
City State Start End Venue
Date Date
Sunrise FL 09/19/07 09/19/07 BankAtlantic Center
Knoxville TN 09/21/07 09/23/07 Knoxville Civic Coliseum
Miami FL 09/22/07 09/23/07 AmericanAirlines Arena
Hampton VA 09/28/07 09/30/07 Hampton Coliseum
New York NY 09/29/07 09/30/07 Madison Square Garden
City
Roanoke VA 10/03/07 10/03/07 Roanoke Civic Center
Los Angeles CA 10/05/07 10/05/07 STAPLES Center
Richmond VA 10/05/07 10/07/07 Richmond Coliseum
Long Beach CA 10/06/07 10/07/07 Long Beach Arena
Los Angeles CA 10/09/07 10/09/07 Los Angeles Sports Arena
Charlotte NC 10/12/07 10/14/07 Charlotte Bobcats Arena
San Diego CA 10/12/07 10/14/07 ipayOne Center at the Sports
Arena
Fairfax VA 10/19/07 10/21/07 Patriot Center
Oakland CA 10/19/07 10/21/07 ORACLE Arena
Atlanta GA 10/27/07 10/28/07 Philips Arena
San Jose CA 10/26/07 10/28/07 HP Pavilion at San Jose
Stockton CA 10/30/07 10/30/07 Stockton Arena
Baltimore MD 11/02/07 11/04/07 1st Mariner Arena
Sacramento CA 11/02/07 11/04/07 ARCO Arena
Trenton NJ 11/07/07 11/07/07 Sovereign Bank Arena
Fresno CA 11/07/07 11/07/07 Selland Arena at Fresno
Convention and Entertainment
Center
Bakersfield CA 11/10/07 11/11/07 Rabobank Arena
Hershey PA 11/09/07 11/11/07 Giant Center
Salt Lake UT 11/15/07 11/18/07 EnergySolutions Arena
City
Uniondale NY 11/16/07 11/18/07 Nassau Veterans Memorial
Coliseum
East NJ 11/23/07 11/24/07 Continental Airlines Arena
Rutherford
Des Moines IA 11/22/07 11/25/07 Wells Fargo Arena
Kearney NE 11/28/07 11/28/07 FirsTier Event Center
Indianapolis IN 11/30/07 12/02/07 Conseco Fieldhouse
Kansas City MO 11/30/07 12/02/07 Sprint Center
St. Paul MN 12/14/07 12/16/07 Xcel Energy Center
Philadelphia PA 12/28/07 01/01/08 Wachovia Center
Bridgeport CT 01/04/08 01/06/08 Arena at Harbor Yard
Hartford CT 01/11/08 01/13/08 Hartford Civic Center
Cleveland OH 01/12/08 01/13/08 Quicken Loans Arena
Cleveland OH 01/18/08 01/21/08 Quicken Loans Arena
Albany NY 01/16/08 01/16/08 Times Union Center
Rochester NY 01/18/08 01/20/08 Blue Cross Arena
Providence RI 01/23/08 01/23/08 Dunkin Donuts Center
Providence
Rosemont IL 01/25/08 01/27/08 Allstate Arena
Syracuse NY 01/25/08 01/27/08 War Memorial at OnCenter
Rockford IL 01/30/08 01/30/08 MetroCentre
Buffalo NY 02/01/08 02/03/08 HSBC Arena
Chicago IL 02/01/08 02/02/08 United Center
Chicago IL 02/08/08 02/10/08 United Center
Milwaukee WI 02/08/08 02/10/08 U.S. Cellular Arena
Green Bay WI 02/15/08 02/16/08 The Resch Center
City State Start End Venue
Date Date
Boston MA 02/15/08 02/18/08 TD Banknorth Garden
Grand Forks ND 02/20/08 02/20/08 Ralph Engelstad Arena
Auburn MI 02/29/08 03/02/08 The Palace of Auburn Hills
Hills
Wheeling WV 03/05/08 03/05/08 WesBanco Arena
Pittsburgh PA 03/07/08 03/09/08 Mellon Arena
St. Louis MO 03/14/08 03/16/08 Scottrade Center
Saginaw MI 03/19/08 03/19/08 The Dow Event Center
San Antonio TX 03/21/08 03/23/08 Alamodome
Grand MI 03/21/08 03/23/08 Van Andel Arena
Rapids
Peoria IL 03/28/08 03/30/08 Peoria Civic Center
Dallas TX 03/28/08 03/30/08 American Airlines Center
Wichita TX 04/02/08 04/02/08 Kay Yeager Coliseum
Falls
Fort Wayne IN 04/04/08 04/06/08 Allen County War Memorial
Coliseum
Fort Worth TX 04/04/08 04/06/08 Ft. Worth Convention Center
Houston TX 04/11/08 04/13/08 Reliant Stadium
Bossier LA 04/16/08 04/16/08 CenturyTel Center
City
Little Rock AR 04/18/08 04/20/08 ALLTEL Arena
Birmingham AL 04/22/08 04/22/08 BJCC Arena
Mobile AL 04/26/08 04/27/08 Mobile Civic Center
Pensacola FL 04/30/08 04/30/08 Pensacola Civic Center
Baton Rouge LA 05/09/08 05/11/08 Riverside Centroplex
Hidalgo TX 05/16/08 05/18/08 Dodge Arena
Corpus TX 05/21/08 05/21/08 AmericanBank Center
Christi
Laredo TX 05/23/08 05/25/08 Laredo Entertainment Center