December 3, 2025 • 53 mins
Who better to wrap up this amazing season of Get Your Head In the Game than the leader of the Wildcats himself... Kenny Ortega!
Kenny talks about the process of how the film came to him, the phenomenon behind the franchise and how is has changed his life and meant so much to him.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, Wildcats, this is Bart Johnson and you're listening to
get your head in the game.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Hi, everybody, today, we've got a very special guest joining us,
someone whose creative vision and passion brought one of the
most iconic teen franchises of all time to life. He
is the mastermind behind the unforgettable music, the moves, the magic,
and yes, the Wildcats. Please give a warm Wildcat welcome
to the award winning director, choreographer, and the man who
(00:31):
helped the generation get their head in the game, The one,
the only, mister Kenny Ortega.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
I can't believe this day has.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Happened, My dear friend, the great, the center of our
high school musical universe, the person I have more gratitude for.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
Gosh, I'm such your baby. Oh. I love your man
and your family. Your mother was my hairstylist for my
first motion picture. You guys, when you were kids, you
and your brothers, you know, yeah, we go way back.
We go back, We go back, way way back. We
weren't gonna go way back. We were going to just
(01:09):
do the twentieth anniversary. But you know it's emotional. You
know how life turns out and how you meet people
and how and then the pages turn and then you
end up where we did bart, right, you know, you
almost weren't in the movie, that's right. You almost weren't
in high School musical one, two or three because you
(01:32):
were barely thirty and you didn't look twenty one, and
no one at Disney thought you looked old enough to
be Troy Bolton's father. And I went in there like
a bull. I was like, no, he can do this.
He's the coach. He's like so perfect. I know him,
I've known him for years. This is the actor, this
is the personality, this is the heart. And not until
(01:54):
the eleventh hour, I mean, I think they finally made
me bring you in and you had to do it
and show them. And do you remember that, I do?
Speaker 2 (02:02):
Yeah, I remember going to Universal Natalie hard and j
s Lapadura. Yeah, are brilliant casting, amazing. Yeah, I found
it an incredible cast. My gosh, I'd love to ask
you how you found everybody. But even before let's start,
let's start when you auditioned. Okay, you went in and.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
You got the part. Let's just put it that way.
You went in and you convinced everybody. I was right. Yeah,
you convinced them. I was right.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
Yeah, I didn't work the first time. The first time
they said no, okay. And then it was a few
days later you called it, what happened.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
Some gray in your temple? Yeah, I get back in
there and you got me back in there for a
test of some sort and yeah, and then it worked out.
And you are the coach man and I we call
you that. You're known as that with all that you've
done since then and your family, your children, your you know,
you're and all the the experiences that you've had beyond that,
(02:54):
you're still to so many of us known as the coach.
I love that. Yeah, I love it. I accepted And
it feels like it was meant to It's it's more
than their role.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
It does feel like my life. Yeah, to get to
be a general authentic you and Troy you and from
that first moment in the in the opening scene of
High School Musical one when you guys are playing basketball
at the hotel and your wife walks in and goes,
we didn't come here to play more basketball, you know,
one more, one more, and just the relationship that you
(03:25):
guys established so quickly, it was such a great on
camera there was chemistry between the two of you. There
was no question that there was family there from the
very start. Yeah, yeah, there was truth, authenticity.
Speaker 1 (03:39):
I loved that.
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Yeah, yeah, I felt that he was He was so terrific.
Zach was was so so honest with his performance and
wanted to do such a great job, and it was
treated like as serious as any other kind of drama.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Yeah. You know, his mother came up to me after
he got the role because of traffic whenever Zach would
get a call to come in, and then we weren't
doing zooms, then we weren't doing tapes. Then you came
in and you auditioned in a room, you know, and
then you either got a call back or you didn't.
But you didn't phone anything in, right, you didn't tape
anything in. So they had to drive in after school,
(04:16):
you know, an hour and a half to come into
Hollywood to audition for things, and then another hour and
a half to get back, and you know, they've got
family and dinner, and he's got a little brother, and
then they've got school, and so he wasn't getting cast.
And it wasn't that he hadn't worked before, but he
wasn't getting cast. And his mother said to me that
they had made a deal that if he didn't get
(04:38):
this role that he was auditioning for for this Disney
Channel movie High School Musical, that they were going to
give up acting for a while and let him finish school.
And he got the role. Wow, yeah, this was kind
of the last one. This was going to be the
last one for a while. Yeah. Yeah, So I just
I love that, you know, there's anyway La Padua and
(05:01):
Heart Jason La Pedura and Natalie Hart who have retired
from casting, and they're so young, they don't you know,
they must have done really well because they're like really
young people. But they retired from casting. But I went
to them for everything high school, everything that I did
from that moment forward. Oh really they did all your movies, yeah, everything,
(05:23):
And and I missed them terribly. And they were just
so good at casting young talent and finding and searching,
you know, and and and if I would say to them,
I just don't think it's there yet, they would find
a way, you know. And and in fact I think
that they they were what inspired Gary to look outside
(05:45):
the US, you know, eventually, you know, to look into
into Great Britain and to other places to find talent.
But yeah, they were magnificent casting directors. Yeah, what a
cast we had? Huh what a cast?
Speaker 2 (05:58):
People ask me all the time like how wow, like
deconstruct how this is so brilliant and has touched so
many people around the world. And now we say everybody says,
it's Kenny Ortaga, thank you, but it's it's how you
found the cast, how you found the casting directors, how
you worked on the music.
Speaker 1 (06:17):
I worked very closely with Gary Marsh, you know, and
and somewhat with with rich Ross, who was the CEO
of the company. Then Gary became president and CEO of
Disney Channel and Gary, I'm sorry, and rich Ross went
off to become the president of the Walt Disney Company.
(06:37):
But anyway, I worked very closely with them and Judy Taylor,
who was the head of casting for the Disney Channel,
and La Pajora and Hart And there's a fun story
and I don't think I really shared it before, but
we were down to the nitty gritty and I think
we had maybe about eighteen twenty players left for the kids,
for you know, for Troy Gabriella, Sharpey, Ryan Chad and
(07:00):
and Taylor and and I and and so we were
in this room and I had called them in and
I was putting them through everything and mixing them up
with different partners. And you're reading with this Chad now,
and you're reading with this Troy now, and this Sharpay's
now reading with this Ryan, and and and then I
would have them play basketball, and then I would have
(07:21):
them doing provisations, and then I would have them sing,
and then I would have them dance and the first
callback callback, I think I had them there for like
six hours. And then and then Judy Taylor, the casting
person from from Disney Channel, came back and said, the
agents were furious, what is Kenny or Tega thinking These
(07:41):
kids had other auditions to go to. These kids had
other things to do, you know, what is he doing
in there for six hours? And then the next day
she came back and said Zach's agent called and said
Zach told her it was the best audition that he's
ever been to and whether he gets the job or not,
he was so glad that he was a part of it.
And but that I took my time is the answer.
(08:04):
You know here, Bart, I took my time. You know,
I come from musical theater and from theater background, and
you don't rush, you know. I didn't want just to
cast actors that could sing and dance, you know, that
had comedic skills and improvisational skills, and wanted partners. I
wanted to know that the people that were going to
be in the room with me every day were going
to bring something to the party, you know, and it
(08:26):
wasn't going to be up to me solely to guide
and direct and steer, you know, and and to be
the only one. And I wanted them to have something
to say about who who their their characters were and
and so you know, the success of all of this,
you know, is broken up into so many parts, you know,
so so many parts.
Speaker 2 (08:46):
I'm curious when when you were doing those rehearsals, how
many people do you think we're going through that whole process?
And when did you start, yeah, the the auditions, and
when did you start spotting who it might be. We
saw a lot of people and you put him through
that process below.
Speaker 1 (09:04):
In the beginning, they came in, they read, you know,
then they came in and they read. Then they came
in and read with other people. Like now we're starting
to put Chad, you know, like the characters together. I
remember we could not find a Chad. And then Gary said,
there's a boy that's in a series that's shooting in
Hawaii and and his name is Corbin Blue and he's
(09:26):
fifteen years old and he's so special and he can
sing and he can dance and he's perfect for this role.
Can he play basketball? I don't know, but we'll teach him, okay.
And we waited for him and he was like an
eleventh hour, you know, he came in at the eleventh hour.
You know, I'll tell you there was a chemistry that
happened in the room in the finals. Every time I
(09:49):
put Ashley and Lucas together, there was something going on there.
They would argue in between takes. She would be saying
some telling him how to or how to say, and
there was this bickering going on that was just and
then they would do the roles and the bickering what
happened in the roles and they were more like brother
and sister than just two characters. And I went to
(10:11):
Peter Barcaccini and I said, Peter, make them twins. I said,
They're like, they're like brothers and sisters. In competition with
each other. I said, so they weren't twins, they weren't
brother and sister. And Peter wrote them then as twins
because their chemistry was just so incredible and and and
and everything in real life that they weren't in competition
(10:34):
with each other, but they both had like strong opinions
about what things should be. And I loved that, and
so that that those strong opinions really worked for those
two characters. And and then Gabriella and Troy. Every time
we put Zach with Vanessa, we just couldn't breathe. It
(10:54):
was Romeo and Juliet. You couldn't take your eyes off
of them. And there was something deep and profound and
like nothing I'd ever seen before happening in an audition.
And then we would put him with someone else, and
her was someone else and him was someone else. And
then I remember the conversation came up about he has
no muscular structure, he's got a gap between his teeth.
(11:17):
You know, he's not a singer, he's not a dancer,
and I was like, and I didn't have to defend him,
but I was like, excuse me, the promise that lives
inside of this young man, I said, it's just it's magnificent.
And I said, this is Troy who is not And
I said, Troy Bolton's not a singer, Troy Bolton's not
(11:39):
a dancer. And I said, he becomes those things. And
I said, let me add him. This kid is capable
of doing anything we ask of him. And then Vanessa
was just the princessa yeah, you know, and she was
able to, through her eyes and emotions, reach these sort
of emotional moments like very rarely can you did you
(12:04):
see in a young actress? And so there were just
there were these things that were happening in the room
that made it impossible for the for us to split
them up. Wow, you know. And at the end of
the day it was like, well, take our gamble, you know.
And then and then Zach did he worked really really
hard to build his voice, and he worked extra hard
(12:25):
with Chucky, Claypowe and Bonnie you know, to improve his
his physical movement skills, and and yeah, and look what
happened with looks what what's happened? I just watched High
School Musical one again. I did too for the first time,
and like, honestly, eighteen years really eighteen years. By the way,
the jacket I'm wearing, I'm wearing my letterman's jacket with
(12:48):
my name on it. I love it. It was gifted
to me that I've had in storage and I had
to go find it so I could wear it for
you today. I love it. I love it. What an
honor and it feels real coachy at least. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Yeah, But the chemistry between those two Zach and Vanessa
opening of High.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
School Musical, when we talked about it a moment ago
about you guys playing basketball, that opening moment, you know,
started something new. Yeah, the start of something new. None
of us, first of all, knew that those lyrics, you know,
the start of something new was going to be what
we were all looking at down the road. That this
was going to turn a page in every single one
(13:28):
of our lives. Whether you were the CEO or president
of the channel, or whether you were the director or
composer or writer or producers, or whether you were one
of the actors. This changed the course of everybody's future.
