'High School Musical: Get in the Picture': East Coast semi-finals

On the second night of Disney's advertising blitz for the new High School Musical movie, High School Musical: Get in the Picture saw the East Coast auditions move through the semi-final round. The thirty remaining East Coast contestants are narrowed down to ten, and then six, and Nick Lachey pops by to deliver sage advice every now and then.

First, Tiana teaches the contestants some dance steps while Montré rambles on about all the talent this competition requires. You guys, I would be SO sunk at this dance audition business. That said, I'm not sure it was taken into account by the judges at all.

Next, the contestants all have to sing (part of) a song from High School Musical. Standouts include Jordan ("Was the High School QB") and the adorable Tierney (plucked from the chorus at someone else's surprise audition). Overachiever Bailey overperforms to an extreme degree, and Briana (the home schooled girl I liked so much last night) tragically forgets the words to her song. Anthony falters on the singing, but busts out the adorable charm.

Anthony, Jessalyn, Ciara, Isaiah, Bailey, John, Briana, Tony, Tierney, and James make it through to the Eastern finals. They are immediately split into pairs to rehearse and perform duets at Epcot.

Tierney freaks James out a little by burping constantly during rehearsal, which...yeah. They sing "Torn," and knock it out of the park. Dang, I wouldn't want to go after those guys. Outstanding singing, emoting, and choreography. Especially since, as they point out, they have really different singing styles normally. Bailey is nervous about having to rely on class clown John, but he's totally adorable. They sing "I Want it That Way." I still don't love Bailey's overacting, and John isn't quite as strong vocally as James was, but they're solid.

Anthony isn't quite able to harmonize with Jessalyn, which really does suck for her. They sing "Bubbly," and it's a bit weak. He's just not a strong singer, and while she has a nice voice and is very cute, she just doesn't have the natural stage presence and comfort that some other girls do. They do a great job with choreography, though. Briana and Tony seem to have a little tension. They sing "Leave the Pieces," and despite her nerves and the aforementioned tension, Briana rocks it. She's a natural actress. Tony sounds great too, but she steals the show.

Ciara and Isaiah have trouble focusing on singing instead of flirting (especially Isaiah). They sing "Change the World," and Isaiah's dancing is cute, but annoying since he knows how cute he is. Their singing is great, their chemistry is great, and their voices really mesh. Props for the choreography, too.

The faculty are disappointed in Jessalyn and Anthony, and are mixed on Briana (LAME). In general, they're a lot more critical than I am. Which is...unusual. I guess I shouldn't take it easy on the contestants just because they're kids, but apparently I'm not as mean as I thought. I'll work on it.

An emotional Anthony is moving on to the next round. He'll be joined by James, Bailey, Tierney, Briana, and Isaiah. Wow. I can't believe they eliminated Ciara. Next up: Western auditions.

How did you feel about the eliminations? Is anyone watching this show?

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