Audition (Glee)
New recruits and a new coach shake up McKinley High.
"Audition" is the second season premiere of Glee, in which the glee club seeks new members while a new football coach arrives at McKinley High. The episode introduced recurring characters Sam Evans and Sunshine Corazon, and featured eight musical performances.
Quick Facts
- Series
- Glee
- Season
- 2
- Episode
- 1
- Director
- Brad Falchuk
- Writer
- Ian Brennan
- Production
- 2ARC01
- Air date
- 21 September 2010
Facts from the source article.
Plot
After losing at Regionals, New Directions members try to recruit new students. Foreign exchange student Sunshine Corazon and transfer student Sam Evans take notice. Rachel Berry later meets Sunshine in the bathroom and they sing an impromptu duet of "Telephone". Intimidated, Rachel sends Sunshine to a crack house instead of the auditorium to sabotage her audition. Will Schuester reprimands Rachel when this is discovered. Sunshine auditions successfully with "Listen". Finn Hudson encourages Sam to audition after hearing him sing "Every Rose Has Its Thorn"; Sam, Finn, Mike, Artie, and Puck sing "Billionaire" together, but Sam declines due to glee club's low social status. Shannon Beiste becomes the new football coach, reducing glee and cheerleading budgets. Will and Sue Sylvester team up to drive Beiste out. Sue demotes Santana for having breast implants, replacing her with Quinn. Artie asks Finn to help him join the football team to win back Tina, who has broken up with him for Mike. Beiste thinks Finn is colluding against her by forcing her to reject a wheelchair-dependent student, drops Finn, and appoints Sam quarterback. Will realizes his behavior is hurting Beiste, defends her from a Sue-driven sexual harassment accusation by Brittany, and apologizes, re-earning Sue's enmity.
Production
Fox announced Glee's second season pickup on January 11, 2010, with nationwide open casting calls for three new roles. A planned multi-part reality special to air before the premiere was canceled so series creator Ryan Murphy could focus on the main series. Heather Morris and Naya Rivera were promoted to series regulars. Chord Overstreet was cast as Sam Evans, a recurring athletic protégé who becomes Finn's rival. Jake Zyrus, a fan of the show, had his manager approach Murphy about playing Sunshine Corazon. Dot-Marie Jones replaced Patrick Gallagher as football coach Shannon Beiste. Cheyenne Jackson was cast as Dustin Goolsby, the new director of Vocal Adrenaline, replacing Idina Menzel's Shelby Corcoran. Jackson had been considered for the role of Will and was originally cast in the episode "Acafellas" as Dakota Stanley but could not perform due to illness. Murphy described Dustin as a complete villain who would become intertwined in Will's life.
Music
The episode featured covers of "Empire State of Mind", "Telephone", "Billionaire", "Every Rose Has Its Thorn", "What I Did for Love", "Getting to Know You", "Listen", and a dance performance of "The Power". All except "Every Rose Has Its Thorn", "Getting to Know You", and "The Power" were released as singles. "Empire State of Mind" and "Billionaire" appear on the album Glee: The Music, Volume 4. "Empire State of Mind" had the largest first-day sales for any Glee cover to that point. Critical reception was mixed. Robert Bianco of USA Today praised "What I Did for Love", calling Michele's performance superior to amateur TV talent show performances. Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times and Emily VanDerWerff of The A.V. Club found the song incongruous in context. VanDerWerff noted odd song choices overall, calling Overstreet's introductory number adequate but less effective than Zyrus's "Listen". Tim Stack of Entertainment Weekly gave "Listen" an A+ grade. Jacque Wilson of CNN praised both of Zyrus's performances, and Ricky Lo of The Philippine Star said his singing made Filipinos proud.
Reception
"Audition" was watched by 12.45 million American viewers, leading the 18–49 demographic with a 5.6/16 rating, up 50 percent from the first season premiere. It was Glee's second-highest rated telecast among adults 18–49 and its series high among adults 18–34. In Canada, 2.24 million viewers watched, making it the most-watched program of the night. In Australia, 1.23 million viewers made it the seventh most-watched. In the UK, 2.999 million viewers made it the most-watched show on E4 and E4+1 for the week. The episode received generally favorable reviews. VanDerWerff graded it A−, saying it showed the executives had learned what works within the format. David Hinckley of the Daily News rated it 4/5, calling it self-indulgent but promising. Robert Bianco called it a joyous mess. Amy Reiter of the Los Angeles Times and Jessica Derschwitz of CBS News praised the musical numbers and Sue's lines. Tim Stack and Jarett Wieselman said it assuaged fears of a sophomore slump. Brett Berk of Vanity Fair and Erica Futterman of Rolling Stone, both disappointed with the first season's second half, felt the show had returned to form. Several critics highlighted racial issues; Fred Topel of Hollywood News described a scene with Sunshine as downright racist.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who directed Audition (Glee)?
Audition was directed by Brad Falchuk.
Who wrote Audition (Glee)?
Audition was written by Ian Brennan.
When did Audition (Glee) first air?
Audition first aired on 21 September 2010.
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