That song was the first song in our movie, and
(13:49):
I remember it being a special moment, but I didn't
remember how special it was until I watched it the
other night. And by the middle of that song, you
cannot take your eyes off of those two kids. They
you cannot. And if you are young at heart, if
you were young at heart, there's no way you're going
(14:10):
to turn away from that because it represents everything we're
looking for, you know, in in in friendships, in relationships,
you know, in life. The connection that those two kids
made on camera at that moment that early in our franchise,
(14:31):
and it was like everything after that moment was built
on them. Everything was an extension of that romance. The
whole high school musical. Eh, there was basketball, and there
was theater, and there was dancing, and there was funny
and there was competition, but it was that romance casting
those two people and that everything then that was an
(14:51):
extension of that. That became the phenomena that we are Wow, Wow,
those two kids. That's like, that's that's the heart. Yeah.
And then the humor you know what Ashley Tisdale and
and and Lucas Grabriel brought, you know, and everybody everyone
can everyone contributed, but I mean their improvisational skills, their
(15:16):
their knowledge of comedy and comedy, comic timing at their
young ages, you know, and and and coming in and
being able to have a real in depth conversation about
a scene, you know, and and what's important and what's
driving the scene and what are the ambitions of the
characters and just it was just so much fun and
(15:36):
everything just sort of grew every moment that we were together.
It was never just about me saying go here, go there,
and then say this and do that. It was so
much about what everybody brought to each day.
Speaker 4 (15:47):
Yeah, I'm Kristin Davis, host of the podcast Are You
a Charlotte? The most anticipated guest from season three is
here the Tray to My Charlotte. Kyle McLaughlin joins me
to relive all of the magical Tray in Charlotte moments.
(16:08):
He reveals what he thinks of Trey giving Charlotte a
cardboard baby.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
Why would I bring her a cardboard baby?
Speaker 5 (16:15):
I was literally I was like, this doesn't track for
me at all.
Speaker 4 (16:19):
When he found out Trey's shortcomings, I'm kind of.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
Excited to talk about it. You know, I think he's
he's a guy spends time in Central Park. You know,
he's probably don't know, there'll be some.
Speaker 5 (16:26):
Surgery stuff, you know, And I was like, all this
kind of stuff going on, and they were like, yeah, yeah, yeah, fine,
and they said, but he's impotent, and I was like, he's.
Speaker 4 (16:34):
Impotent, and why he chose not to return to ingest
like that.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
They came and presented an idea and I was like,
I get I see it.
Speaker 1 (16:41):
It's so kind of a one joke idea.
Speaker 4 (16:43):
You don't want to miss this. Listen to Are you
a Charlotte on the iHeartRadio app? Apple podcasts or wherever
you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1 (16:56):
Yeah, it was from beginning to end such a different
experience for me. I've done a hundred movie since then,
but nothing feels like that. The way you would stop production.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
And get us in a circle and have conversations about
what was going on or how special this was, or
you wanted to hear from us and what we were feeling.
And it just so many moments like that in these
movies that you were able to reel us in and
make us realize how special this was.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
You know, there was one line that Coach Bolton said,
let me think of it, let me remember it, that
made me want to do the movie High School Musical One.
When it was sent to me and I read the script,
there was a line that Coach Bolton said when his
son and him are having this debate about him wanting
(17:48):
to sing, and the coach saying, you know, it's this
girl and this singing and this theater thing and missus
Darbus and this it's getting in the way of our plans.
It's getting in the way of your bright future. It's
getting in the way of who you can become. And
do you know what a scholarship is worth? And and
and and they're having this debate and Coach Bolton says,
you know, son, you're a playmaker, You're not a singer.
(18:14):
And there's this pause, and then Troy says to his father,
why can't I be both? And that was my life.
I was an athlete and I loved theater, and I
lived in this this argument of you know, you can't,
you can't you know, serve two to you know two
(18:36):
u masters, you have to choose. And I even had
a counselor in my high school that made me drop
out of sports because he said, eventually, you're going to
disappoint somebody. There's going to be a track meet, and
there's going to be an opening who's going to lose.
This isn't the way you go through life. So I
was conned into believing that I had to be one
(18:56):
or the other. My father was an Olympic athlete. Can
you imagine how difficult it was for me to walk
away from sport. So when I saw this, I thought, yeah, yeah,
you know and that and that that young men don't
have to be embarrassed, you know that that that they
want to throw a ball and also sing a note.
(19:16):
And so that was That was coach Bolton's line, you're
not a playmaker, you're a singer and and Troy's response,
why can't I be both? I was like, there you go,
that's important. That's a story that needs to be told. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
Yeah, it's amazing to think how many lives have been
touched since then with that message.
Speaker 1 (19:34):
How many times have you heard that? Have I heard that?
It's Casey heard that of all of us have heard,
you know, and now from you know adults that were children.
I wouldn't be who I am today. I would not
have pursued my dreams. I would have not had the courage,
you know, and now I wouldn't be the parent. I
wouldn't be this that that high school musical had these
(19:55):
sort of rivers of themes that danced underneath the lyric
and the and the and the and the and the words
and the dance numbers that were about encouragement, that were
about empowerment, that were about those very things about there's
this person that lives inside of us that sometimes we
don't let out for one reason or another. And that
(20:16):
high school musical was saying, let them out, let them
out and take that chance, and take that risk, you know,
and dream that dream. Yeah, and and and and and
it and it was really important for a lot of
young people. Yeah yeah, you know. It gave them permission
to believe in themselves. Yeah yeah, and not be afraid
(20:39):
and not to be afraid to take those step steps
that were risky mm hmm. I know, Mom, I know Dad,
But I feel this. I feel that, you know. And
that's not to say that that that that means that
there was argument necessarily, you know, with family, but but
I do like that the the argument that was there
with with with Coach Bolton and his boy that moment
(21:02):
when you walk in at the end and they're on
that stage singing in their final audition and the basketball
team has gone in, and and the drama and and
and the uh uhuh Taylor, and and and the debate
team is all there, and and the whole theater is filled,
and Darbus is there, and Troy's up on the stage
and she breaking free, and and and suddenly Coach Bolton
(21:25):
walks in the back of the whole thing, and he
stands there and he sees his son like he's never
seen them before. Yeah that awakening, Yeah, yeah, yeah that.
One of my favorite things about playing this character was
he wasn't just the basketball coach that needs to demand
a lot from the kids. And he wasn't just the
dad who's just supposed to be supportive or have this
(21:46):
ideal first. Like, I got to be both. So I
felt like in.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
All those situations, I had to walk that line, and
I was constantly torn between I need to push him
to be great, but I need to love him and
I want him to be happy.
Speaker 1 (22:01):
So yeah, it was, it was. And the thing is,
you never didn't like the coach, and that was wonderful.
You know. It's like Sharpay, for example, we loved hating her,
yeah right, yeah, I mean she she had masses of
fans globally and she was tough, right Coach Bolton, for
as difficult as he was, and that he was standing
in the way of this relationship moving forward. You know,
(22:23):
you shouldn't be in here. He kicks her out of
the gym. Yeah, right, that that we understood that really
he loved his kid and he wanted the best for him,
you know, and he was lost in this idea of
who his son was and not open enough to realize
who his son was. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's important. I
(22:45):
was lucky my father got me, just like you got Troy.
My dad woke up one day. I was told by
my dad. My mom and dad got you know, parted ways,
and my dad was raising my sister and my little
brother and me and uh and I was in dancing school,
and I was twelve years old, and now my mom
was gone, and I was helping raise my sister and
my brother because my dad worked, and I was going
(23:07):
to school, and so I'd given up baseball because I
wanted to dance. And my dad's sister in laws, he
had twelve brothers. The sister in laws were concerned that
there wasn't a mother in our home, and they were
concerned that dance was going to turn me into the
(23:27):
wrong kind of boy. And so to protect me and
my future and to help my father guide him. They
convinced him to tell me to get back into baseball
and to quit dancing. And my dad said, you know,
will you just try this for a while. You know,
(23:49):
my sister in law is your aunts think that dancing
is going to turn you into somebody that we're not
going to want you to be. Guess what that was.
But anyway, so I I tried it, and I couldn't
do it for like, I think, two games. And so
what I did was I lied, and my dad worked
and never got to come to any of my games.
(24:09):
So after school I would run over the tracks and
go to dancing school and do my classes, and then
I would put on my baseball uniform, run back to school,
roll around in the dirt, come back home. My dad
would be there and he'd say, how was the game,
and I'd say, great, you know what did your second base?
Did you get it? Yeah? I got a double. And
then one day he said to me, that's funny because
I got off work early today. Do you believe it?
(24:30):
And I came down to see you play and I
couldn't find you, and I crumbled. I loved him. He
was my hero. And I was so so ashamed of
myself and so embarrassed. And he said, son, burn your uniform.
If you want to dance, burn your uniform. Let's just
not lie. Wow. And he said go back and dance. Wow.
(24:56):
And that was the coach Bolton. Wow, what a moment
for your dad. Yeah, yeah, that must have me mentor mentors, mentors, mentors, mentors.
He was one of them. Yeah, wow, Wow, that's beautiful.
There's so many kids out there now. You think about
where the kids are, I call them kids. Zach. What
(25:19):
a career huh, oh, my gosh, what a career, you know.
And and and I love that. It's just the dynamics
of his career, just a you know, full of surprise.
You never know where he's going to go next. And
you know, and Vanessa has done really really well. And
I mean her television stuff rent and and and was
it grease Grease?
Speaker 2 (25:39):
My god, I stole the whole all times I couldn't.
Speaker 1 (25:45):
Yeah, I mean and then and and now a moms Ashley,
two little girls, amazing and an incredible company Frenchy And
and Corbyn is in the West End right now. I
just saw him. I was there and I got to
go see him do Great Gatsby, and and a lot
of Broadway, and a lot of Broadway, and and and
Taylor Monique, you know, is just constantly reinventing herself, refuses
(26:10):
to not continue to grow, you know. And it's just
this incredible, giving, soul, giving giving soul. And and and Lucas,
who's been out there carrying the torch, you know, and
and and and playing with kids all over the world
and in a shirt and still making amazing music. Just
so wonderful, so wonderful. What's happened for all of them?
(26:31):
And and and and here we are twenty years later. Manager,
all of those movies are still on television. My god,
and the kids are still walking up to me going,
oh you, thank you Disney Channel, Thank you Gary. You know,
they just changed changed our lives for the better and
made it for a for a more enjoyable existence. Thank
(26:53):
you guys so much. Over there at the Mouse, we
love you.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
Yeah, we sure do. Yeah, I'm full of gratitude for
all that it's given me. I've noticed too that it's
it's a it seems more popular now than it was
ten years ago. Really, I can stop more now today
I get I going through the airport, I couldn't hardly
get through and stop. So many times I've seen that
anywhere in the world, really, like in the most random
countries in the world.
