These are the leading characters of High School Musical, there are an additional 66 named characters in addition to those listed below!

Troy Bolton - Outwardly the most popular kid at East High, the star of the basketball team and a leader among his peers - Headstrong and competitive, Troy struggles to please everyone around him and is sensitive to criticism. That said, he has a soft dorky side and a song in his heart. Like onions (and Shrek), Troy has layers. Think classic ingenue rolls like Tony in West Side Story, but if he was in a boy band instead of a gang. 

Gabriella Montez - Intelligent, loyal, and sees above the ruthlessness of the “status quo.” Although she can be anxious and doesn’t like to be in the center of attention, Gabriella’s shyness seems to dissipate when she loses herself in a song and lets herself live in the moment. Prone to self-doubt/blame when confronted with the failings of others, she nonetheless strives to see the best in people and encourages them to be their best selves.  An ingenue who blossoms into her self-confidence - think Emma in Prom, or Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls. 

Sharpay Evans - Before Rachel Berry of Glee fame, there was Sharpay. And she ruled the school with a rhinestone covered fist. Sharpay Evans is the egocentric star of the school musicals. She is Ryan's older twin (and the alpha dog of the two). Sharpay has never met a mirror she didn't like. Sharpay knows how to work a crowd. The Lina Lamont to Gabriella’s Kathy Seldon. The hero of her own story. Feels all of her emotions at a 10\10 with all the subtlety of a nuclear bomb. Think Gaston with less misogyny and a lot more sequins.

Chad Danforth - Hot-wired jock, second in command to Troy. He is single-mindedly focused on winning the basketball championship, but is slowly understanding that there might be more to this world. Quick with a joke and a tactical strategist, what he lacks in intellectualism he makes up for in drive. Think Jack Kelly in Newsies - a confident charismatic leader rallying the troops. 

Taylor Mckessie - The head Brainiac of the school, and the president of the Science Club. Her disdain for sports and athletes makes the jocks the usual targets of her sharp wit. She is pragmatic in a way that means she can easily overlook the feelings of others, but she is quick to correct herself when shown the error of her ways. Will either grow up to be a woman in STEM, the CEO of the next tech giant, or the lead hacker of a group bent on destabilizing corrupt governments - probably depends on the friends she makes in college. Think Summer in School of Rock, or Paris in Gilmore Girls. 

Ryan Evans - If Troy is hot, Ryan is Haute Couture. Sharpay's fraternal twin and a star in the making, he loves singing, dancing, and lots of attention. He chafes under his sister’s control, but can’t seem to break free from her shadow. Everything Ryan does is calculated and executed impeccably. A paragon of style, Ryan still harbors a love of the simple joys of life. A strong sense of right and wrong that is sometimes occluded by his sister’s drive for success. Think Jamie from Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, or Corny Collins from Hairspray mixed with Millie from Thoroughly Modern Millie.

Kelsi Nielsen - Kelsi Nielsen is a thespian rehearsal pianist and student composer extraordinaire. Kelsi has a sharp eye for talent, and a strong sense of fairness. Underneath her shy demeanor, Kelsi has no tolerance for people (read: Sharpay) who use their talent only to be number one (even if she doesn’t feel brave enough to voice it to her face. Strong Pam from The Office vibes. 

Jack Scott - The resident P.A. Announcer for the high school. He is shy and insecure in front of the rest of the kids, but smooth and confident at the mic. Known as the "Velvet Fog of East High." Not afraid to editorialize his reports - he may not be the most objective narrator, but he’s what we have. Think the “Let’s get ready to rummmmblllle” guy from WWE meets Walter Cronkite, if they both had acne and braces. 

Zeke Baylor  - Zeke is, at his core, a hopeless romantic. His position on the basketball team belies his passionate love of love (and pastries) that he keeps thinly veiled from his hyper-masculine friends. A golden retriever with boundless energy. Starry-eyed and deeply delusional. Think the waiter in First Date, or Princeton in Act 1 of Avenue Q. 

Martha Cox - Martha Cox has been sidelined into the role of “brainiac”, but she longs to express herself through dance. She sees quickly the pitfalls of adhering to the strict demarcations of East High’s clique system, even if she doesn’t have the social capital to challenge it by herself. In the meantime, she is content to let the music be her guide. Think Billy Elliot, if he could pop, lock, jam, and break. 

Ms. Darbus - Ms. Darbus is the eccentric drama teacher. An amusing blend of Gertrude Stein and Ethel Merman, she always knows where her light is. Passionate and disciplined, she is always trying to expose students to the enrichment and fun of theatre. Ms. Darbus believes in the power of art to change the world with her whole chest, and strives to make her program as inclusive as possible. The theatre is her domain and she is fiercely protective of it, sometimes to a fault. Probably has a deck of Tarot cards at home. 

Coach Bolton - Troy’s loving but exacting father, and East High’s basketball coach. He projects his guilt about his own failures in scholastic sports onto his players - his approval is hard-won. Though Troy struggles under the pressure of his father’s expectations, it’s clear that Coach is truly trying his best to do good by his son. His rivalry with Ms. Darbus might also color his perception of the value of the arts. Musical theatre might as well be an alien planet. Think of any well-meaning sports parent in all of fiction, and you’ll be pretty close to Coach Bolton.