RALEIGH - Troy taps Gabriella on the shoulder, mischievously reaching to her far side to trick her. She whirls around, confused. But her expression turns to pleasure at the sight of him.

She moves closer as they speak, circling him within mere inches. He apologizes nervously for failing to call her after their first meeting. He stutters, struggling for the right words. She cuts in, suggesting lightheartedly that he chickened out. He clucks and flaps his arms, and they laugh.

Forget about convincing an audience that Troy and Gabriella could end up together. Watching Jamey Benson and Jenny Gulley portray the romantic leads in "High School Musical" this week, it's impossible to believe they couldn't.

Onstage chemistry doesn't come from a kit. Director Tim Bennett and the actors have spent hours getting to this point. At the first rehearsal two weeks earlier, Gulley sat with the actors playing brainiacs, and Benson sat with the jocks. They exchanged only fleeting, friendly glances in the group numbers where they had brief solos.

Now, with opening night a week away, they're generating steam. Even in cavernous Memorial Auditorium, audiences will see it Wednesday, when the all-but-sold-out run begins for this N.C. Theatre/Broadway Series South co-production.

At an earlier rehearsal, Bennett's methods first come into play as the two run through the midshow love song "I Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" for the first time.

Troy and Gabriella are alone in a botany lab, revealing their inner thoughts. It's a crucial juncture in the story, establishing a mutual admiration that can endure the strife that follows.

Bennett asks Benson and Gulley what their characters are thinking. Maybe Gabriella is intrigued that Troy has brought her to the lab, his secret hideaway, Gulley suggests.

"I can't believe that he actually comes here," she says. "He's so cool. I'm surprised that he needs a place to be by himself."

The song feels platonic the first time, even as they sing, "You're everything I never knew/That I've been looking for."

Bennett urges them to play with the space, to move toward and away from each other as they sing.

"It's going to be bizarre, and you're going to do things physically that will be ridiculous," he says. "Don't worry about that. We'll just play. And we'll do it a bunch of times until you find things that do feel right."

As the song and scene are repeated, Bennett keeps asking his questions. He whispers instructions in each actor's ear.

Use your eyes, he tells Gulley. Reel him in and then cast him off.

To Benson: Remember, you're in charge. You have the power. Keep her chasing after you.

The sensual tension becomes palpable. Too palpable. They need to back off a bit, since the characters are still in an awkward stage with each other. But the scene should hint at passion and the Big Kiss that fans know will come by show's end.

"Really go into that danger area," Bennett says. "Really feel it through your whole body."

Bennett's exercises also infuse the hallway scene with a sexually charged air that will make viewers instinctively root for the romance. It might also prompt the audience to ask whether the actors, who are single and look so cute together, are dating in real life.

Gulley has heard the question before when she has played a romantic lead. She sees it as proof that she has done her job well.

And does she predict people will ask about her and Benson?

"Maybe," she says, before erupting into giggles. "It's very possible."