Shout With Glee! "Fame! I'm Gonna Live Forever"... How Spectacular!?

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com:

TV Musicals usually don't work (Cop Rock, Viva Laughlin anyone?) but I really don't care and High School Musical is turning things around (even though it wasn't an actual series). I loved Britannia High (and it wasn't even that great). I loved how Eli Stone slyly injected musical numbers into every episode, subversively turning into a TV musical show without being labeled as a TV musical show. Now I can't wait for Glee on FOX, even though FOX will probably cancel it right away. (Although Fox has already picked up 13 episodes of the hour long comedy that will include at least 4 musical numbers per episode). Word is it may debut as early as this spring and be partnered with American Idol.

The first cast photo is out. It has hunky Matthew Morrison (South Pacific, above centre) as the Spanish teacher who ends up leading the Glee club. Jayma Mays (Ugly Betty, Heroes, above beside Morrison) and Jane Lynch (Role Models, Best in Show, above beside Lea Michelle) are fellow teachers.

Spring Awakening's Lea Michelle (above centre) plays the "star" singer, while fellow Spring Awakening cast member Jenna Ushkowitz (above far left), Cory Monteith (Kyle XY, above in front row right)), Kevin McHale (Zoey 101, front row left in wheelchair), Dianna Agron (Heroes, above 2nd from left), Chris Colfer (above 2nd from right), Amber Riley and Mark Salling play the bunch of misfit outcasts that round up the Glee club.

Oh, and the show if from Ryan Murphy of Nip/Tuck fame. Hmm... and he just worked with fellow Spring Awakening co-star Jonathan Groff on Pretty Handsome which never got picked up (but somehow I managed to see). I don't know if this is legit but it might be the leaked script for Glee's pilot.

On another note, I realized I never shared the link but the new Fame site is up. It's part So You Think You Can Dance reunion with Debbie Allen playing principal, and Kherington Payne as one of the students, and part Cheers reunion with both Kelsey Grammer and Bebe Neuworth also playing teachers (Grammer the music teacher and Neuworth the dance teacher). Charles S. Dutton will be the acting teacher while Megan Mullaly will be the singing teacher. Paul McGill who was so adorable on the latest Broadway revival of A Chorus Line and Kay Panabaker (Summerland) are also in it.

The cast with the director and producer.

Fame is set to hit theatres September 25th, 2009. I wonder if they will spin it off into a TV show again too?
The movie is being directed by Kevin Tancharoen.

Here's another cast photo (above) courtesy of Paul McGill's myspace page with Walter Perez, Kherington Payne (I think), Kristy Flores, Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, Paul McGill, Kay Panabaker, Naturi Naughton and Paul Iacono.

Oh, and here's the trailer for Nickelodeon's Spectacular coming this spring. It looks spectacularly bad but then again, so did High School Musical. Plus this has Simon Curtis (above) who is simply adorable.