Overview+of+the+show

// Overview of Glee

Glee // is a musical comedy-drama that takes place at the fictional William McKinley High School in Lima, Ohio. The overarching premise follows an optimistic high school Spanish teacher who tries to restore the school’s Glee Club to its former greatness. Years of scandals transformed the highly reputable Club into an overlooked “haven for misfits and social outcasts”(Glee). Will Schuester offers to transform the Glee Club back to its original glory by encouraging the Club’s performers to compete for Nationals, the most important competition in the Glee Club world. The performers include a melting pot of teenagers, each with a different story to tell and personality to offer. The performers are prescriptively diverse, representing students who come from different cultural backgrounds, belong to different social groups, and experience a variety of challenges, such as physical handicaps, pregnancies, and speech impediments.

The two main performers are Finn Hudson, the star quarterback of the high school’s football team, and Rachel Berry, a victim of peer alienation. Although the episodes focus on many of the other characters, the series is driven by Finn’s and Rachel’s complex relationship, and by Schuester’s ambitions and challenges. Schuester attempts to mediate his students’ everyday issues in order to help them focus and perform at their best in preparation for Nationals. He mentors them on a personal level, helping to not only unravel their true talents, but to find themselves on their path to adulthood. In addition to this challenge of bonding the Club, Schuester faces the challenges thrown at him by his peers. Everyone around him doubts his ability to bring the Club to Nationals and believes he is wasting his time on a group of misfits. However, his determination prevents him from crippling under his peers’ criticisms.

The episodes are written in such a way that can be relatable to adults, teenagers, and children. The diverse cast, the issues that they tackle, and the varied musical selection can appeal to multiple age groups from different social and cultural backgrounds. Creators of the show have admitted to aiming for a happy medium between show tunes and chart hits. Creator Ryan Murphy stated that he wants “there to be something for everybody in every episode. That’s a tricky mix, but that’s very important—the balancing of that. Song choices are integral to script development…after [he writes] the script, [he] will choose songs that help to move the story along” (Wyatt).

This genre is unique in the world of television because of its creative means of incorporating songs in the individual episodes. Characters do not spontaneously burst into song like in the film series //High School Musical//. They are not talking about their problems in one scene and breaking out into an improvised song and dance in the next scene. Rather, the characters sing in staged performances to enhance the reality of the series. This genre blends the songs, dance, and music of the theater with “a balance of humor and serious content”(Dictionary). In contrast to a sitcom, this genre of television refers back to previous episodes and affects future episodes. Songs play a huge contribution in relating episodes to each other, driving the narrative in each individual episode, and furthering the narrative for future episodes. Each episode contains a central theme. The songs are purposefully chosen to relate to the theme. They can convey messages that do not have to be explicitly said by the characters. These songs help to spice the flavor of each episode, making it unique in its own way, while intricately binding the diverse themes of the series. [] Wyatt, Edward (October 11, 2009). [|"From 'Cabaret' to Kanye, Songs of 'Glee' Are a Hit"]. // The New York Times //. Retrieved 2009-10-27 Dictionary.com: seriocomedy