A Part Of Something Special: A GLEE Live! Tour Report

Every Tuesday night at 8, we tune in to see the colorful cast of McKinley High's New Directions deal with the world of high school, with a little bit of song, a little bit of sass, and a ton of glee. The energy around the Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday was buzzing, just like the little buzzing interludes you hear sometimes on the show. The energy was high as everyone anxiously anticipated the appearance of the cast of colorful characters we've come to know in two seasons of the hit Fox comedy.

The cast performed a diverse set that included songs from this past season (examples being "Lucky" "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" "Dog Days Are Over" and "Loser Like Me") while also giving the crowd a bit of the previous season with songs like "Don't Stop Believin" and "Somebody To Love".

As someone who attended the Glee Live concert at Radio City last year, I must say the experience was much grander this time, mostly due to the larger venue and the energy that poured out all around me. Watching the New Directions (as well as the Dalton Academy Warblers, who also performed their biggest hits from this past season, led by Blaine (Darren Criss) live in person is truly unlike watching their energetic performances on television, because you truly feel the energy and the connection that you don't get when watching these talented performers perform on your television.

The concert is done entirely in character, thus the performers (like Lea Michele, Chris Colfer, Naya Rivera, Cory Monteith.. the list goes on) are performing as their television alter-egos, not as themselves. The concert features video appearances by Cheerios coach, Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) and the man behind New Directions, Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison).

Something that continued from last year was the adventures of Brittany (Heather Morris) once again being utterly confused by everything, this time after feeling the harsh rejection of Kurt (Chris Colfer)'s love, she sets her sights on Blaine (Darren Criss) and attempts to get him to make out with her. In typical Kurt Hummel fashion, Kurt appears and barks "Brittany, are you flirting with my man" and sends the blonde former Cheerio running for the hills, before asking his man to join the Glee Club, which Blaine agrees to do and appears in several New Directions numbers.

The skit in question changes from stop to stop, to include something about the city in question, which at the Philadelphia stop included, Kurt saying "Phil-dell-phia" only to have Blaine correct him, and him exclaim: "Damn, Auto Correct".

The show fills you with the same feeling of glee-full fun and silliness you come to experience from the television show, but it itself is on a much larger and grander scale than that of the television show. One glance around the Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday night, and you could easily spot people decked out in Glee inspired gear (Warbler t-shirts and ties, Born This Way t-shirts, etc, etc) each trying to emulated their favorite Glee character. Myself? I wore a Warblers blazer t-shirt I had purchased on line along with a button a friend of mine had made that said "Gleek" (the term for fans of Glee).

This show has truly come into my life and really made me feel a lot, and from the looks, sounds, and screams all around me at the Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday, I am clearly not alone. In the two years it's been on the air, Glee has truly become a phenomenon and changed the landscape of television by making it okay to use musical numbers in a scripted television format.

Again, glancing around the arena, I saw older people, kids, teenagers; many people from all different walks of life, here to see the cast of this show that teaches you that being a part of something makes you special and that being different can truly be the best part of you. Glee Live, like it's television predecessor, allows you to feel a part of something special and allows you, for about two hours, feel like you're just part of the club.

Please note: A 3-D movie of the Glee Live concert will be hitting theaters for two weeks beginning August 12th, so you too can experience the glee-full fun.