Speaker 1 (27:16):
It's so now the fans still, you know, make you know,
still come up. I mean, it's crazy because you know,
with Michael and Dirty Dancing, Michael Jackson and dirty Dancing,
and and and and and descendants and high school musical
and that you never know, you know what I'm uh,
I have people coming up to me all the time
and hocus pocus that that I've just newsies that Disney
(27:39):
has been a huge part of the sort of you know,
celebrity that has come upon me. That that is, that
has enabled me to have a presence and for people
to identify with me. There weren't a lot of directors
that people knew by their face and their voice. Disney
put me in all of the sort of behind the scenes,
(28:02):
you know, and and and and marketed me out there
along with these movies and and and suddenly you know,
people were stopping me on the street. And the beautiful
part about that was, and is because I've never tired
of it. Is to hear someone look up at me
and look into my eyes and look up to me
and say thank you. You know you're you were the
soundtrack of my my childhood. You were the you were
(28:24):
the stories of my childhood. You know, if it weren't
for your movies, I don't know, you know, if I
would have made the choices that that that it's been
really remarkable, you know, the gift that this is, that
that this has given me. Ah, yes, yeah, it is.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
It's remarkable, the kinds of of things you hear from
people just on the street. They open up and see
how I got through some really hard times or I didn't.
I didn't really have a family when I was here.
I didn't have a dad, and you were. You were
my dad. And I'm going to.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Before high school musical, I will say this too, before
high school musical, everything that I was doing, and I
was doing a lot, and I had been for many, many,
many years. I think that I was out there and
that the reasons why I would say yes and jump
into a project or participate in a project, I think
(29:17):
was not that I didn't think that they were good
ideas or that they would be enjoyable, but also I
think it was about the advancement of my career to
have some solidity that I would have, you know, greater,
you know, boots on the ground that I was sustaining,
that I would be able to survive doing what I love.
(29:40):
High School Musical changed all that for me and gave
me an appreciation that my work could really mean something
and have an impact on people's lives. And from that
moment forward, for twenty years, my choices have all been
made whenever I've been asked to do it anything. What
(30:03):
lives at the center of this idea and this invitation
that is going to be more than entertainment, but that's
going to impact people's lives, and that I've lived my
life now for twenty years as a director and producer
and choreographer making sure that when I say yes, that
it's going to have an impact and be more than
just an entertainment. And Disney Disney gave me that, you know. Wow.
Speaker 6 (30:30):
Yeah, Hey, it's Wilfred Dell and Sabrina Bryan.
Speaker 3 (30:37):
From the podcast Magical Rewind and we have a very
special guest on this week's episode. He's the mastermind behind
some of your favorite movies like Hocus Pocus, Newsy's The
descendants and of course high school musical. Yes, it is
the one and only a living legend director Kenny Ortega.
Speaker 6 (30:53):
We sit down with Kenny to talk about his incredible
career and the legacy he's created with his choreography and films.
Speaker 3 (31:00):
Seriously, will not want to miss this one.
Speaker 6 (31:01):
Listen to Magical Rewind on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts
or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 5 (31:07):
Hi, it's Jenny Garth, host of the I Choose Me podcast.
This week, I'm so excited to welcome my friend Gabrielle
carteris the Andrea Zuckerman from Beverly Hills nine o two
on Oh to the pod. We're choosing to get real.
Speaker 1 (31:21):
I applied to the networks about my age and contracts.
They never would have hired me if they had known
my age.
Speaker 5 (31:27):
We're choosing to be honest.
Speaker 1 (31:29):
She looked at me, and she said, this business is
about going ask, which you have neither of, and we're
choosing to get nostalgic.
Speaker 5 (31:34):
Listen to I Choose Me on the iHeartRadio app, Apple
podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1 (31:44):
So I don't go to work anymore to achieve, you know,
greater confidence, and it's it's really to just put good
to put good stuff out there. Yeah, you know, I've
always felt that from you, Ken. It feels really good.
It feels really good. My life just has great meaning,
(32:05):
you know, and wake up feeling good about myself and
good about that. That's where my head is and why
I make decisions and for whatever everybody's you know, I'm
not judging anybody for the decisions they make. I love movies.
I love entertainment. I love all kinds of all kinds
of it, you know, every every genre you can imagine.
(32:26):
I'm invested in some capacity. But for me, Kenny Ortega,
if there isn't a reason that lives at the center
of an idea, I don't find it purposeful any longer,
and I haven't for many, many years. Huh.
Speaker 2 (32:38):
You know, I've I've noticed that about you. It feels
like you're drawn to things that give light. That's right,
and if there's not light there, you don't seem interested
in for you to make it.
Speaker 1 (32:49):
Yeah, yeah, I'm curious.
Speaker 2 (32:53):
There's one thing I don't know about you is how
did you find I know, you get so many scripts
into you have so many offers. What was it about
this this movie.
Speaker 1 (33:04):
I was doing a lot of television. Part I was
doing this this television series, very successful series, doctor medical
show called Chicago Hope. And then I started doing a
show called Ali McBeal, And then I started directing The
Gilmore Girls. And I was doing all of this television
like episodic television as a director, and and and and
(33:28):
I and I wanted to get more into long form again,
like like from Newsy's and Hocus Pocus. I wanted to do
to be a movie maker and and so I reached
out to my agency and I said, is there any
chance that you guys could look for a script for
me that is a that is a full length movie
for television. We could do it with a small cable company,
you know, under under the radar, you know, in the dark.
(33:50):
And what I really want is just a little, a
little movie that I can take around and show people
and remind them that I that I can direct long form.
And my agent, Ken Greenblad at the time, who since
retired from agent ying, sent me this script called a
High School Musical working title, And when I read it,
(34:12):
I connected to it so much because it reminded me
of my boyhood. It reminded me that when I was
a track and field star, I jumped hurdles. I jumped,
I was high I did high bar, you know, the
high jump. I played baseball. I loved competitive sports. I
loved watching them. My dad was an Olympic runner. He
(34:32):
was the fastest school in fastest high schooler and in
high school for the four forty and and and and
and and and then I loved musical theater and I
was like, WHOA, what is this? So I fell in
love with it the idea. I was like, I know this.
I could bring a lot to this. And then the
(34:54):
producers Barry Rosenbush and Bill Boarden and and and and
Peter Barsika, neither writer, engaged me and we went to
Disney and Gary had read the script and liked it.
And he said, you know, Kenny, as a director, if
I gave you permission to do anything that you would
want to do with this, what would you want to
(35:15):
do with it? And I said, well, I'd turn it
into a musical because it wasn't ah, it wasn't a musical.
It wasn't no, not really. And he said, I've been
waiting four years for the right team to come in
and present that to me as an idea, He said,
how would you approach that? And so I got together
with Steve Vincent, head of music for the Channel, and
(35:35):
together we put together an outline of how music could
move through the story and tell story and move story
forward and character forward, and brought it back to Gary
and then got his input, and that was how it happened. Wow,
And before you knew it, we had composers and lyricists
and David Lawrence writing score and we were a full
(35:57):
blown musical.
Speaker 2 (35:58):
It was a process like like what's timeline on? From
originally the first time he read the script to those
meetings to production.
Speaker 1 (36:05):
He pretty much I think Gary didn't waste any time
pretty quick, No, he pretty much. He pretty much said
let's make this. He put a number on it, which
was way too small. Yeah, But I mean I was
way too invested to not figure out a way to
do it. And it was a little movie with a
(36:27):
little schedule, shooting schedule, and and and what I'd hoped
that we would get out of it was for me,
it was selfish that people would recognize that I knew
how to do this genre. And then what we got
out of it was beyond anything any of us could
have imagined for ourselves. And it was the teamwork. It
(36:49):
was the effort. It was the effort of the team.
You know. I felt, you know that every you know
that that as the director, that there was this incredible
extension of my energy and my thinking that was working
alongside of me in every capacity at the at the
same level of enthusiasm and dedication to give it there all.
(37:13):
I love it. Yeah. And that was number one, and
there was not supposed to be a number one. Yeah.
And then we did the tour, the live concert tour
that sold out arenas all over the country. South America
broke and broke Madonna's merchandising sales, We broke all records
in cable TV. We were the first cable tv, I mean, movie, television,
(37:37):
anything to have an album in the Billboard charts, you know.
And and and then Gary calls and says, the president
of Disney Channel South America wants us to go to
South America. And I'm like, how are we going to
do that. We're not going to have time to do
that while we're making High School Musical two. And he said, well,
it's only going to be about six shows because We're
playing stadiums and that's and I was like what. And
(38:02):
I still did not I didn't comprehend the global impact
that we made. Wow, because I was doing Cheetah Girls
two at the time and prepping high school musical two
at the time. And and and then we got to
Buenos Attis, Argentina, and we sold out two seventy five
thousand seats soccer stadiums. The only one to group to
(38:25):
ever do that before us were The Rolling Stones, Oh
my gosh. And that opening night it was pouring rain,
and when I walked on stage to apologize to the
audience in Spanish, they roared. They roared, and I said,
be patient with us, you know. And they ended up
singing and doing the choreography in the rain to all
the songs that the cast was singing on the stage
(38:46):
that night. Standing backstage, I went, wow, Wow, look what
has happened, you know, and and and and again, you know,
thank you, you know, Gary and the marketing team at
the channel. You know, they had, you know, these millions
of viewers on the channel all over the world, and
(39:08):
they found a way to connect with them and to
wake them up and to let them know we were there.
And they grabbed it in Yeah, and suddenly I was
on OPRAH Good Morning America. Amazing. And Zach and Vanessa
could have walked outside of their homes anymore, right, right,
they had to climb fences to get into you know,
(39:29):
to sneak into an unmarked vehicle to be Yeah.
Speaker 2 (39:33):
Well, I was working out with Zach andzown. We usually
used my gym Buddy, and we were leaving the gym
when when the paparazzi first started, he was, hey, I
start getting himself ready. He's like you ready. I'm like you,
I don't see anybody outside. He's like, oh, yeah, you're
gonna be the news tomorrow. And I'm like wait, wait time.
And we walked outside and people just they popped out
of trash cans and behind cars, and.
Speaker 1 (39:51):
I nearly got run over a number of times because
the paparazzi would have rather run over me than to
miss their opportunity to catch up to Zach. That happened
with m J two, you know, and at Olivia, and
you know, I mean many many let you know, you'd
think I would have learned, yeah, you know, and you know, uh,
there's a flame there, be careful that you're if you're
(40:13):
close to it, you may get burned. But no, I
mean I remember in places like in Paris, where you know,
Disney tried to warn the Paris team, you know, that
we were coming and that to be careful and to
have a lot of security, and you know, and then
that the streets were filled and the traffic stopped, and
you know, and the Beatles were in town. You know,
we had to go through the kitchen and and and
(40:33):
and hide in the back of vans and and then
be invited into people's personal property. You know, the paparazzi
were following us all over the city. And then we'd
sneak into another car and go out of back exit
that no one knew about so that we could go eat.
