The students of hit show Glee have made it out of Ohio, and are coming to London: the cast will be performing their smash hit tour, Glee Live, at the O2 Arena all week. Not sure what the fuss is about? Even if you’re an avid Gleek, we’ve pulled together 10 facts you never know about Glee, in honour of their arrival.
The cast have smashed records
They may only sing cover versions, but that doesn’t mean fans aren’t loving them. In February, the cast smashed a record that had stood for eight years, and took 45 years to set.
Between them, their 113 songs charting on the Billboard Hot 100 (the US equivalent of the Top 40 charts) beat Elvis Presley’s long standing record of 108 entries that placed between 1958 and 2003.
The students are likely to improvise
You’re not guaranteed the same set at every Glee Live show. In fact, you could be in for a pleasant surprise, especially if you’re going more than once.
Head on over to Setlist.fm and you can see which songs have been performed most, and which one-off covers you might be likely to see – they’ve even given a rendition of Rebecca Black’s Friday on-stage.
It’s not just McKinley High School students performing
Darren Criss (Blaine Anderson) and friends (or rather, rivals) from the Dalton Warblers will be performing on stage at the O2 Arena as well.
Even the teachers are there too
In spirit at least. Matthew Morrison and Jane Lynch, who play teachers Will Schuester and Sue Sylveste in Glee, will be making appearances by way of specially recorded video segments that keep the story moving along at a zippy pace.
Mike Chang will be working overtime
The Glee cast will be supported by LXD (The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers), a dance group with a stellar reputation for insane choreography. Among them? Harry Shum Jr, who plays gifted dancer Mike Chang in Glee.
Barf bags on stand-by
Be warned: Cheerios cheerleaders will be handing out “barf bags” to the audience during the show. As to why you’ll need them, we couldn’t possibly say…
Don’t forget the merch
Glee Live is your chance to get hold of exclusive merchandise. As well as an L-shaped foam hand (to signify “loser”, of course), you can treat yourself to a full on leather McKinley High jacket, just like the jocks wear.
It’s about to break records again
Last year’s Glee Live US tour stunned industry observers by selling a total of 70,000 tickets across ten shows. Of course, the O2 Arena can house up to 20,000 at a time, and given the cast are playing seven shows there alone, it could smash last year’s attendance total in one venue alone.
Can’t make it to see Glee Live?
Not a problem. A movie of the best of the stage show, Glee Live! In Concert! is coming, with a theatrical release in the US in August. You’ll even be able to catch it in 3D… or should that be Glee-D?
Want to join in the fun at home instead?
If you just can’t wait until then, you can always perform the hits yourself at home. Glee is one of the few shows airing on TV with its own Wii game, Karaoke Revolution: Glee. No prizes for guessing what it involves…
Image by wdecora
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