As Triple-Platinum 'High School Musical' Continues to Score for the Disney Channel, Mysteriously Missing in the Bidding for its Musical Alter-Ego are Roger Ailes and Fox’s MyNetworkTV

With 32 million viewers in its first 10 screenings and a triple platinum 1.6 million in sound-track sales, Disney Channel’s 'High School Musical' continues to harvest America’s lucrative teen market – and its competitor “In Your Dreams” continues its major marketing countdown

New York, NY (PRWEB) April 28, 2006 -- As Disney Channel’s explosively successful “High School Musical” continues its cash-laden trek towards further profits through imminent DVD and live performance releases, interest in a rival production, Miramax-linked Zeke Farrow and Marc Shaiman-protégé Lucian Piane’s “In Your Dreams,” continues to miraculously surge. http://myspace.com/inyourdreamsthemusical

“My phone keeps ringing and ringing and ringing,” says Farrow, who also co-wrote the award-winning Indie “Slo-Mo.” “The interest in this new teen musical is phenomenal.”

But among those who have yet to call from among the top competitive players in the $170 billion teen entertainment industry are Roger Ailes and his new broadcast network, MyNetworkTV, scheduled to go live nationwide on Sept. 5th.

The first all-high-definition network, MyNetworkTV is cleared in 109 markets, representing 68% of the US. Aile’s new broadcast network will provide broadcasters with operational flexibility through a seamless flow of original primetime programming and branded national marketing initiatives that allow stations to maintain and strengthen their localism with 12 hours of programming airing Monday through Saturday.

“Four digital stations owned by Pappas Telecasting Cos. are among the nine newly signed affiliates of Fox's MyNetworkTV,” says Farrow. “And the company has just clinched an affiliate agreement with LIN TV covering four new markets: Indianapolis, Hartford, Grand Rapids and Austin. It may now be time for Mr. Ailes to turn his genius to content.”

Disney Channel’s recent airing of “High School Musical” has brought to the forefront the huge and growing potential for broadcasters held by the massive teen entertainment market. “Mr. Ailes is good at math, and attacking the lucrative teen market is undoubtedly one of his top priorities now that the MyNetworkTV content distribution challenge has been nailed,” says Farrow. “Add up the 30 million viewers and the triple platinum 1.6 million in individual "High School Musical" CD sales that Disney has scored to date -- it's currently No. 4 on the Billboard Top 200 chart -- and that’s a lot of wampum. And I think Roger knows that.”

In addition, Fox subsidiary Twentieth Television, run by Jack Abernathy, is no slouch when it comes to pounding home the hits, says Farrow. Last fall, the company launched the groundbreaking drama "24," starring Kiefer Sutherland, and the Peabody Award-winning sitcom "The Bernie Mac Show" in off-net syndication. “It only makes sense that they would want to strike when the tween and teen musical genre is hot, and not let others make profits that could be theirs.”

With so much of the advance work already done -- and so much Broadway talent readily available to film a script set in New York City -- Farrow estimates the musical could be completed for under $3 million -- leaving Fox with profits of $12 million or more after international sales. "That's not a huge sum for Fox, nor is it a small sum for them."

And one of the musical's scenes is even shot in a bathroom, says Farrow. "How much does it cost to shoot a scene in a bathroom? It's not a very expensive set at all," he notes. Most of the musical's other scenes take place in a high school setting. "Several New York City schools have just been recently closed and would be available as a film set, including one that's just a block away from the 1 and 9 subway line in Soho, across from Lenny's," Farrow notes.

Like “High School Musical,” Farrow and Piane’s “In Your Dreams” is a large scale, splashy, teen musical. It centers around Helen, a 17-year-old girl who appears in three different incarnations: Black, Pink, and Blue.

The musical opens with the bizarre introduction of Black Helen, a girl tortured by fellow students Melanie and Jordanna and secretly in love with Jared. We quickly learn that Black Helen is but a dream and as she fades and Pink Helen wakes up, we realize that Pink Helen’s life is a perfect, bubble gum musical. She is popular, she’s dating Jared, she has high hopes for a perfect day. And today is the day to beat all days. It is prom, and Helen is a front runner to win prom queen…until she learns that the “Popular Girls Caucus” has turned against her -- and is even stuffing the ballot box to engineer her defeat!

What is helping to fuel the “In Your Dreams” express is the fact that “In Your Dreams’” 13 songs have already been professionally recorded on a CD with performances by a number of top Broadway singers, including “Hairspray’s” Leslie Kritzer, “Wicked’s” Laura Bell Bundy, “Les Miserable’s” Jodie Langel, “Little Shop of Horror’s” Kerry Butler, “Thoroughly Modern Millie’s” Gavin Creel, “Hairspray’s” Jackie Hoffman, “The Full Monty’s” Sloan Just, and Anika Larsen, Danny Rocket and Anthony Rapp from “Rent.” Rhythm and blues artist Shayna Steele is also a contributor.

"And Leslie just found out she is a Drama Desk Awards nominee this year," says Farrow. "Woo-hoo!!"

Fox's MyNetworkTV will launch with Twentieth Television's new scripted primetime drama strips "Desire" and "Secret Obsessions." "Desire," scheduled to air at 8:00pm (Eastern/Pacific)/7:00pm (Central), follows two close brothers on the run from the mafia who both fall in love with, and then passionately battle for, the same woman. Immediately following "Desire" will be "Secret Obsessions," starring international icon Bo Derek, airing at 9:00pm (Eastern/Pacific)/8:00pm (Central). The drama takes an in-depth look at the dreams, successes and tragedies found everyday in the fashion industry.

“That line-up pretty much ignores the teen market, and that market is not a small market by any means,” says Farrow. Between 1990 and 2000, the number of youths between ages 12 and 19 climbed to 32.4 million in the United States, an increase of 4.5 million, he says.

Meanwhile, notes Farrow, “In Your Dreams'” crack marketing team continues to explore new options. “We have a proposal out to Sarah Jessica Parker to do her very first podcast in support of this musical, which, should she accept, would be historic,” says Farrow.

Parker’s own production company, Pretty Matches, is currently in production with a sit-com for HBO called “The Washingtonienne,” based on a book of the same name about a high-sexed, low-paid intern forced to turn tricks on her lunch hour to make ends meet.

“In the alternative, we would love to have Nathan Lane step in to do the podcast,” says Farrow. "He's fearless."

Farrow, who began his entertainment career as an Off-Broadway comedic actor, says that he would also be available to talk about his new musical in a guest spot with Rosie O'Donnell on "The View" or on "The Colbert Report" with Stephen Colbert.

"I promise to be at least as entertaining as Lama Surya Das, and Stephen Colbert and I could lip-synch a duet from the musical -- perhaps 'I Was Born to Reign.'" Farrow urges the show's Amy Schwartz to call him immediately.

Meanwhile, says Farrow, Ryan Markowitz and Mark Kaufman at New Line continue to pass on the musical, as does Cristina Aguilera. “And the woman at MTV is still vitriolic in her rejection of it," he notes.

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