It was that big. It was that big. Yeah, these kids'
(40:53):
lives changed overnight, overnight, and how they sustained, how they managed,
how they managed to figure out, you know, through the
help of their parents and reps and their experiences, how
to move on in this world. Now with that level
(41:14):
of celebrity. Well, I think you're you're you are a
great example of that too. When they came back for
two and three, the kids were great, They were they
didn't seem to be troubled, no or spoiled. The ego
wasn't there, but I think it was. It was your leader.
We had to hide. Yeah, yeah, you know, we had
to pretend we were doing something else. No one could
(41:34):
know that we were making a high school musical movie. Yeah. Yeah,
you know, well, I think you were a great influence
on on showing them, you know, how to handle this. Yeah,
Michael Jackson, we were sitting and we were having dinner
(41:56):
in Paris in a private room, and it took a
lot to get there, and everybody was a wreck. We
were full of anxiety. We're all sitting around this round
table and and all the kids were there, you know,
Ashley and all of them, and and we're getting ready
for the premiere in Paris, and and and there was
this tension, and you know, they we're bringing food to
(42:16):
us at the table and my phone rang and it
was MG and I was working with him and and
and he was like, hi, Kenny. And I was like hey,
and Michael, it's it's it's Kenny. I'm in Paris. I'm
with the kids from high school musical And he was
like no, And he and his children were fans of
high school musical and his children in Paris, and and
and Prince were, you know, they'd come to the concert
(42:39):
and they were big fans of the of the first
movie and and and uh. And I was like, oh,
we've just had a rough day, man. I was like,
what a day. Just to get out of the hotel
and to be able to get anywhere is become just
like insane. And I was. And he was like, let
me talk to them. And so I said, Zach, it's Michael.
And he was like what. And I was like, it's Michael.
(42:59):
He wants to say hello. Oh. And Zach took the
phone and went over into a corner and then fell
down to onto his knees and tears were rolling down
his face. But what Michael had basically told him was,
you know, don't let him steal the child in you.
Don't let them take that away. You know, don't let
all of this take that away. Hold on to it.
(43:21):
You know. I don't know what the rest of the
conversation was about, but I mean Michael told me that,
you know, then, and then he passed it on to
the next person, the phone on to the next person,
and the phone on to the next person, you know,
and here was a guy Michael. If anybody knew what
your child had been taken away with what you know,
he knew. But yeah, you know it was it was amazing,
(43:41):
you know. Yeah, And but you know, you're right. When
they came to do two and when they came to
do three, they were just better at what they did
and more life experienced. But they still came in with
the same compassion, dedication, and and you know, Zach was
the one that was what was responsible really in the
(44:02):
biggest way. Day one of rehearsals, we started with We're
all in this together. We were at the school in
a room that was their dance room at the school,
and I was rehearsing with Chucky and Bonnie, my choreography
team and the dancers and the cast on the finale,
and we were doing that We're all in this together choreography,
(44:22):
and all of a sudden, I looked at everybody and
they were drenched, They were perspired, they were drenched. And
I looked up at the clock and I was like,
oh my god, two and a half hours had gone by,
and I said, what, you know, this is not the
way you work with kids. And I was so embarrassed.
And I apologize and I said, you know, I will
never do this again. I'm so sorry that I didn't
(44:43):
give you guys a break. Please take a long break,
dry off, don't catch cold. You know, I'll be better,
you know in you know, you know, in the future,
you know. And as I walked away, Zach followed me
and he said, Kenny, and I said yeah, And he said,
you don't need to apologize for making us work man.
He said, we all made the choice to be here.
Let's make something of it. Let's make it worthwhile. And
(45:06):
Zach was the one that really gave me permission to
raise the bar on how I looked at these kids
and what I could expect of them. And he did
it day one, Wow. Wow. On the first movie, First movie,
Day one, he said, you know, we're here to we're here.
(45:26):
Let's make it worth something. Let's make it worth our while. Wow,
you know, and and and and and uh and I
felt like he was speaking for them all, you know.
And it wasn't that I wasn't more responsible after that,
but but but what it did remind me of was
that I was with partners and they also had an
investment and and that they wanted to leave the experience
(45:48):
having accomplished an end result. Yeah, and so I could
call on him, yeah, you know, or we would have
never accomplished what we accomplished. Yeah. I love the story's Kenny,
You're the best. I hope they're interesting. Oh, they're so.
Speaker 2 (46:04):
I just I can listen all day. I know we
can't keep you all day, but I would. Uh, it's
just the I just I can't tell you how much
I appreciate you opening up and sharing so much.
Speaker 1 (46:14):
And I can't tell you how much we all appreciate
you still being our coach and out there in the world,
still representing this wonderful project with your heart and your
and your kindness, you know, and and uh, I love
all these times where I catch you on online and
you're in a in a hotel lobby or at an
airport and you're mobbed and and and all the lovely
(46:36):
things that you still do. You know, with all the
work that you're doing, you know, and have been doing
since high school musical. You know that you carry the torch.
You're like, well you do. And Casey Strow girl you're
out there is still carrying that torch as Martha. Yeah, yeah,
we love you for it. But your Martha get together
every once in a while, you do, see you guys. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
(46:59):
But it's been. It's been, and I can't believe it's
twenty years, you know, because I'm still still feels so
much a lot. Well, it hasn't gone away. You know,
it's still out there, like it's like it's new, you know,
it's still out there living. It's a living idea. It's
not just an old movie. Yeah. Yeah. I feel like
it's been such a gift that I've been given that
(47:22):
I can just make a small effort to people and
it means so much to them, Like what a what
amazing gift I've been given? Yeah, you know I can
make someone a little video or like give someone a
little bit of time, and it like means so much
to them, Like how great, Like what a gift. And
it's inspired so much other work work on television. Look
at all the dance and music and television show me
(47:44):
to bring back musically to the musical was dead. Yeah,
you know, the people were afraid to make musicals, you know,
it was dead. Yeah, you know, when the Disney Channel
found an audience that wanted it, Yeah, you know, and
gave purpose to it again and for it again and
energy for it again. Yeah, you know, and suddenly we
had it everywhere. It was U Glee, it was everywhere, yeah,
(48:07):
you know. And and and there was less intimidation to
try and to get out there and to try it.
And and now you look at television, dance couldn't be bigger.
Music and song couldn't be bigger, you know, because of
the Spider Women has opened, you know, and and Beetlejuice
is back on Broadway, you know, and and and and
uh yeah, and we just celebrated the Rocky Horror Picture
(48:30):
Shows fiftieth anniversary with five thousand kids at the Hollywood
Forever Cemetery. Music is alive and thriving, and musical film
is alive and thriving, and cap Rock is being made,
and Descendants five is out there being made. And I
think high school musical success really helped, you know, foster
(48:52):
fuel and vigorate you know, that ability to happen. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (48:57):
Yeah, I feel like that this is what you wanted,
Like you you had a bit of a life mission
to movies again. Yeah, but you know, I met you
on Newsy's.
Speaker 1 (49:11):
Yeah, I know that your mom was my hairstylist. Yeah,
you were a kid. Yeah, you were busy. But how old?
How I wondering, because what is how old is Newsies now?
I mean it's thirty something. I was like, I was
like twenty I think when I was twenty one, not
newsies on Newsy was it younger? You were way younger
than twenty one? Oh nineteen two two? Yeah I would
(49:32):
have been too, I would have been twenty one. So see,
you always looked much younger. You still do, that's good. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
you always looked much younger. I thought of you more
like I thought you were in like high school. Yeah.
And then was Brad even born?
Speaker 2 (49:46):
Yeah, Brad was. Brad was an extra Newsies a little boy, yeah,
a little bit. All my all my siblings were extras
and newsies.
Speaker 1 (49:52):
Yeah that was a long time ago though, but I
maintained a friendship all these years too. Yeah. Yeah, it
was your mother. She's good, Yeah, great, she's a great gal,
a well. She raised us on musicals and gene Kellys,
very special woman. She just loves you to death, hole
high hell high. You guys did it whole high hole high, Yeah,
(50:14):
she did that. She was a part of a lot
of my first thing projects. Yeah, that's a fun history. Yeah. Yeah,
you're you're on her you're on her wallet home, yeah, everywhere. Well,
I hope that we all can come together, you know.
I hope that there's an opportunity for us to have,
you know, a reunion of sorts, you know, and and
and if not not for each other, you know, to
(50:37):
be able to just say thank you, you know, to
the millions and millions of fans out there in the
world that have been so you know, important in the
lives that we all share in now. I hope that
this twentieth anniversary enables us to to have an opportunity
to say thank you and the grandest capacity, yeah, you know,
to to all those that that just have can continued
(51:00):
to support and to find these movies and and and
uh yeah you know, but I wouldn't mind seeing everybody. Yeah,
I think that would be really cool. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (51:13):
Well this has been really fun for me because when
I do see the cast, we don't really talk about
we're catching up on life, yeah always, we're not sitting
down for now, we're talking about the good old days.
Speaker 1 (51:22):
We got too much a ketchup, absolutely right. So this
has been I got a little catch up with Zach
at a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. But
you're right, No, the last time I saw Ashley, I
was just admiring her beautiful home and her gorgeous child,
and you know, just hanging out with her, you know,
and just so so happy for the happiness that she's
(51:44):
found in her marriage and and now she's got a
second child and her company is just thriving. And yeah,
and yeah.
Speaker 2 (51:52):
I remember her like yesterday, her and her mom hanging
on and said, yeah, it's a little kid, the Tisdale's.
Speaker 1 (51:58):
The Tisdale's and her sister.
Speaker 2 (52:01):
Yeah, oh yeah, yeah, And just like I remember Zach
and Dylan and Dylan with the.
Speaker 1 (52:08):
Stars with the stars and looking great. The top on
the top, Yeah is a ripped Yeah.
Speaker 2 (52:16):
No, this has been so great, Kenny, because you know,
I really want to do something special for all the
wildcats out there that been so good to us. And
I'm so grateful for you for feeling the same way
and wanting to make the time.
Speaker 1 (52:27):
It's a big thank you. Yeah. We've all put a
lot more into our lives since those days, but we've
had the life to put something into because of where
we come from yeah well said yes, yeah, so true.
We know it. Yeah, what is that saying? It's not
(52:48):
the life you have, it's what you put into the
life you live. Anyway, Yeah, you know that we've been
given an opportunity to live in a capacity that we
weren't living in before this. Yeah, you know, I deny
anyone to argue with me. That was a part of
high school musical to say no, that's not true for me,
(53:11):
you know. And then so a little thank you might
not be a bad idea. Folks, if you're out there
listening to me, let's get together and say thanks. If
nothing better, yea, God, I love you all and so
happy to be here with you today. My friend, Thanks Kenny,
thank you, love you too. You're a good man.
