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 HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 2
Who: Zac Efron
Role: Troy Bolton
On DVD: 12/11/07
Official Site
IMDB
 DEAR
Who: Amanda Bynes
What: Clothing Line
Sold at: Steve & Barry's
Official Site
Steve & Barry's
 SYDNEY WHITE
Who: Amanda Bynes
Role: Sydney White
In Theaters: 9/21/07
MySpace
IMDB
 ON THE DOLL
Who: Brittany Snow
Role: Balery
In Theaters: 2008
Official Site
IMDB
 QUEEN SIZED
Who: Nikki Blonsky
Role: TBA
Airs: 1/5/08
Official Site
IMDB
PROM NIGHT
Who: Brittany Snow
Role: Donna
In Theaters: 4/11/08
Official Site
IMDB
 FINDING AMANDA
Who: Brittany Snow
Role: Amanda
In Theaters: TBA
Official Site
IMDB
 HAROLD
Who: Nikki Blonsky
Role: Rhonda
In Theaters: TBA
Official Site
IMDB
BLACK WATER TRANSIT
Who: Brittany Snow
Role: Sardoonah
In Theaters: 2007
Official Site
IMDB
BURNING SANDS
Who: Elijah Kelley
Role: TBA
In Theaters: 2008
Official Site
IMDB
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AMANDA BYNES:
What: "What I Like About You"
When: Monday - Friday
Time: 3:30pm
Channel: The CW
What: "Amanda Show"
When: Sundays
Time: 5:00pm
Channel: Nickelodean
What: "Amanda Show"
When: Monday-Saturday
Time: 4:00pm
Channel: The N
What: She's the Man
When: Here
Time: Here
Channel: HBO
ZAC EFRON:
No Current Listings
BRITTANY SNOW:
What: John Tucker Must Die
When: Here
Time: Here
Channel: Cinemax
ELIJAH KELLEY:
What: Take the Lead
When: Here
Time: Here
Channel: Cinemax
NIKKI BLONSKY:
No Current Listings
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We are in no way affiliated with Hairspray or anyone associated with the film.
All materials were found in public domains or it was otherwise stated. No infringement intended.
Feel free to contact us if you have noticed any errors.
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CASTING THE ULTIMATE ENSEMBLE
During production, however, the “real” nicest kids in town were the young triple threat performers that were handpicked
by the filmmakers to play high school heartthrob Link Larkin (Zac Efron), Tracy’s best friend Penny Pingleton (Amanda
Bynes), Velma’s daughter Amber Von Tussle (Brittany Snow) and Motormouth Maybelle’s two kids, Seaweed (Elijah
Kelley) and Little Inez (Taylor Parks). Just within the last year, Efron, Bynes, Snow, Kelley and Parks have all
experienced a surge in their individual careers, culminating with their casting in Hairspray.
Efron, who became a household name last year thanks to his performance as Troy Bolton in the phenomenon
“High School Musical,” recalls the day he was transformed into his character.
“It all seemed to happen so quickly,” says Efron, whose real life status as a teen heartthrob has certainly surpassed
that of his alter ego, Link. “I walked into the hair trailer looking like, well, me, and by the time I walked out they had
dyed my hair jet black, cut it short, then greased it back into a DA. I was like, ‘Are you kidding me?’ I swear I had
some sort of identity crisis the rest of the day. I couldn’t look in the mirror because I was a bit afraid of who or what
would be looking back at me. It was shocking, but finally I got used to it and told myself that if I’m going to rock like
Link, I’d better rock it well and the new haircut was just the beginning.”
Efron says that the two-month singing/dance rehearsal process took more than a little getting used to as well. “For
‘High School Musical,’ we only rehearsed for about a week and a half and shot the entire movie in six weeks. That’s
actually less time than we spent just rehearsing ‘Hairspray.’ So, yeah, it was different and exhausting and unlike
anything I had ever experienced but Adam and the assistant choreographers made us understand how important the
rehearsals were because once we started filming there would not be any time to do anything but shoot the movie. It
was a great lesson...tough, but a great lesson.”
For Amanda Bynes, who started in the business at the age of 10 and was, by age 12, the youngest performer to host
her own variety sketch show, the opportunity to be in a movie musical was one she would never pass up.
“Oh, I wanted to play this part so badly,” says Bynes. “Penny is just such a great character. She really gets to make a
big personal change in the story and as an actor that’s so much fun when your character goes from frumpy to
va-va-voom like Penny does. I love musicals and grew up doing any kind of musical or comedy that I could possibly be
a part of because making people laugh and being goofy is, to me, the greatest joy in the world.”
Bynes recalls the day she was “bookended” in a scene with veterans John Travolta and Christopher Walken: “I definitely
felt freaked out,” she says. “I was so excited and I called my parents and told them I wish they were there to see it.
John and Chris were both so nice, but for someone like me who loves movies, they are huge movie stars. So getting
to do Hairspray was probably one of the coolest gifts I’ve ever received.”
Brittany Snow continues to bounce back and forth between dramatic roles in shows like “Nip/Tuck” and “Law and Order:
SVU” as well as big screen comedies like John Tucker Must Die and Hairspray. As Amber Von Tussle, Snow has created
a unique and memorable version of the legendary character.
“I had a blast playing Amber,” says Snow. “Besides the amazing hair, makeup and costumes, the character of
Amber is just so outrageous in her behavior that as an actor you can just go crazy with her. I mean, on the outside
she’s all pearls, poise and perfection…just like her mom…and she thinks everyone else is a moron. But that’s the funny
part…she’s a moron. Honestly, she doesn’t have a clue about the real world…just like her mom. Amber is an apple
that certainly hasn’t fallen far from her mother’s tree.”
Snow says she has always had an affinity for the 1960’s era, which was also the setting of the TV show “American
Dreams” on which she starred for three seasons. “Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve just had a fascination with the
sixties,” she says. “I remember for my eighth birthday party, it was a 60s-themed pool party. Bridget Bardot has
always been an icon to me and all the fashions and fads back then were so new and original and colorful. People made
a real effort to look good and dress well, especially in the early to mid-sixties, so a lot of the fun of getting to play
Amber was like getting to play dress-up all day for three months straight.”
In contrast to Efron’s inital distress, Elijah Kelley was thrilled to have a totally new hair cut for his role as Seaweed.
“Oh man, I loved my hair,” says Kelley. “The finger waves were the bomb. I did a lot of research into the look of the
guys back then and their hair was smooth, their clothes were smooth and their moves were smooth. And Seaweed is
definitely smooth…he’s the real romancer in the movie.”
For Kelley’s performance in his signature number, “Run and Tell That,” it was all about the moves. “That’s just such a
great song that I got to sing,” says Kelley. “You know the song takes the audience on a little ride to show the black kids’
world…it moves from the detention room onto the school bus and then to Maybelle’s record store. So my research
looking back at The Temptations and James Brown came in handy because Adam choreographed it so authentically.
It’s such a great high-energy number…people are going to love it!”
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