‘High School Musical’ star Lucas Grabeel surprises students at East High

Squeals echoed through the East High School auditorium on Thursday afternoon when students realized they had a surprise visitor — Lucas Grabeel, who plays Ryan Evans in the “High School Musical” films.

“OK, that was pretty good,” Grabeel called out toward the stage, interrupting students mid-rehearsal for their upcoming production of “High School Musical.”

In celebration of the recent 20-year anniversary of “High School Musical,” which was filmed at East High School in Salt Lake City, students have been rehearsing their stage production of the film for the past two months.

Grabeel surprised students with a visit to reflect on the film’s 20-year legacy and to offer direction and pointers for their own production of the musical.

He opened his visit with a 30-minute conversation with the students, then stepped into the role of director, leading them through rehearsals of “Stick to the Status Quo,” “Getcha’ Head in the Game” and other numbers.

Grabeel allowed each number to run uninterrupted before offering encouraging feedback, pushing students to be more confident, bolder in their performances and bigger with their energy and sound. He frequently demonstrated choreography and showed ways to maximize stage presence.

“Everything about theater is confidence,” Grabeel told the students.

East High School theater director Kevin McClellan has been working with Grabeel for over a year to coordinate the surprise visit.

“It’s just so amazing,” McClellan said of the experience. “It’s just really wonderful to have so many people — not just Lucas, but so many people — caring about how these kids are able to succeed. It’s really fantastic.”

Grabeel told students this was his first time working with a high school cast of “High School Musical,” and said the experience would be one of his favorite memories in two decades of “High School Musical” mania.

“I’ll remember this for a long time,” Grabeel said. “This is really special.”

Grabeel reflects on 20 years of ‘High School Musical’

Since filming wrapped on the third and final “High School Musical” film, Grabeel has only returned to East High School a handful of times. Thursday afternoon was the first time he stepped back into the school’s auditorium.

“So many memories flooding back,” Grabeel told students as he looked around the auditorium.

“I always tell people I could not care less about going back to my own high school — didn’t really love my high school experience and I have no desire to go back there ever," he added. “But coming back here feels like home. It feels like my actual high school, because just so many incredible memories here, hard work and fun and learning and growing.”

Grabeel was 20 years old when he filmed the first “High School Musical.” He had been living in Los Angeles for 2½ years before he earned the audition, and opportunities had been limited.

He originally tried out for the role of Troy Bolton — which ultimately went to Zac Efron — before he was redirected to try out for the role of Ryan Evans. After anxiously waiting a month, Grabeel finally got a call from casting directors. It was time to pack his bags for Salt Lake City.

No one in the “High School Musical” cast expected the films to blow up like they did. More than 7.7 million viewers in the U.S. watched the telecast premiere of “High School Musical,” setting a record as the network’s highest-rated telecast at the time.

“When the lid blew off and the world all wanted to watch this, this little movie that we made here, it became extremely wild,” Grabeel said. “It changed our lives overnight, and it’s continued to change my life, you know, multiple times over the last 20 years.”

“It’s so hard to describe what the experience did to me just in that one moment, because it was everything. It was hard, it was fun, it was challenging, it was scary — being recognized in public is just one of the wildest experiences. Twenty years later, it’s still not normal to me. I still don’t really get it but it’s also amazing.”

During the early moments, Grabeel said he felt “very cautious” of his instant fame. Everything felt like it was moving too fast. He expected the spotlight to fade after a month. It never did.

Being an integral part of the “High School Musical” franchise over the past 20 years has continued to make a positive impact on his life, Grabeel said.

“It’s given me an opportunity to speak to kids like you and to work with people, to help young performers,” he said. “I’ve gotten to meet so many people over the years who have been in musical performances like this one that you guys have done in high schools, in community theaters, on Broadway tours. It’s touched the lives of so many people. And you know, all of us are just lucky to be a little part of it, and that’s a magical thing”

Grabeel’s advice for students

Grabeel also took a moment to give East High students a little advice and applaud them on their hard work.

When students sought guidance on how to become performers, musicians or artists, Grabeel encouraged them to always stay true to themselves.

“Don’t try to fit yourself into some puzzle piece. Learn who you are and what you truly love doing and be the best that you can be at that,” he told the students. “What people really connect to is authenticity, is transparency, is truly showing the world who you are.”

He also emphasized the importance of lifelong learning and urged students to value their education.

“The last thing that we need is another dumb actor. Please be smart, stay in school, care about your studies, try your best to pay attention and to care about everything,” he shared. “If you’re going to be an actor, say yes to everything. Learn how to horseback ride, learn how to basket weave, learn how to dive into a pool — whatever it is that you’re interested in."

The actor then reminded students that difficulties and setbacks are a normal part of life and encouraged them to persevere through failures and tough days.

“No one who has ever been successful at anything did it without failure. We all need to fall before we can pick ourselves up,” Grabeel said. “Collecting those lessons and collecting your failures and holding them and loving them and saying thank you for teaching me that lesson ... now I have that in my back pocket, and I can carry it on to the next job, or the next relationship that I have.”

Before heading out, Grabeel praised the students for their hard work, telling them they deserved a round of applause, and thanked them for warmly welcoming him into their rehearsal.

“You guys are doing a great job,” he said. “Love each other. Be kind to one another. This is your sacred space (motions to theater). Hold each other, support each other, because you’re all going to need it.”

He added, “The more you can practice your confidence, the better you’re going to be when it comes time to the actual show. But you guys are going to be great!”

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