Hey, Wildcats, this is Bart Johnson and you're listening to
get your head in the game.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Hi, everybody, today, we've got a very special guest joining us,
someone whose creative vision and passion brought one of the
most iconic teen franchises of all time to life. He
is the mastermind behind the unforgettable music, the moves, the magic,
and yes, the Wildcats. Please give a warm Wildcat welcome
to the award winning director, choreographer, and the man who
(00:31):
helped the generation get their head in the game, The one,
the only, mister Kenny Ortega.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
I can't believe this day has.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Happened, My dear friend, the great, the center of our
high school musical universe, the person I have more gratitude for.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
Gosh, I'm such your baby. Oh. I love your man
and your family. Your mother was my hairstylist for my
first motion picture. You guys, when you were kids, you
and your brothers, you know, yeah, we go way back.
We go back, We go back, way way back. We
weren't gonna go way back. We were going to just
(01:09):
do the twentieth anniversary. But you know it's emotional. You
know how life turns out and how you meet people
and how and then the pages turn and then you
end up where we did bart, right, you know, you
almost weren't in the movie, that's right. You almost weren't
in high School musical one, two or three because you
(01:32):
were barely thirty and you didn't look twenty one, and
no one at Disney thought you looked old enough to
be Troy Bolton's father. And I went in there like
a bull. I was like, no, he can do this.
He's the coach. He's like so perfect. I know him,
I've known him for years. This is the actor, this
is the personality, this is the heart. And not until
(01:54):
the eleventh hour, I mean, I think they finally made
me bring you in and you had to do it
and show them. And do you remember that, I do?
Speaker 2 (02:02):
Yeah, I remember going to Universal Natalie hard and j
s Lapadura. Yeah, are brilliant casting, amazing. Yeah, I found
it an incredible cast. My gosh, I'd love to ask
you how you found everybody. But even before let's start,
let's start when you auditioned. Okay, you went in and.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
You got the part. Let's just put it that way.
You went in and you convinced everybody. I was right. Yeah,
you convinced them. I was right.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
Yeah, I didn't work the first time. The first time
they said no, okay. And then it was a few
days later you called it, what happened.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
Some gray in your temple? Yeah, I get back in
there and you got me back in there for a
test of some sort and yeah, and then it worked out.
And you are the coach man and I we call
you that. You're known as that with all that you've
done since then and your family, your children, your you know,
you're and all the the experiences that you've had beyond that,
(02:54):
you're still to so many of us known as the coach.
I love that. Yeah, I love it. I accepted And
it feels like it was meant to It's it's more
than their role.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
It does feel like my life. Yeah, to get to
be a general authentic you and Troy you and from
that first moment in the in the opening scene of
High School Musical one when you guys are playing basketball
at the hotel and your wife walks in and goes,
we didn't come here to play more basketball, you know,
one more, one more, and just the relationship that you
(03:25):
guys established so quickly, it was such a great on
camera there was chemistry between the two of you. There
was no question that there was family there from the
very start. Yeah, yeah, there was truth, authenticity.
Speaker 1 (03:39):
I loved that.
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Yeah, yeah, I felt that he was He was so terrific.
Zach was was so so honest with his performance and
wanted to do such a great job, and it was
treated like as serious as any other kind of drama.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Yeah. You know, his mother came up to me after
he got the role because of traffic whenever Zach would
get a call to come in, and then we weren't
doing zooms, then we weren't doing tapes. Then you came
in and you auditioned in a room, you know, and
then you either got a call back or you didn't.
But you didn't phone anything in, right, you didn't tape
anything in. So they had to drive in after school,
(04:16):
you know, an hour and a half to come into
Hollywood to audition for things, and then another hour and
a half to get back, and you know, they've got
family and dinner, and he's got a little brother, and
then they've got school, and so he wasn't getting cast.
And it wasn't that he hadn't worked before, but he
wasn't getting cast. And his mother said to me that
they had made a deal that if he didn't get
(04:38):
this role that he was auditioning for for this Disney
Channel movie High School Musical, that they were going to
give up acting for a while and let him finish school.
And he got the role. Wow, yeah, this was kind
of the last one. This was going to be the
last one for a while. Yeah. Yeah, So I just
I love that, you know, there's anyway La Padua and
(05:01):
Heart Jason La Pedura and Natalie Hart who have retired
from casting, and they're so young, they don't you know,
they must have done really well because they're like really
young people. But they retired from casting. But I went
to them for everything high school, everything that I did
from that moment forward. Oh really they did all your movies, yeah, everything,
(05:23):
And and I missed them terribly. And they were just
so good at casting young talent and finding and searching,
you know, and and and if I would say to them,
I just don't think it's there yet, they would find
a way, you know. And and in fact I think
that they they were what inspired Gary to look outside
(05:45):
the US, you know, eventually, you know, to look into
into Great Britain and to other places to find talent.
But yeah, they were magnificent casting directors. Yeah, what a
cast we had? Huh what a cast?
Speaker 2 (05:58):
People ask me all the time like how wow, like
deconstruct how this is so brilliant and has touched so
many people around the world. And now we say everybody says,
it's Kenny Ortaga, thank you, but it's it's how you
found the cast, how you found the casting directors, how
you worked on the music.
Speaker 1 (06:17):
I worked very closely with Gary Marsh, you know, and
and somewhat with with rich Ross, who was the CEO
of the company. Then Gary became president and CEO of
Disney Channel and Gary, I'm sorry, and rich Ross went
off to become the president of the Walt Disney Company.
(06:37):
But anyway, I worked very closely with them and Judy Taylor,
who was the head of casting for the Disney Channel,
and La Pajora and Hart And there's a fun story
and I don't think I really shared it before, but
we were down to the nitty gritty and I think
we had maybe about eighteen twenty players left for the kids,
for you know, for Troy Gabriella, Sharpey, Ryan Chad and
(07:00):
and Taylor and and I and and so we were
in this room and I had called them in and
I was putting them through everything and mixing them up
with different partners. And you're reading with this Chad now,
and you're reading with this Troy now, and this Sharpay's
now reading with this Ryan, and and and then I
would have them play basketball, and then I would have
(07:21):
them doing provisations, and then I would have them sing,
and then I would have them dance and the first
callback callback, I think I had them there for like
six hours. And then and then Judy Taylor, the casting
person from from Disney Channel, came back and said, the
agents were furious, what is Kenny or Tega thinking These
(07:41):
kids had other auditions to go to. These kids had
other things to do, you know, what is he doing
in there for six hours? And then the next day
she came back and said Zach's agent called and said
Zach told her it was the best audition that he's
ever been to and whether he gets the job or not,
he was so glad that he was a part of it.
And but that I took my time is the answer.
(08:04):
You know here, Bart, I took my time. You know,
I come from musical theater and from theater background, and
you don't rush, you know. I didn't want just to
cast actors that could sing and dance, you know, that
had comedic skills and improvisational skills, and wanted partners. I
wanted to know that the people that were going to
be in the room with me every day were going
to bring something to the party, you know, and it
(08:26):
wasn't going to be up to me solely to guide
and direct and steer, you know, and and to be
the only one. And I wanted them to have something
to say about who who their their characters were and
and so you know, the success of all of this,
you know, is broken up into so many parts, you know,
so so many parts.
Speaker 2 (08:46):
I'm curious when when you were doing those rehearsals, how
many people do you think we're going through that whole process?
And when did you start, yeah, the the auditions, and
when did you start spotting who it might be. We
saw a lot of people and you put him through
that process below.
Speaker 1 (09:04):
In the beginning, they came in, they read, you know,
then they came in and they read. Then they came
in and read with other people. Like now we're starting
to put Chad, you know, like the characters together. I
remember we could not find a Chad. And then Gary said,
there's a boy that's in a series that's shooting in
Hawaii and and his name is Corbin Blue and he's
(09:26):
fifteen years old and he's so special and he can
sing and he can dance and he's perfect for this role.
Can he play basketball? I don't know, but we'll teach him, okay.
And we waited for him and he was like an
eleventh hour, you know, he came in at the eleventh hour.
You know, I'll tell you there was a chemistry that
happened in the room in the finals. Every time I
(09:49):
put Ashley and Lucas together, there was something going on there.
They would argue in between takes. She would be saying
some telling him how to or how to say, and
there was this bickering going on that was just and
then they would do the roles and the bickering what
happened in the roles and they were more like brother
and sister than just two characters. And I went to
(10:11):
Peter Barcaccini and I said, Peter, make them twins. I said,
They're like, they're like brothers and sisters. In competition with
each other. I said, so they weren't twins, they weren't
brother and sister. And Peter wrote them then as twins
because their chemistry was just so incredible and and and
and everything in real life that they weren't in competition
(10:34):
with each other, but they both had like strong opinions
about what things should be. And I loved that, and
so that that those strong opinions really worked for those
two characters. And and then Gabriella and Troy. Every time
we put Zach with Vanessa, we just couldn't breathe. It
(10:54):
was Romeo and Juliet. You couldn't take your eyes off
of them. And there was something deep and profound and
like nothing I'd ever seen before happening in an audition.
And then we would put him with someone else, and
her was someone else and him was someone else. And
then I remember the conversation came up about he has
no muscular structure, he's got a gap between his teeth.
(11:17):
You know, he's not a singer, he's not a dancer,
and I was like, and I didn't have to defend him,
but I was like, excuse me, the promise that lives
inside of this young man, I said, it's just it's magnificent.
And I said, this is Troy who is not And
I said, Troy Bolton's not a singer, Troy Bolton's not
(11:39):
a dancer. And I said, he becomes those things. And
I said, let me add him. This kid is capable
of doing anything we ask of him. And then Vanessa
was just the princessa yeah, you know, and she was
able to, through her eyes and emotions, reach these sort
of emotional moments like very rarely can you did you
(12:04):
see in a young actress? And so there were just
there were these things that were happening in the room
that made it impossible for the for us to split
them up. Wow, you know. And at the end of
the day it was like, well, take our gamble, you know.
And then and then Zach did he worked really really
hard to build his voice, and he worked extra hard
(12:25):
with Chucky, Claypowe and Bonnie you know, to improve his
his physical movement skills, and and yeah, and look what
happened with looks what what's happened? I just watched High
School Musical one again. I did too for the first time,
and like, honestly, eighteen years really eighteen years. By the way,
the jacket I'm wearing, I'm wearing my letterman's jacket with
(12:48):
my name on it. I love it. It was gifted
to me that I've had in storage and I had
to go find it so I could wear it for
you today. I love it. I love it. What an
honor and it feels real coachy at least. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Yeah, But the chemistry between those two Zach and Vanessa
opening of High.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
School Musical, when we talked about it a moment ago
about you guys playing basketball, that opening moment, you know,
started something new. Yeah, the start of something new. None
of us, first of all, knew that those lyrics, you know,
the start of something new was going to be what
we were all looking at down the road. That this
was going to turn a page in every single one
(13:28):
of our lives. Whether you were the CEO or president
of the channel, or whether you were the director or
composer or writer or producers, or whether you were one
of the actors. This changed the course of everybody's future.
