Saturday, August 30, 2008

Growing Up

Vanessa HudgensWith Corbin Bleu, both are the stars of the “High School Musical” juggernaut, are growing up. When “High School Musical 3” "HSM3" comes out this fall, the gang will be seniors. Corbin Bleu is shifting into a musical career, and he is already working on his second album, due out next year.

Vanessa Hudgens and Corbin Bleu -- the singing-dancing actors who play Gabrielle and Chad in Disney's popular "High School Musical" film series -- brought their youthful charms to town Tuesday night, Aug. 26, for a joyfully exuberant co-headline concert at Fifth Third Field.

Corbin BleuThe pair, both already entertainment veterans at 19 years of age, performed individual one-hour sets on a simple stage situated along the second-base, infield line.

Bleu opened the early evening concert with a powerhouse show that seemed choreographed down to every quarter beat of the beat-heavy material. Backed by four instrumentalists -- playing bass, keyboards, guitar and drums -- and four dancers, Bleu thrilled the predominantly pre-adolescent audience with his athletic dance moves and magnetic personality.

Although his segment was plagued by various sound problems that made his speaking voice difficult to follow and cut out the lead vocals through the first half of what could have been a show- stopping "Marchin,' " Bleu never missed a beat.

In comparison, Hudgens' set seemed less orchestrated, though no less appreciated by the adoring crowd, which danced and sang along to the popinfused songs culled from Hudgens' two album releases.

Backed by six dancers and no instrumentalists, Hudgens gave a looser performance than Bleu's, and the heavy use of pre-recorded material made it difficult to tell from the stands when the singing was live. No matter. She was live and in person, and that's what mattered most to the crowd.

WOW COOOL...