Disney to return to East High with High School Musical 4

For those who didn't get enough of East High's students making their way through school life with a few breaks for song and dance, Disney Channel recently announced that plans are in place for the making of High School Musical 4.

The channel confirmed that Jeffrey Hornaday of Teen Beach Movie and Teen Beach 2 will direct and choreograph the new movie and Peter Barsocchini will return as scriptwriter, along with Dan Berendsen (Hannah Montana: The Movie).

The TV-movie franchise, which turned 10 in January, became an immediate hit and made Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Corbin Bleu, Lucas Grabeel and Monique Coleman's names synonymous with the HSM brand.

"High School Musical is part of Disney Channel's DNA," said Disney Channel president Gary Marsh. "It embodies all that we stand for. As a way of continuing to embrace that heritage, we're excited to announce 'the start of something new' as we launch a search for a new class of East High Wildcats to star in a fourth installment of the High School Musical franchise."

However, the original cast will not be part of the new film, considering it's been eight years since the class graduated. Along with the new cast, the film will also introduce the audience to the East High Wildcats' rivals from across town, the West High Knights.

Casting for the fourth film began on 1 March and Disney is still to announce when the film is slotted for release.