How do I love Glee... let me count the ways

I am a certified Gleek — a newly-coined word meaning lover of the television musical series Glee. My love affair started when I watched a rerun of its first episode last year. In that episode, Rachel (Lea Michele) auditions to be a member of the William McKinley High School “Glee” Club with her impeccable rendition of On My Own. It reminded me of the time I auditioned for the song-and-dance UP Concert Chorus. I was hooked… got addicted… and now am totally obsessed.

My husband Paul doesn’t dare touch the TV remote control when I watch a Glee episode, even if it’s the 10th time I’m watching it. I’ve bought Glee CDs, Glee DVDs, and even hounded my relatives in the US for Glee piano books. I hum songs from Glee all day long that even the yayas and drivers, as well as my colleagues in Congress have memorized the tunes (har har har). Have I, a 40-something lawyer from a top law school in the country, gone totally nuts? Well, Internet research says I’m just one of millions of Glee loonies around the world, ranging from as young as six to as old as 60, who simply can’t get enough of Glee. Even glamorous singer-actress Jennifer Lopez unabashedly announced in Ellen de Generes’ show that she offered her services to Glee. Josh Groban allowed the producers to use him in a teeny-weeny cameo appearance as himself. Madonna gave all the rights to all her songs for one Glee episode. And what’s this I hear that 61-year-old Olivia Newton John (whom we all honestly loved) will do her ‘80s hit Lets Get Physical and show some muscles in a future episode!?! Amazing!

The premise of Glee is that high school Spanish teacher Mr. Schuester (Matthew Morrison) takes over the handling of a glee club with the goal of returning it to its long-past glory. The producers of this television musical decided to get the best of the best “real talents” from Broadway and elsewhere. From hit musical Spring Awakening, the producers got Lea Michele, the star of the show (for which the role of Rachel was specifically written) and new addition Jonathan Groff. Michele has been nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Musical while Groff is a Tony Awards nominee for Best Actor in a Musical. Glee club coach, Morrison, has starred in several Broadway shows, while his arch-enemy Sue Sylvester is played by Jane Lynch, a renowned actress and singer. Each one in the main cast, except for newbie Canadian Cory Monteith (who plays the male Glee Club soloist and popular football team captain) has been honed through years of musical training. The two stars of popular Broadway musical Wicked, Kristin Chenoweth (who played Good Witch Glinda) and Idina Menzel (who played Wicked Witch Elphaba), have important guest roles. With such impressive casting, Glee is practically like a great Broadway show you can watch for free within the comforts of your home.

Although the pilot episode was shown way back in May 19, 2009, the rest of the first season actually began in September last year with 13 episodes. Before the second set of nine episodes even started on April 13 this year, Glee had already been recognized with many nominations and awards including a Golden Globe for Best Comedy, six 2009 Satellite Awards (including a Best Actress Award for Michele who won over several veteran TV actresses) and three Teen Choice Awards. The show’s songs have become so popular, 25 Glee cast singles have been included in the Billboard Hot 100 — the most by any artist since the Beatles had 31 songs in 1964! A TV critic has described the recent The Power of Madonna episode as “potentially the most enjoyable time in the history of television!”

The phenomenal success of Glee can be attributed to the following factors: 1. Incredibly talented artists; 2. Great songs and musical arrangements that can be appreciated by people of any age; 3. Real-life stories one can relate to — broken families, unwanted (and extremely wanted) pregnancies, gay issues, teenage (and adult) insecurities, marital problems, financial worries, unfulfilled dreams and unrequited love; and 4. True-to-life characters one can identify with — divas, social misfits, bullies, obnoxious personalities, wannabe and fading stars, cougars and cougar-attackers, among many others.

For someone like me, who was actually in several show choirs, Glee reminds me of my beautiful experiences and the songs we used to sing (and the way I, uhhmm, like Rachel, walked out on my group on several occasions — hahaha). And for every Gleek like me, Glee is one spectacular series that teaches us to believe in ourselves and makes us realize that “the only life worth living is one where you are doing what you are really passionate about”. Indeed, Glee is a show that’s truly worth watching again, and again.

(E-mail me at [email protected] or text 0927-5000833. Help build houses for the poor through the Gawad Kalinga by calling 718-1738 to 41 or text 0917-5239777).