That song was the first song in our movie, and
(13:49):
I remember it being a special moment, but I didn't
remember how special it was until I watched it the
other night. And by the middle of that song, you
cannot take your eyes off of those two kids. They
you cannot. And if you are young at heart, if
you were young at heart, there's no way you're going
(14:10):
to turn away from that because it represents everything we're
looking for, you know, in in in friendships, in relationships,
you know, in life. The connection that those two kids
made on camera at that moment that early in our franchise,
(14:31):
and it was like everything after that moment was built
on them. Everything was an extension of that romance. The
whole high school musical. Eh, there was basketball, and there
was theater, and there was dancing, and there was funny
and there was competition, but it was that romance casting
those two people and that everything then that was an
(14:51):
extension of that. That became the phenomena that we are Wow, Wow,
those two kids. That's like, that's that's the heart. Yeah.
And then the humor you know what Ashley Tisdale and
and and Lucas Grabriel brought, you know, and everybody everyone
can everyone contributed, but I mean their improvisational skills, their
(15:16):
their knowledge of comedy and comedy, comic timing at their
young ages, you know, and and and coming in and
being able to have a real in depth conversation about
a scene, you know, and and what's important and what's
driving the scene and what are the ambitions of the
characters and just it was just so much fun and
(15:36):
everything just sort of grew every moment that we were together.
It was never just about me saying go here, go there,
and then say this and do that. It was so
much about what everybody brought to each day.
Speaker 4 (15:47):
Yeah, I'm Kristin Davis, host of the podcast Are You
a Charlotte? The most anticipated guest from season three is
here the Tray to My Charlotte. Kyle McLaughlin joins me
to relive all of the magical Tray in Charlotte moments.
(16:08):
He reveals what he thinks of Trey giving Charlotte a
cardboard baby.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
Why would I bring her a cardboard baby?
Speaker 5 (16:15):
I was literally I was like, this doesn't track for
me at all.
Speaker 4 (16:19):
When he found out Trey's shortcomings, I'm kind of.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
Excited to talk about it. You know, I think he's
he's a guy spends time in Central Park. You know,
he's probably don't know, there'll be some.
Speaker 5 (16:26):
Surgery stuff, you know, And I was like, all this
kind of stuff going on, and they were like, yeah, yeah, yeah, fine,
and they said, but he's impotent, and I was like, he's.
Speaker 4 (16:34):
Impotent, and why he chose not to return to ingest
like that.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
They came and presented an idea and I was like,
I get I see it.
Speaker 1 (16:41):
It's so kind of a one joke idea.
Speaker 4 (16:43):
You don't want to miss this. Listen to Are you
a Charlotte on the iHeartRadio app? Apple podcasts or wherever
you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1 (16:56):
Yeah, it was from beginning to end such a different
experience for me. I've done a hundred movie since then,
but nothing feels like that. The way you would stop production.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
And get us in a circle and have conversations about
what was going on or how special this was, or
you wanted to hear from us and what we were feeling.
And it just so many moments like that in these
movies that you were able to reel us in and
make us realize how special this was.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
You know, there was one line that Coach Bolton said,
let me think of it, let me remember it, that
made me want to do the movie High School Musical One.
When it was sent to me and I read the script,
there was a line that Coach Bolton said when his
son and him are having this debate about him wanting
(17:48):
to sing, and the coach saying, you know, it's this
girl and this singing and this theater thing and missus
Darbus and this it's getting in the way of our plans.
It's getting in the way of your bright future. It's
getting in the way of who you can become. And
do you know what a scholarship is worth? And and
and and they're having this debate and Coach Bolton says,
you know, son, you're a playmaker, You're not a singer.
(18:14):
And there's this pause, and then Troy says to his father,
why can't I be both? And that was my life.
I was an athlete and I loved theater, and I
lived in this this argument of you know, you can't,
you can't you know, serve two to you know two
(18:36):
u masters, you have to choose. And I even had
a counselor in my high school that made me drop
out of sports because he said, eventually, you're going to
disappoint somebody. There's going to be a track meet, and
there's going to be an opening who's going to lose.
This isn't the way you go through life. So I
was conned into believing that I had to be one
(18:56):
or the other. My father was an Olympic athlete. Can
you imagine how difficult it was for me to walk
away from sport. So when I saw this, I thought, yeah, yeah,
you know and that and that that young men don't
have to be embarrassed, you know that that that they
want to throw a ball and also sing a note.
(19:16):
And so that was That was coach Bolton's line, you're
not a playmaker, you're a singer and and Troy's response,
why can't I be both? I was like, there you go,
that's important. That's a story that needs to be told. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
Yeah, it's amazing to think how many lives have been
touched since then with that message.
Speaker 1 (19:34):
How many times have you heard that? Have I heard that?
It's Casey heard that of all of us have heard,
you know, and now from you know adults that were children.
I wouldn't be who I am today. I would not
have pursued my dreams. I would have not had the courage,
you know, and now I wouldn't be the parent. I
wouldn't be this that that high school musical had these
(19:55):
sort of rivers of themes that danced underneath the lyric
and the and the and the and the and the words
and the dance numbers that were about encouragement, that were
about empowerment, that were about those very things about there's
this person that lives inside of us that sometimes we
don't let out for one reason or another. And that
(20:16):
high school musical was saying, let them out, let them
out and take that chance, and take that risk, you know,
and dream that dream. Yeah, and and and and and
it and it was really important for a lot of
young people. Yeah yeah, you know. It gave them permission
to believe in themselves. Yeah yeah, and not be afraid
(20:39):
and not to be afraid to take those step steps
that were risky mm hmm. I know, Mom, I know Dad,
But I feel this. I feel that, you know. And
that's not to say that that that that means that
there was argument necessarily, you know, with family, but but
I do like that the the argument that was there
with with with Coach Bolton and his boy that moment
(21:02):
when you walk in at the end and they're on
that stage singing in their final audition and the basketball
team has gone in, and and the drama and and
and the uh uhuh Taylor, and and and the debate
team is all there, and and the whole theater is filled,
and Darbus is there, and Troy's up on the stage
and she breaking free, and and and suddenly Coach Bolton
(21:25):
walks in the back of the whole thing, and he
stands there and he sees his son like he's never
seen them before. Yeah that awakening, Yeah, yeah, yeah that.
One of my favorite things about playing this character was
he wasn't just the basketball coach that needs to demand
a lot from the kids. And he wasn't just the
dad who's just supposed to be supportive or have this
(21:46):
ideal first. Like, I got to be both. So I
felt like in.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
All those situations, I had to walk that line, and
I was constantly torn between I need to push him
to be great, but I need to love him and
I want him to be happy.
Speaker 1 (22:01):
So yeah, it was, it was. And the thing is,
you never didn't like the coach, and that was wonderful.
You know. It's like Sharpay, for example, we loved hating her,
yeah right, yeah, I mean she she had masses of
fans globally and she was tough, right Coach Bolton, for
as difficult as he was, and that he was standing
in the way of this relationship moving forward. You know,
(22:23):
you shouldn't be in here. He kicks her out of
the gym. Yeah, right, that that we understood that really
he loved his kid and he wanted the best for him,
you know, and he was lost in this idea of
who his son was and not open enough to realize
who his son was. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's important. I
(22:45):
was lucky my father got me, just like you got Troy.
My dad woke up one day. I was told by
my dad. My mom and dad got you know, parted ways,
and my dad was raising my sister and my little
brother and me and uh and I was in dancing school,
and I was twelve years old, and now my mom
was gone, and I was helping raise my sister and
my brother because my dad worked, and I was going
(23:07):
to school, and so I'd given up baseball because I
wanted to dance. And my dad's sister in laws, he
had twelve brothers. The sister in laws were concerned that
there wasn't a mother in our home, and they were
concerned that dance was going to turn me into the
(23:27):
wrong kind of boy. And so to protect me and
my future and to help my father guide him. They
convinced him to tell me to get back into baseball
and to quit dancing. And my dad said, you know,
will you just try this for a while. You know,
(23:49):
my sister in law is your aunts think that dancing
is going to turn you into somebody that we're not
going to want you to be. Guess what that was.
But anyway, so I I tried it, and I couldn't
do it for like, I think, two games. And so
what I did was I lied, and my dad worked
and never got to come to any of my games.
(24:09):
So after school I would run over the tracks and
go to dancing school and do my classes, and then
I would put on my baseball uniform, run back to school,
roll around in the dirt, come back home. My dad
would be there and he'd say, how was the game,
and I'd say, great, you know what did your second base?
Did you get it? Yeah? I got a double. And
then one day he said to me, that's funny because
I got off work early today. Do you believe it?
(24:30):
And I came down to see you play and I
couldn't find you, and I crumbled. I loved him. He
was my hero. And I was so so ashamed of
myself and so embarrassed. And he said, son, burn your uniform.
If you want to dance, burn your uniform. Let's just
not lie. Wow. And he said go back and dance. Wow.
(24:56):
And that was the coach Bolton. Wow, what a moment
for your dad. Yeah, yeah, that must have me mentor mentors, mentors, mentors, mentors.
He was one of them. Yeah, wow, Wow, that's beautiful.
There's so many kids out there now. You think about
where the kids are, I call them kids. Zach. What
(25:19):
a career huh, oh, my gosh, what a career, you know.
And and and I love that. It's just the dynamics
of his career, just a you know, full of surprise.
You never know where he's going to go next. And
you know, and Vanessa has done really really well. And
I mean her television stuff rent and and and was
it grease Grease?
Speaker 2 (25:39):
My god, I stole the whole all times I couldn't.
Speaker 1 (25:45):
Yeah, I mean and then and and now a moms Ashley,
two little girls, amazing and an incredible company Frenchy And
and Corbyn is in the West End right now. I
just saw him. I was there and I got to
go see him do Great Gatsby, and and a lot
of Broadway, and a lot of Broadway, and and and
Taylor Monique, you know, is just constantly reinventing herself, refuses
(26:10):
to not continue to grow, you know. And it's just
this incredible, giving, soul, giving giving soul. And and and Lucas,
who's been out there carrying the torch, you know, and
and and and playing with kids all over the world
and in a shirt and still making amazing music. Just
so wonderful, so wonderful. What's happened for all of them?
(26:31):
And and and and here we are twenty years later. Manager,
all of those movies are still on television. My god,
and the kids are still walking up to me going,
oh you, thank you Disney Channel, Thank you Gary. You know,
they just changed changed our lives for the better and
made it for a for a more enjoyable existence. Thank
(26:53):
you guys so much. Over there at the Mouse, we
love you.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
Yeah, we sure do. Yeah, I'm full of gratitude for
all that it's given me. I've noticed too that it's
it's a it seems more popular now than it was
ten years ago. Really, I can stop more now today
I get I going through the airport, I couldn't hardly
get through and stop. So many times I've seen that
anywhere in the world, really, like in the most random
countries in the world.
