It's Not Unusual: Glee and the Mainstream Acceptance of Spontaneous Public Performance

Authors

Elizabeth M. Downey, Mississippi State UniversityFollow

ORCID

http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2109-8820

Abstract

When Glee debuted in 2009, the genre of the television musical series had a shaky history. Traditional episodic programs had previously aired musical episodes but these were seen as rare absurdities; the genre was an oddity to exploit on occasion, not something that could sustain an entire series (a belief proven when previous attempts had failed). The flash mob culture that emerged in the mid-2000s alongside the groundswell of social media changed this environment. The absurdity of people “bursting into song” in a public place was no longer a completely unrealistic scenario, and this reopened the door for the musical genre on television.

In this paper I argue that the viral spread of flash mobs and other spontaneous public performances generated an atmosphere in which the musical genre could succeed, and Glee directly benefited from this. In turn, Glee brought the underground culture of flash mobs to the mainstream, increasing the acceptance and even participation in music and other art in public spaces. Using examples drawn from both Glee performances and real-life flash mobs I hope to illustrate how the show, in mirroring a viral trend, helped to increase the overall popularity and approval of publicly accessible and participatory art by the mainstream culture.

Publication Date

11-7-2014

College

University Libraries

Keywords

glee, flash mobs, performance, social media, community

Disciplines

Film and Media Studies | Place and Environment | Social Influence and Political Communication | Social Media | Social Psychology and Interaction | Television | Theatre and Performance Studies

Recommended Citation

Downey, Elizabeth M. “It’s Not Unusual: Glee and the Mainstream Acceptance of Spontaneous Public Performance.” In the panel The Show Must Go All Over the Place: Glee and Off-Screen Cultural Transformations. Presentation at the Mid-Atlantic Popular American Culture Association Conference, Baltimore, MD, November 7, 2014.