#Newsflash | Disney In Queens? Watch High School Musical Show in Woodside
BY QEDC It's In Queens
Hunky basketball team captain Troy Bolton meets brainy songstress Gabriella Montez just before a semester begins. Will their teenage relationship flourish amid the social, academic, and extracurricular pressure?
The Secret Theater hosts a distinctly Queens version of Disney High School Musical eight times from Thursday, April 20, to Saturday, April 29.
The play features the songs from the 2006 blockbuster film along with new music and lyrics by Tony-winner Alan Menken. The plot revolves around Troy, a popular jock at East High, and Gabriella, a new transfer student. They fall in love against all adolescent odds, while the audience also gets know some of their friends and enemies — and their issues — as well as Ms. Darbus, the drama teacher, and Coach Bolton who leads the boy hoopsters.
The cast mixes students from The Secret Theatre Academy, Professional Performing Arts School, and Frank Sinatra School of the Arts. They share the stage with adult actors Chris Worley (Bolton) and Arianna Wellmoney (Darbus). Timothy Haskell is the director, while Sara Massoudi is the choreographer. The musical director is Kaila Wooten and the production stage manager is Dominika Zawada.
Ticket prices run from $15 to $30, and all performances take place at Secret Theater’s community venue at 38-02 61st. in Woodside.
Here’s the schedule: April 20 at 7 pm; April 21 at 7 pm; April 22 at 3 pm; April 22 at 7 pm; April 23 at 3 pm; April 27 at 7 pm; April 28 at 7 pm; and April 29 at 7 pm. The show has a short intermission.
Versions
Disney High School Musical premiered in 2006. Starring Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, and Ashley Tisdale, the family-friendly film enjoyed tremendous box office success, while the soundtrack hit the Billboard number one twice. A Tony-winning musical that made it to Broadway followed, along with television programs, sequels, a book series, DVDs, music video games, and foreign adaptations.
Venue
The Secret Theatre operated in Long Island City from 2010 until 2020. About one year later, Richard Mazda, the owner, opened a spot for performing arts classes at 50-12 and 50-14 Skillman Ave. in Sunnyside. Then he renovated a former art gallery at 38-02 61st St., creating a 60-seat auditorium where this Disney High School Musical will show.
There’s free street parking, and the venue is one block from the 7 train’s 61 St-Woodside station. It’s also a few blocks from the 65 St-Broadway station on the R and M lines.
Images: The Secret Theater