Speaker 1 (27:16):
It's so now the fans still, you know, make you know,
still come up. I mean, it's crazy because you know,
with Michael and Dirty Dancing, Michael Jackson and dirty Dancing,
and and and and and descendants and high school musical
and that you never know, you know what I'm uh,
I have people coming up to me all the time
and hocus pocus that that I've just newsies that Disney
(27:39):
has been a huge part of the sort of you know,
celebrity that has come upon me. That that is, that
has enabled me to have a presence and for people
to identify with me. There weren't a lot of directors
that people knew by their face and their voice. Disney
put me in all of the sort of behind the scenes,
(28:02):
you know, and and and and marketed me out there
along with these movies and and and suddenly you know,
people were stopping me on the street. And the beautiful
part about that was, and is because I've never tired
of it. Is to hear someone look up at me
and look into my eyes and look up to me
and say thank you. You know you're you were the
soundtrack of my my childhood. You were the you were
(28:24):
the stories of my childhood. You know, if it weren't
for your movies, I don't know, you know, if I
would have made the choices that that that it's been
really remarkable, you know, the gift that this is, that
that this has given me. Ah, yes, yeah, it is.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
It's remarkable, the kinds of of things you hear from
people just on the street. They open up and see
how I got through some really hard times or I didn't.
I didn't really have a family when I was here.
I didn't have a dad, and you were. You were
my dad. And I'm going to.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Before high school musical, I will say this too, before
high school musical, everything that I was doing, and I
was doing a lot, and I had been for many, many,
many years. I think that I was out there and
that the reasons why I would say yes and jump
into a project or participate in a project, I think
(29:17):
was not that I didn't think that they were good
ideas or that they would be enjoyable, but also I
think it was about the advancement of my career to
have some solidity that I would have, you know, greater,
you know, boots on the ground that I was sustaining,
that I would be able to survive doing what I love.
(29:40):
High School Musical changed all that for me and gave
me an appreciation that my work could really mean something
and have an impact on people's lives. And from that
moment forward, for twenty years, my choices have all been
made whenever I've been asked to do it anything. What
(30:03):
lives at the center of this idea and this invitation
that is going to be more than entertainment, but that's
going to impact people's lives, and that I've lived my
life now for twenty years as a director and producer
and choreographer making sure that when I say yes, that
it's going to have an impact and be more than
just an entertainment. And Disney Disney gave me that, you know. Wow.
Speaker 6 (30:30):
Yeah, Hey, it's Wilfred Dell and Sabrina Bryan.
Speaker 3 (30:37):
From the podcast Magical Rewind and we have a very
special guest on this week's episode. He's the mastermind behind
some of your favorite movies like Hocus Pocus, Newsy's The
descendants and of course high school musical. Yes, it is
the one and only a living legend director Kenny Ortega.
Speaker 6 (30:53):
We sit down with Kenny to talk about his incredible
career and the legacy he's created with his choreography and films.
Speaker 3 (31:00):
Seriously, will not want to miss this one.
Speaker 6 (31:01):
Listen to Magical Rewind on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts
or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 5 (31:07):
Hi, it's Jenny Garth, host of the I Choose Me podcast.
This week, I'm so excited to welcome my friend Gabrielle
carteris the Andrea Zuckerman from Beverly Hills nine o two
on Oh to the pod. We're choosing to get real.
Speaker 1 (31:21):
I applied to the networks about my age and contracts.
They never would have hired me if they had known
my age.
Speaker 5 (31:27):
We're choosing to be honest.
Speaker 1 (31:29):
She looked at me, and she said, this business is
about going ask, which you have neither of, and we're
choosing to get nostalgic.
Speaker 5 (31:34):
Listen to I Choose Me on the iHeartRadio app, Apple
podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1 (31:44):
So I don't go to work anymore to achieve, you know,
greater confidence, and it's it's really to just put good
to put good stuff out there. Yeah, you know, I've
always felt that from you, Ken. It feels really good.
It feels really good. My life just has great meaning,
(32:05):
you know, and wake up feeling good about myself and
good about that. That's where my head is and why
I make decisions and for whatever everybody's you know, I'm
not judging anybody for the decisions they make. I love movies.
I love entertainment. I love all kinds of all kinds
of it, you know, every every genre you can imagine.
(32:26):
I'm invested in some capacity. But for me, Kenny Ortega,
if there isn't a reason that lives at the center
of an idea, I don't find it purposeful any longer,
and I haven't for many, many years. Huh.
Speaker 2 (32:38):
You know, I've I've noticed that about you. It feels
like you're drawn to things that give light. That's right,
and if there's not light there, you don't seem interested
in for you to make it.
Speaker 1 (32:49):
Yeah, yeah, I'm curious.
Speaker 2 (32:53):
There's one thing I don't know about you is how
did you find I know, you get so many scripts
into you have so many offers. What was it about
this this movie.
Speaker 1 (33:04):
I was doing a lot of television. Part I was
doing this this television series, very successful series, doctor medical
show called Chicago Hope. And then I started doing a
show called Ali McBeal, And then I started directing The
Gilmore Girls. And I was doing all of this television
like episodic television as a director, and and and and
(33:28):
I and I wanted to get more into long form again,
like like from Newsy's and Hocus Pocus. I wanted to do
to be a movie maker and and so I reached
out to my agency and I said, is there any
chance that you guys could look for a script for
me that is a that is a full length movie
for television. We could do it with a small cable company,
you know, under under the radar, you know, in the dark.
(33:50):
And what I really want is just a little, a
little movie that I can take around and show people
and remind them that I that I can direct long form.
And my agent, Ken Greenblad at the time, who since
retired from agent ying, sent me this script called a
High School Musical working title, And when I read it,
(34:12):
I connected to it so much because it reminded me
of my boyhood. It reminded me that when I was
a track and field star, I jumped hurdles. I jumped,
I was high I did high bar, you know, the
high jump. I played baseball. I loved competitive sports. I
loved watching them. My dad was an Olympic runner. He
(34:32):
was the fastest school in fastest high schooler and in
high school for the four forty and and and and
and and and then I loved musical theater and I
was like, WHOA, what is this? So I fell in
love with it the idea. I was like, I know this.
I could bring a lot to this. And then the
(34:54):
producers Barry Rosenbush and Bill Boarden and and and and
Peter Barsika, neither writer, engaged me and we went to
Disney and Gary had read the script and liked it.
And he said, you know, Kenny, as a director, if
I gave you permission to do anything that you would
want to do with this, what would you want to
(35:15):
do with it? And I said, well, I'd turn it
into a musical because it wasn't ah, it wasn't a musical.
It wasn't no, not really. And he said, I've been
waiting four years for the right team to come in
and present that to me as an idea, He said,
how would you approach that? And so I got together
with Steve Vincent, head of music for the Channel, and
(35:35):
together we put together an outline of how music could
move through the story and tell story and move story
forward and character forward, and brought it back to Gary
and then got his input, and that was how it happened. Wow,
And before you knew it, we had composers and lyricists
and David Lawrence writing score and we were a full
(35:57):
blown musical.
Speaker 2 (35:58):
It was a process like like what's timeline on? From
originally the first time he read the script to those
meetings to production.
Speaker 1 (36:05):
He pretty much I think Gary didn't waste any time
pretty quick, No, he pretty much. He pretty much said
let's make this. He put a number on it, which
was way too small. Yeah, But I mean I was
way too invested to not figure out a way to
do it. And it was a little movie with a
(36:27):
little schedule, shooting schedule, and and and what I'd hoped
that we would get out of it was for me,
it was selfish that people would recognize that I knew
how to do this genre. And then what we got
out of it was beyond anything any of us could
have imagined for ourselves. And it was the teamwork. It
(36:49):
was the effort. It was the effort of the team.
You know. I felt, you know that every you know
that that as the director, that there was this incredible
extension of my energy and my thinking that was working
alongside of me in every capacity at the at the
same level of enthusiasm and dedication to give it there all.
(37:13):
I love it. Yeah. And that was number one, and
there was not supposed to be a number one. Yeah.
And then we did the tour, the live concert tour
that sold out arenas all over the country. South America
broke and broke Madonna's merchandising sales, We broke all records
in cable TV. We were the first cable tv, I mean, movie, television,
(37:37):
anything to have an album in the Billboard charts, you know.
And and and then Gary calls and says, the president
of Disney Channel South America wants us to go to
South America. And I'm like, how are we going to
do that. We're not going to have time to do
that while we're making High School Musical two. And he said, well,
it's only going to be about six shows because We're
playing stadiums and that's and I was like what. And
(38:02):
I still did not I didn't comprehend the global impact
that we made. Wow, because I was doing Cheetah Girls
two at the time and prepping high school musical two
at the time. And and and then we got to
Buenos Attis, Argentina, and we sold out two seventy five
thousand seats soccer stadiums. The only one to group to
(38:25):
ever do that before us were The Rolling Stones, Oh
my gosh. And that opening night it was pouring rain,
and when I walked on stage to apologize to the
audience in Spanish, they roared. They roared, and I said,
be patient with us, you know. And they ended up
singing and doing the choreography in the rain to all
the songs that the cast was singing on the stage
(38:46):
that night. Standing backstage, I went, wow, Wow, look what
has happened, you know, and and and and again, you know,
thank you, you know, Gary and the marketing team at
the channel. You know, they had, you know, these millions
of viewers on the channel all over the world, and
(39:08):
they found a way to connect with them and to
wake them up and to let them know we were there.
And they grabbed it in Yeah, and suddenly I was
on OPRAH Good Morning America. Amazing. And Zach and Vanessa
could have walked outside of their homes anymore, right, right,
they had to climb fences to get into you know,
(39:29):
to sneak into an unmarked vehicle to be Yeah.
Speaker 2 (39:33):
Well, I was working out with Zach andzown. We usually
used my gym Buddy, and we were leaving the gym
when when the paparazzi first started, he was, hey, I
start getting himself ready. He's like you ready. I'm like you,
I don't see anybody outside. He's like, oh, yeah, you're
gonna be the news tomorrow. And I'm like wait, wait time.
And we walked outside and people just they popped out
of trash cans and behind cars, and.
Speaker 1 (39:51):
I nearly got run over a number of times because
the paparazzi would have rather run over me than to
miss their opportunity to catch up to Zach. That happened
with m J two, you know, and at Olivia, and
you know, I mean many many let you know, you'd
think I would have learned, yeah, you know, and you know, uh,
there's a flame there, be careful that you're if you're
(40:13):
close to it, you may get burned. But no, I
mean I remember in places like in Paris, where you know,
Disney tried to warn the Paris team, you know, that
we were coming and that to be careful and to
have a lot of security, and you know, and then
that the streets were filled and the traffic stopped, and
you know, and the Beatles were in town. You know,
we had to go through the kitchen and and and
(40:33):
and hide in the back of vans and and then
be invited into people's personal property. You know, the paparazzi
were following us all over the city. And then we'd
sneak into another car and go out of back exit
that no one knew about so that we could go eat.
