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Feature“Humuhumunukunukuapua’a” was cut from the film, but reinstated for the stage version.Turn the PageBeyond the technical issues, the development of theadaptation offered other challenges. For example, thestudents mostly worked without a finished script. “Wereceived pages as we went via e-mailed PDF files,” saysHemme. “There were eight versions of the script. BetweenVersion 4 and Version 6, there was a 29-hour rewritesession; there was another 29-hour session to get fromVersion 6 to Version 8.”There were other variations from the original material.One big one is that, with the exception of Mrs. Darbus’ openingloudspeaker announcement and Fulton, the countryclub general manager, all the adults were removed from thescript. A major addition was made to the high school stageproduction — the song “Hummuhummunukunukuapua’a,”which was omitted from the original movie (although it wasincluded in the DVD as a bonus feature.)Rehearsing with the music also was a challenge. Becausethere was no actual score, the production could not use livemusicians. “Disney paid someone to lay down some tracks forthe schools to work from,” explained Hemme.Added to that, the scoring was different from the originaltelevision movie, so although the schools were free to useany of the original dance material, they couldn’t do so exclusivelybecause the musical arrangements for dance had beenaltered — with cuts and changes in the musical lines andsong setups. This was fine with Hemme and choreographerJared Hunt, who explains, “It worked for me as I really tried tostay away from borrowing from the original.”In addition, the styles and tempi ranged from swing torock ‘n’ roll, to Stomp-styled arrangements, to musical theatre.“We had to use a piano score,” saysHunt, “just like for any other new musical.It was fun, but the different musicalstyles meant a different choreographiclanguage for each number.”A production of this magnitudecould have broken the school’s budget,but because the cast, crew and directorwere expected to offer feedbackalong the way, the school didn’t haveto pay for rights to perform the show.Costumes were economical as well, asstudents mostly wore their own clothes.Also, to help with the program budget,the students sold program ads. “Ticketsales also help our program’s bottomline,” says Hemme, “plus we do elementaryschool performances during schoolday. The ticket prices are reasonable($5), and the younger kids get a taste oflive theatre.”“The main benefit,” adds Hemme, “isthat the students, who normally workwith tried-and-true material, had therare opportunity to participate in theactual creation of a show.”The feature film High School Musical3 was released on Oct. 24, 2008 and HighSchool Musical 4 is already in the planningstages. Music Theatre Internationaland Disney Theatrical began licensing thetheatrical rights to High School Musical2: On Stage in late October.26 December 2008 • www.stage-directions.com