Jenna Ushkowitz has garnered a global following by playing the role of Tina in Glee. Tina is a complex character. She suffers from the same lack of self-confidence as other members of the group of social outcasts who form the Glee Club at McKinley High School. In order to win sympathy, Tina pretended to have a stutter for the first nine episodes. She has gone on to enjoy a close relationship with Artie (Kevin McHale) and audiences have warmed to this lovable outsider in the massively popular TV series.
Jenna, who recently co-starred in the Tony Award-winning Broadway production of Spring Awakening with fellow Glee actress Lea Michele (Rachel), begins by outlining why audiences are drawn to the character of Tina. “People really seem to identify with her vulnerability. They come up to me all the time and say, ‘I’m Tina!’ It’s fantastic!”
The actress, who has been friends with Lea since the age of eight, goes on to explain why she believes the series has struck such a chord and has created legions of “Gleeks” (devoted fans of the show) around the world.
“Glee reaches a huge audience because it has such heart and it’s so positive,” asserts the 24-year-old actress, who was born in South Korea before being brought up in New York. “Everyone roots for the underdog and wants them to win. People latch onto that.
“It’s lovely whenever we see ‘Gleeks’. They say to us, ’we’ve started our own Glee Club at school.’ At a time when arts are being cut in schools, this show is a huge advocate for the arts in education.”
Jenna, who has previously appeared on TV in Sesame Street, Reading Rainbow and As The World Turns and in the movies Babyface and Educated, recalls that the cast had no clue that Glee would become such an international success. “We had absolutely no idea it would be like this,” says the actress, the wonderment clear in her voice.
“When people say to you, ‘this’ll be huge’, you can never expect that. You just have to be the best you can be. We loved working in a bubble for 13 episodes before anything had been aired. Now the bar has been raised and we’re happy to try and meet that!”
The other aspect of Glee that viewers adore is the musical numbers. Jenna reflects on the importance of music to the show. “Music is a universal language,” says the actress, who also starred in The King and I on Broadway.
“There’s a genre of music for everyone. Without music, Glee would be a completely different show. The series is story-driven, but the moment the moment they put music into it, it takes it to another level.”
The cast of Glee, all very experienced musical-theatre performers, have become highly skilled at perfecting immensely complicated musical routines in double-quick time. “We learnt our Lady Gaga number in a day!” Jenna exclaims, referring to one of the show’s most lauded sequences. “We’ve gotten pretty good at it now! It’s like a well-practised formula now. You prepare beforehand and on the day, you just get up there on the stage and make it work!”
Jenna, who graduated from Marymount Manhattan College and lives in New York City, closes by underlining how thrilled she is about the second season of Glee, which is currently in production.
“We’re so excited,” beams the actress, who recently hosted Yankees on Deck, a behind the scenes sports show aimed at young people. “Every week we open the scripts and get to be so surprised.
“Every day, we’re finding out something new about these characters and finding new layers to them. We come up with suggestions, but they’re never half as good as what the writers create. These writers have given us such a gift!”
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