It was that big. It was that big. Yeah, these kids'
(40:53):
lives changed overnight, overnight, and how they sustained, how they managed,
how they managed to figure out, you know, through the
help of their parents and reps and their experiences, how
to move on in this world. Now with that level
(41:14):
of celebrity. Well, I think you're you're you are a
great example of that too. When they came back for
two and three, the kids were great, They were they
didn't seem to be troubled, no or spoiled. The ego
wasn't there, but I think it was. It was your leader.
We had to hide. Yeah, yeah, you know, we had
to pretend we were doing something else. No one could
(41:34):
know that we were making a high school musical movie. Yeah. Yeah,
you know, well, I think you were a great influence
on on showing them, you know, how to handle this. Yeah,
Michael Jackson, we were sitting and we were having dinner
(41:56):
in Paris in a private room, and it took a
lot to get there, and everybody was a wreck. We
were full of anxiety. We're all sitting around this round
table and and all the kids were there, you know,
Ashley and all of them, and and we're getting ready
for the premiere in Paris, and and and there was
this tension, and you know, they we're bringing food to
(42:16):
us at the table and my phone rang and it
was MG and I was working with him and and
and he was like, hi, Kenny. And I was like hey,
and Michael, it's it's it's Kenny. I'm in Paris. I'm
with the kids from high school musical And he was
like no, And he and his children were fans of
high school musical and his children in Paris, and and
and Prince were, you know, they'd come to the concert
(42:39):
and they were big fans of the of the first
movie and and and uh. And I was like, oh,
we've just had a rough day, man. I was like,
what a day. Just to get out of the hotel
and to be able to get anywhere is become just
like insane. And I was. And he was like, let
me talk to them. And so I said, Zach, it's Michael.
And he was like what. And I was like, it's Michael.
(42:59):
He wants to say hello. Oh. And Zach took the
phone and went over into a corner and then fell
down to onto his knees and tears were rolling down
his face. But what Michael had basically told him was,
you know, don't let him steal the child in you.
Don't let them take that away. You know, don't let
all of this take that away. Hold on to it.
(43:21):
You know. I don't know what the rest of the
conversation was about, but I mean Michael told me that,
you know, then, and then he passed it on to
the next person, the phone on to the next person,
and the phone on to the next person, you know,
and here was a guy Michael. If anybody knew what
your child had been taken away with what you know,
he knew. But yeah, you know it was it was amazing,
(43:41):
you know. Yeah, And but you know, you're right. When
they came to do two and when they came to
do three, they were just better at what they did
and more life experienced. But they still came in with
the same compassion, dedication, and and you know, Zach was
the one that was what was responsible really in the
(44:02):
biggest way. Day one of rehearsals, we started with We're
all in this together. We were at the school in
a room that was their dance room at the school,
and I was rehearsing with Chucky and Bonnie, my choreography
team and the dancers and the cast on the finale,
and we were doing that We're all in this together choreography,
(44:22):
and all of a sudden, I looked at everybody and
they were drenched, They were perspired, they were drenched. And
I looked up at the clock and I was like,
oh my god, two and a half hours had gone by,
and I said, what, you know, this is not the
way you work with kids. And I was so embarrassed.
And I apologize and I said, you know, I will
never do this again. I'm so sorry that I didn't
(44:43):
give you guys a break. Please take a long break,
dry off, don't catch cold. You know, I'll be better,
you know in you know, you know, in the future,
you know. And as I walked away, Zach followed me
and he said, Kenny, and I said yeah, And he said,
you don't need to apologize for making us work man.
He said, we all made the choice to be here.
Let's make something of it. Let's make it worthwhile. And
(45:06):
Zach was the one that really gave me permission to
raise the bar on how I looked at these kids
and what I could expect of them. And he did
it day one, Wow. Wow. On the first movie, First movie,
Day one, he said, you know, we're here to we're here.
(45:26):
Let's make it worth something. Let's make it worth our while. Wow,
you know, and and and and and uh and I
felt like he was speaking for them all, you know.
And it wasn't that I wasn't more responsible after that,
but but but what it did remind me of was
that I was with partners and they also had an
investment and and that they wanted to leave the experience
(45:48):
having accomplished an end result. Yeah, and so I could
call on him, yeah, you know, or we would have
never accomplished what we accomplished. Yeah. I love the story's Kenny,
You're the best. I hope they're interesting. Oh, they're so.
Speaker 2 (46:04):
I just I can listen all day. I know we
can't keep you all day, but I would. Uh, it's
just the I just I can't tell you how much
I appreciate you opening up and sharing so much.
Speaker 1 (46:14):
And I can't tell you how much we all appreciate
you still being our coach and out there in the world,
still representing this wonderful project with your heart and your
and your kindness, you know, and and uh, I love
all these times where I catch you on online and
you're in a in a hotel lobby or at an
airport and you're mobbed and and and all the lovely
(46:36):
things that you still do. You know, with all the
work that you're doing, you know, and have been doing
since high school musical. You know that you carry the torch.
You're like, well you do. And Casey Strow girl you're
out there is still carrying that torch as Martha. Yeah, yeah,
we love you for it. But your Martha get together
every once in a while, you do, see you guys. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
(46:59):
But it's been. It's been, and I can't believe it's
twenty years, you know, because I'm still still feels so
much a lot. Well, it hasn't gone away. You know,
it's still out there, like it's like it's new, you know,
it's still out there living. It's a living idea. It's
not just an old movie. Yeah. Yeah. I feel like
it's been such a gift that I've been given that
(47:22):
I can just make a small effort to people and
it means so much to them, Like what a what
amazing gift I've been given? Yeah, you know I can
make someone a little video or like give someone a
little bit of time, and it like means so much
to them, Like how great, Like what a gift. And
it's inspired so much other work work on television. Look
at all the dance and music and television show me
(47:44):
to bring back musically to the musical was dead. Yeah,
you know, the people were afraid to make musicals, you know,
it was dead. Yeah, you know, when the Disney Channel
found an audience that wanted it, Yeah, you know, and
gave purpose to it again and for it again and
energy for it again. Yeah, you know, and suddenly we
had it everywhere. It was U Glee, it was everywhere, yeah,
(48:07):
you know. And and and there was less intimidation to
try and to get out there and to try it.
And and now you look at television, dance couldn't be bigger.
Music and song couldn't be bigger, you know, because of
the Spider Women has opened, you know, and and Beetlejuice
is back on Broadway, you know, and and and and
uh yeah, and we just celebrated the Rocky Horror Picture
(48:30):
Shows fiftieth anniversary with five thousand kids at the Hollywood
Forever Cemetery. Music is alive and thriving, and musical film
is alive and thriving, and cap Rock is being made,
and Descendants five is out there being made. And I
think high school musical success really helped, you know, foster
(48:52):
fuel and vigorate you know, that ability to happen. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (48:57):
Yeah, I feel like that this is what you wanted,
Like you you had a bit of a life mission
to movies again. Yeah, but you know, I met you
on Newsy's.
Speaker 1 (49:11):
Yeah, I know that your mom was my hairstylist. Yeah,
you were a kid. Yeah, you were busy. But how old?
How I wondering, because what is how old is Newsies now?
I mean it's thirty something. I was like, I was
like twenty I think when I was twenty one, not
newsies on Newsy was it younger? You were way younger
than twenty one? Oh nineteen two two? Yeah I would
(49:32):
have been too, I would have been twenty one. So see,
you always looked much younger. You still do, that's good. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
you always looked much younger. I thought of you more
like I thought you were in like high school. Yeah.
And then was Brad even born?
Speaker 2 (49:46):
Yeah, Brad was. Brad was an extra Newsies a little boy, yeah,
a little bit. All my all my siblings were extras
and newsies.
Speaker 1 (49:52):
Yeah that was a long time ago though, but I
maintained a friendship all these years too. Yeah. Yeah, it
was your mother. She's good, Yeah, great, she's a great gal,
a well. She raised us on musicals and gene Kellys,
very special woman. She just loves you to death, hole
high hell high. You guys did it whole high hole high, Yeah,
(50:14):
she did that. She was a part of a lot
of my first thing projects. Yeah, that's a fun history. Yeah. Yeah,
you're you're on her you're on her wallet home, yeah, everywhere. Well,
I hope that we all can come together, you know.
I hope that there's an opportunity for us to have,
you know, a reunion of sorts, you know, and and
and if not not for each other, you know, to
(50:37):
be able to just say thank you, you know, to
the millions and millions of fans out there in the
world that have been so you know, important in the
lives that we all share in now. I hope that
this twentieth anniversary enables us to to have an opportunity
to say thank you and the grandest capacity, yeah, you know,
to to all those that that just have can continued
(51:00):
to support and to find these movies and and and
uh yeah you know, but I wouldn't mind seeing everybody. Yeah,
I think that would be really cool. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (51:13):
Well this has been really fun for me because when
I do see the cast, we don't really talk about
we're catching up on life, yeah always, we're not sitting
down for now, we're talking about the good old days.
Speaker 1 (51:22):
We got too much a ketchup, absolutely right. So this
has been I got a little catch up with Zach
at a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. But
you're right, No, the last time I saw Ashley, I
was just admiring her beautiful home and her gorgeous child,
and you know, just hanging out with her, you know,
and just so so happy for the happiness that she's
(51:44):
found in her marriage and and now she's got a
second child and her company is just thriving. And yeah,
and yeah.
Speaker 2 (51:52):
I remember her like yesterday, her and her mom hanging
on and said, yeah, it's a little kid, the Tisdale's.
Speaker 1 (51:58):
The Tisdale's and her sister.
Speaker 2 (52:01):
Yeah, oh yeah, yeah, And just like I remember Zach
and Dylan and Dylan with the.
Speaker 1 (52:08):
Stars with the stars and looking great. The top on
the top, Yeah is a ripped Yeah.
Speaker 2 (52:16):
No, this has been so great, Kenny, because you know,
I really want to do something special for all the
wildcats out there that been so good to us. And
I'm so grateful for you for feeling the same way
and wanting to make the time.
Speaker 1 (52:27):
It's a big thank you. Yeah. We've all put a
lot more into our lives since those days, but we've
had the life to put something into because of where
we come from yeah well said yes, yeah, so true.
We know it. Yeah, what is that saying? It's not
(52:48):
the life you have, it's what you put into the
life you live. Anyway, Yeah, you know that we've been
given an opportunity to live in a capacity that we
weren't living in before this. Yeah, you know, I deny
anyone to argue with me. That was a part of
high school musical to say no, that's not true for me,
(53:11):
you know. And then so a little thank you might
not be a bad idea. Folks, if you're out there
listening to me, let's get together and say thanks. If
nothing better, yea, God, I love you all and so
happy to be here with you today. My friend, Thanks Kenny,
thank you, love you too. You're a good man.
Hosts And Creators
Will Friedle
Sabrina Bryan
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