Just stay with me for a moment….yes I am referring to the TV show.

I had heard the buzz regarding the new show Glee, but didn’t really take much notice. Did I really want to watch another American high school show that portrayed a totally unrealistic view of the rather traumatic place that high school really is? With Gossip Girl and 90210 already occupying my time, I dismissed the idea immediately. But when I visited my sister in Canada at Christmas time, Glee was the topic on everyone’s lips - she was raving about the show. I knew that it was set to premiere in the UK soon, and when I saw the adverts on E4, I recorded some episodes for a rainy day.

I finally got around to watching some of the show this weekend…..and it is fantastic. I had no idea that every episode features songs from musicals as well as contemporary chart toppers. So far, I have heard renditions of You’re The One That I Want from Grease, Mr Cellophane from Chicago, Maybe This Time from Cabaret, and On My Own from Les Miserables. And apparently in one of the coming episodes the cast sings Defying Gravity from Wicked.

Combined with edgy humour, Glee is the perfect balance between hip comedy and musical revue. Yes the characters are stereotypes (think jock, cheerleader and primadonna) but how else do you visually portray the complexities of the high school hierarchy so easily?

Despite its comedic narrative and characters, at its core, I think Glee is a great promoter of musical theatre; just as Subo’s performances of I Dreamed a Dream managed to breathe a new life into Les Miserables, this show highlights some great musical theatre numbers that are not usually emphasised in mainstream media. 

Next episode is on tonight….I can’t wait.