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When he was in Grade 9, Ellis Rockburn auditioned for his high-school musical as a joke.

Back then, singing and dancing on stage was not exactly a way to distinguish yourself as one of the cool kids. But as soon as the curtains rose on his first show, Mr. Rockburn didn't care - all he wanted to do was perform.

Now 16 and in Grade 12, the Ottawa high-school student is applying to musical theatre programs at universities across Ontario, and watching with interest as his passion has its pop-culture moment.

"The auditions for our musical this year were crazy," he said. "So many people came out that had never done anything before. They didn't even want a speaking part - they just want to dance."

The success of the High School Musical franchise, a squeaky-clean Disney hybrid of Grease and The Mickey Mouse Club, is spinning off more than just chart-topping records and branded lunchboxes.

Add the popularity of light-footed Hollywood fare such as Hairspray and the prime-time hit Dancing with the Stars, and dance studios across the country are seeing a spike in enrolment this fall among kids who now see performing as a legitimate pastime and possible career.

"The response is insane," said Jodie Dusseault, artistic director at Toronto's Front and Centre Dance Academy, who teaches her six- to eight-year-old students numbers from High School Musical 2. "They're all singing along as they're dancing. They all already know the words."

And just as swing dancing became the rage through the ubiquitous Gap ads of the late nineties, dance instructors like Ms. Dusseault are quickly tailoring their programming to accommodate the growing interest in musical theatre and competitive dance, adding triple-threat classes of singing, dancing and acting for kids, audition preparation programs and even "Broadway babies."

Front and Centre teaches numbers straight from High School Musical, including a piece for boys that involves dance and basketball.

"They saw boys dancing in the movie, so it was cool," Ms. Dusseault said. "So I got them jerseys and they had basketballs and they did it in a show."

Children as young as 5 are signing up with the hopes of being the next Zac Efron, the baby-faced star of High School Musical and Hairspray, but older students are responding to the concept of shows such as So You Think You Can Dance and Dancing with the Stars, on which C-list celebrities tango with nubile young dancers.

Dana Fry, artistic director of Westcoast Academy of Performing Arts in Victoria, said she has added both salsa and flamenco to her class lineup because of these shows.

"My students watch those dances and they say, 'That was so cool, I'd love to try that,' " she said. "They're very influenced by it and it's amazing how much dancing has come into the limelight compared to the last 10 years."

Ms. Fry is a fan of the shows because they have returned a competitive edge to dancing.

"You have to learn how to come second or third and be gracious and modest and take correction in a positive way," she said. "Once you're a professional in a career, you are constantly being looked at that way."

Juliann Kuchocki, director of the triple-threat program at the Hamilton Conservatory for the Arts, said that it's about time young people in the performing arts got the respect afforded to sports stars.

"If you can find somebody on TV who inspires you then it's definitely positive," she said. "I haven't had anybody say they want to be Zac Efron, but they're definitely interested in dance because of him."

Jessie Venegas, one of Ms. Kuchocki's students, said the popularity of televised dance competitions has helped validate her passion in the eyes of her friends.

"It helps people understand how much training is behind it," she said. "It's not so much about the performance itself, it's about the discipline. It's actually very hard work."

The 22-year-old enjoys seeing dancers on television and on the big screen performing moves she has mastered, but said she has no aspirations to compete herself.

"This is something for me that is extra," said Ms. Venegas, who just started her first semester of law school. "Sometimes my dance training is tougher than my university training."

Mr. Rockburn, on the other hand, plans to take his performances to the professional stage. "I'd love to get on TV, or in a movie - anything," he said.

And while High School Musical is not his taste, Mr. Rockburn is excited about the new Beatles-inspired musical, Across The Universe.

"I love it that dancing and singing is such a big part of all these movies right now," he said. "I wouldn't say kids see it as the coolest thing in the world, but it's definitely got a better reputation than it used to."