Broadway Star Idina Menzel to Guest Mentor in Second Episode of “The Glee Project†on Sunday, June 19th at 9:00PM ET/PT
NEW YORK – June 13, 2011 – During last night’s series debut of Oxygen’s “The Glee Project,†the 12 contenders performed an energetic rendition of Katy Perry’s mega-hit “Firework.†Under the tutelage of “Glee†guest mentor Darren Criss (“Glee’s†Blaine), the group was coached on the theme of ‘Individuality’ and how to stand out while being true to your personality. At the conclusion of the premiere episode, “Glee†hopeful Bryce Ross-Johnson (22) of Westlake Village, CA was the first contender to be eliminated. Bryce was tasked with performing Bruno Mars’ “Just the Way You Are†for “Glee†creator Ryan Murphy as a last chance – but the show must go on! The remaining 11 contenders will face their next ‘Glee’-inspired challenge on Sunday, June 19th at 9pm ET/PT, only on Oxygen.
Next week on “The Glee Project,†the contenders are in for a real treat as Broadway star Idina Menzel (“Glee’s†Shelby) will mentor the contenders with a fitting theme of ‘theatricality.’ Additionally, as they prepare to sing Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It,†tensions rise between two of the contenders.
Prior to appearing on “The Glee Project,†Bryce Ross-Johnson had been performing ever since he picked up an acoustic guitar and taught himself to play at age 13. During his junior year of high school, he discovered the theatre department and for the first time in his life felt comfortable in his own skin. At 15, while vacationing in the Bahamas, Bryce dove headfirst into a coral reef, splitting open his head and breaking his neck. For the next seven months he lived in a neck brace unsure of whether he would walk again. As a student at Berklee College of Music in Boston, he is a Voice major with a scholarship, and sings jazz, rap, pop, punk, reggae, and gospel. Bryce is also an accomplished songwriter and was one of 34,000 to submit an audition video for “The Glee Project” via MySpace.
From Ryan Murphy, the creator and Emmy® award-winning executive producer of “Glee,†and executive producer of “Glee†Dante Di Loreto, “The Glee Project†is a 10-episode competition series seeking to find the next star of “Glee†and will award one winner with the ultimate prize of a seven-episode role in season three of the hit FOX show. The series began with 12 extraordinarily talented individuals that were picked from thousands of entries, and an exhaustive nationwide and online talent search. The series uncovers a unique group of artists from both professional and amateur backgrounds, proving every underdog has a fighting chance at stardom. Each week one contender is sent home through intensive rounds of singing, dancing and acting based on assignments. During the final ‘Last Chance Round,’ the bottom three must perform for Ryan Murphy, casting director Robert Ulrich, and choreographer Zach Woodlee as they carefully assess which of them has what it takes to be one of the next new faces of the award-winning show.
For fans who want more of the “The Glee Projectâ€, Microsoft’s search engine Bing is partnering with Oxygen to host the Bing Fan Favorite Contest, allowing fans to vote for their own favorite contenders. Shazam is also partnering with Oxygen to allow viewers to use the Shazam app to unlock exclusive content from each episode of the show.
“The Glee Project” is produced by Ryan Murphy Television and Embassy Row with Ryan Murphy, Dante Di Loreto, Michael Davies and Shauna Minoprio serving as executive producers.
A print conference call with Bryce will take place today at 1pm PT/4pm ET. For call information, please contact [email protected].
Fans of “The Glee Project†can follow the show on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/thegleeproject, Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/thegleeproject and Tumblr at http://thegleeproject.tumblr.com for access to all of the latest news and information. Additionally, fans can vote for their favorite contender in the Bing Fan Favorite contest beginning at 9pm ET on Sunday, June 12 and continuing throughout the run of the show. Log-on to www.OxygenLive.com for special live chats with cast as well as a special chat with the eliminated contender directly following the episode. Viewers can log on to http://thegleeproject.oxygen.com for a more in depth look at each contender and to meet the judges, complete with photo galleries and video.
For the first time ever, Shazam’s 125 million users will be able to engage with an Oxygen show and chat simultaneously with cast members and fellow fans. Viewers will be able to tag The Glee Project using the Shazam feature within the OxygenLive app to unlock an exclusive extended scene each week. Excusive content will also be available directly from the Shazam app itself.
About Ryan Murphy Television
Ryan Murphy Television is the creative force behind some of today’s most groundbreaking television. Responsible for the Primetime Emmy® and Golden Globe® winning series “Nip/Tuck†and “Glee,†which has become a cultural phenomenon, RMTV strives to bring fresh perspectives to television audiences the world over.
About Embassy Row
Embassy Row is a New York City-based global format and digital production company dedicated to developing original concepts and adapting international formats for television networks, online and wireless distribution in the U.S. and around the world. We specialize in the genres of games, comedy, reality, factual, sports and food and are pioneers in the fields of brand-supported and digital content. Embassy Row is a creative company, led by hands-on producers always on the lookout for the next breakthrough idea. Since 2008, Embassy Row has been a part of the Sony Pictures Television company.
About Oxygen Media
Oxygen Media is a multiplatform lifestyle brand that delivers relevant and engaging content to young women who like to “live out loud.” Oxygen is rewriting the rulebook for women’s media by changing how the world sees entertainment from a young woman’s point of view. Through a vast array of unconventional and original content including “Bad Girls Club,” “Hair Battle Spectacular,” and “Tori & Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood,” the growing cable network is the premiere destination to find unique and groundbreaking unscripted programming. A social media trendsetter, Oxygen is a leading force in engaging modern young women, wherever they are, with popular, award winning features online including $2, the real time social viewing party that is also available as an app for the iPhone and iPad, as well as innovative tools shopOholic and makeOvermatic. Oxygen is available in 77 million homes, and can be found online and on mobile devices at www.oxygen.com. Follow us on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/OxygenPR. Oxygen Media is a service of NBCUniversal.