SALT LAKE CITY — School's out for summer. Out for good, actually. At least for Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Monique Coleman, Corbin Bleu and Lucas Grabeel, the six principal players in Disney's "High School Musical" franchise.

Shooting has wrapped for their big-screen grand finale, "High School Musical 3: Senior Year," due Oct. 24. While a fourth film is in the works, no one expects the primary players to return.

But for much of the spring and summer, the actors were together again at East High, where the original Disney Channel movie took off in 2006 and became a pop culture sensation, fueled by drama and dance numbers from Efron and Hudgens' sweethearts Troy and Gabriella; their pals Bleu and Coleman; and twin rivals played by Tisdale and Grabeel.

For the third time, set designers have transformed Salt Lake City's East High School into Disney's version of a freshly painted slice of academic Americana. Outside the main entrance, a red banner proclaiming "Congratulations Wildcats: Back to Back Champions!" has been hung. Broadway-grade red curtains hang in the auditorium for the musical numbers. And in the gym, Troy's basketball jersey has been retired, displayed up high next to those of his father and best pal, Chad.

The first "HSM" was shot for $4.2 million, the second, $7.8 million. Though there's more to work with for "Senior Year," the sets are still kept in the simple style of actual high school musical productions. Even a fantasy sequence features palm trees and flames made of paper.

"We always try to keep a naivete," explains Kenny Ortega, who has directed all three films. "There is more scale and detail in 'High School Musical 3,' but it's still our world — young people wishing and aspiring."

NO COMPLAINTS

It has been a struggle to keep filming to its 45-day schedule, necessitating shoots that have lasted up to 18 hours. But the young actors aren't complaining. With summer temperatures on the rise, they have been hanging out in an inflatable kiddie pool outside Efron and Hudgens' trailer or in Tisdale's trailer, where the big draw is "Guitar Hero" on her Wii, a particular favorite of Efron's.

Efron, 20, was the last to sign on for film No. 3, but he says that had little to do with wanting a movie-star paycheck, which many believed he deserved after his lead role in "Hairspray."

" 'High School Musical' has always been a blast to work on since Day 1," he says. "I just didn't know if a third one would work. When the script came in, I thought it was very well done, and it was an easy yes."

Ortega points out that Efron was just 17 when the first installment made its debut. "Then suddenly 'High School Musical 2' thrust him into this extraordinary light: the cover of Rolling Stone. Any adult with any common sense would (have advised him to) step back and be objective, and make sure that all the steps taken in that special light are the right choices."

Ortega has been sharing his deep love for the American musical with his young cast, whom he calls his "kids." When legendary dancer Cyd Charisse died last month, he dedicated a day's shoot to her memory.

"This has been a 13-year-old boy's dream," says Ortega, seated in his director's chair with a handheld microphone he uses to make announcements. Usually perched on his lap is his teacup terrier, Manly, who plays Sharpay's dog, Boi, in the films. At one point, Ortega compliments the cast for nailing a scene, and Manly, too, barks approvingly.

The finale of the film is, of course, a graduation scene. It's a big song-and-dance number shot on the football field, inspired by Ortega's work on Super Bowl halftime shows and the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games in Atlanta and Salt Lake City.

LIGHTER SCENES

The film also includes sequences with a bit less flash but plenty of humor. Sharpay (Tisdale) gets an over-the-top "I Want It All" dream sequence, in which she envisions herself and twin brother Ryan (Grabeel) as superstars. Though only four minutes of screen time, the sequence takes three days to shoot.

Through Sharpay's eyes, her friends are seen in various subservient roles, including Efron, who plays a crazed fan at a movie premiere.

"It's pretty fun" Efron says between takes. He's dressed in a T-shirt with Sharpay's image silk-screened on the front and has a big red heart tattoo on his bicep with an "SE" (for Sharpay Evans) in its center. "It's my chance to switch roles."

Though Tisdale gets dolled up in a platinum wig for her fantasy scene, the cast seems to rebel against high fashion off-camera. Tisdale shuffles around in ratty old slippers, Hudgens has on short denim cut-offs, and Grabeel is wearing something his character never would — brown sandals and black socks.

The most serious of the cast, Grabeel, 23, generally stays in place in between takes while his castmates dart off to chat. "Let's go, people" he shouts at one point, not wanting to waste time.

He's the only one who has taken an apartment in town and the rest of the cast is divided between Salt Lake's Little America Hotel and the more luxurious Grand America.

Everyone stayed at Little America while shooting the first two films, but for the second sequel, the principals were invited to upgrade. Efron, his real-life girlfriend Hudgens, Tisdale and supporting player Chris Warren Jr. ended up at Grand America.

There, says Tisdale, "we have security that helps us get in and out without going through the lobby. I don't really feel safe at the Little America."

Bleu and Coleman opted for the more casual Little America, along with supporting actors and backup dancers. "I prefer the Little America because I can have coffee in the lobby in my pajamas," said Coleman, 27.

But a big motivation, she concedes, was avoiding the paparazzi and fan obsession over Efron, Hudgens and Tisdale. "It's a popularity situation, and I can be really thrilled by the fact that it hasn't happened to me yet," Coleman said.