It has been confirmed that Vanessa Hudgens will play the title role in Gigi. The musical will play a pre-Broadway run on Friday at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington. Gigi will open in New York this spring. The musical, based on a novel by Colette, is about a “woman’s resistance at being groomed for life as a courtesan.” In addition to Hudgens, the musical also stars Victoria Clark, Corey Cott, Dee Hoty, and Howard McGillin. This will mark Hudgens’ second Broadway role. In 2010, she starred in the Broadway musical Rent as Mimi Marquez.
Vanessa Hudgens first gained success as Gabriella Montez in Disney‘s High School Musical series. The first High School Musical movie was released in January 2006. The film was Disney’s most watched movie in 2006, with a viewing audience of 7.7 million. The following year, High School Musical 2 was released. The second installment crushed the first season’s ratings. High School Musical 2 was seen by over 17.2 million viewers. The final installment, High School Musical 3: Senior Year, was the only film in the series to be released in theaters. The film grossed $90 million dollars worldwide, and the High School Musical 3 DVD has sold twenty-three million copies.
As a recording artist, Hudgens released her debut album V in 2006. The album debuted at Number 24 on the Billboard 200 charts, and it sold over 500,000 copies. Hudgens’ second album entitled Identified was released two years after her debut. Her second effort peaked at Number 23 on the Billboard album charts. Identified did not sell as well as her first album. It sold a little more than 22,000 copies in its first week. In 2008, Hudgens went on The Identified Summer Tour in support of her album. She toured the US, Mexico, and Canada. Her High School Musical co-star, Corbin Bleu, was one of the opening acts for her tour. The Identified Summer Tour was a huge success, selling out many of its shows. There have been rumors circulating online that Vanessa Hudgens will release a studio album this year. She reportedly has already recorded eight songs for her alleged new album.