Disney's High School Musical
- Jenny Daniel
- 12 minutes ago
- 3 min read
David Simpatico (book), Bryan Louiselle (music adapter and arranger)
Hope Mill Theatre and Chris Harper productions, with Lowry and others
Lowry, Salford
August 22-September 19, 2026; 2 hrs
The creative team from Manchester's tiny Hope Mill Theatre, Joseph Houston and William Whelton, have slam-dunked a winner with Disney's High School Musical - 20th anniversary stage edition.
The production has been made for the Lowry (though it also pops to Wembley later this year) and stars 1990s heart-throb Jason Donovan as Coach Bolton (though not in London) and original cast member KayCee Stroh (originally Martha Cox, now Ms Darbus).
The younger talents are also in fine form, with Tobias Turley as baller Troy and Leonor Correia as brainiac Gabriella, the not so star-crossed lovers, with Caitlin Tipping and Luke Bayer as their theatrical twin nemeses, Sharpay and Luke Evans, and a host of incredible supporting and ensemble performers.
I may have been surprised to learn, in the late 1980s, that 40 years later I’d see Jason Donovan as Coach Bolton in a glittering tracksuit, dancing with a basketball, but he wears it well. And, impressive as the superstars are, this is really an ensemble show.
It’s also a production at scale, stretching the Lowry to its spectacular max. The oversized, glossy programme lists three pages of producers and co-producers, and four pages of creatives, as well as supporting parties down to the production physio and psychotherapist. It’s certainly a Disney-sized achievement, and it’s a joy to see Manchester producers and directors Joe and Will getting this level of performance off the ground with such creative expertise.
The creative element is very strong, bringing an immersive, court-side experience to the Wildcats game, as we learn the cheers, with participatory choreo and pom-poms, cameras panning the crowd for reaction and commentator voice-overs as we dive into the world of East High and the American school sports arena. The set, by Andrew Exeter, is quite brilliant, with steps and a thrust element into the audience, and screens with live video feed, designed by George Reeve, at a variety of angles. A clump of audience members even sits court-side on stage as part of the action. But Aaron Renfree’s choreography, enhanced by Rory Beaton’s lighting and the effects, steals the show.
Basket balls bouncing and flying, there’s a particularly clever moment in the championship game, where the ball is lit up, ‘travelling’ from player to player and ending up slam-dunked in the hoop.
Musically it’s a catalogue of various songwriters. The show creates absolute magic with the material it has, and there are stand-out moments of integrated story-telling, such as the iconic Get’cha Head in the Game, the Wildcat Cheer and the glorious, soaring Breaking Free.
Of course, we all know the story of the high school cliques and romance and friendships across divides; It’s tried and tested. But in terms of stories on stage, the old ones are so often the good ones, and the beauty here is in the telling and the theatrical realisation.
Hope Mill Productions and the Lowry immerse us into this vibrant world, in which we will the characters to find themselves through their hidden passions and embrace one another through their differences, finding they have more in common than they thought.
As Joe and Will remind us in the programme, "the world would be a better and kinder place if we all just loved one another… after all, we’re all in this together!". Wouldn’t that be nice.
More info and tickets here
Leonor Correia as Gabriela and Tobias Turley as Troy Bolton Jason Donovan - Coach Bolton Luke Bayer Caitlin Tipping as Ryan and Sharpay
