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Eighth contender eliminated on 'The Glee Project'

by jmaloni
Tue, Aug 9th 2011 01:10 pm

Hannah McIalwain does not make "Call Back" list

Only four contenders remain

During Sunday night's episode of Oxygen's "The Glee Project," the remaining five contenders were challenged to take their acting skills to a deeper level than ever before during "Believability" week. Each dug deep to convey unattainable love during the group performance of Paramore's "The Only Exception." The line between fiction and reality was tested as each contender attempted to make judges Robert Ulrich, Zach Woodlee and Nikki Anders respond emotionally to the music video. "Glee" guest mentor Jenna Ushkowitz ("Glee's" Tina Cohen-Chang) coached the group on how to be real without overdoing the intensity.

In the final moments of the episode, "Glee" hopeful Hannah McIalwain of Charlotte, N.C., was eliminated. For her last chance performance, she sang "Back to December" by Taylor Swift directly to Ryan Murphy, but it wasn't enough for her to make the "Call Back" list. Prior to appearing on "The Glee Project," McIalwain, 20, was performing in amateur shows for six years. Even though she sometimes feels self-conscious about her weight, she uses her sense of humor and exuberance to overcome any negative feelings she has about her appearance. Besides her talent for singing, McIalwain can also rap (under the alias Rouge), which illustrates quirkiness and positive attitude. She originally auditioned for "The Glee Project" at the Dallas/Fort Worth open casting call.

The remaining four contenders will face their next "Glee"-inspired challenge on Sunday, Aug. 14, at 9 p.m. when Kevin McHale ("Glee's" Artie Abrams) shows the contenders how to put others first for "Generosity" week. Children from Education Through Music-Los Angeles (ETM-LA), a non-profit organization with the mission to provide music education to disadvantaged schools, join the contenders in performing My Chemical Romance's "Sing."

On Thursday, Aug. 4, six of the contenders visited the Rio Vista Elementary School in North Hollywood, Calif., to participate in the ETM-LA program, reuniting with some of the children featured in Sunday's upcoming episode and presenting the school with a check for $15,000 on behalf of Oxygen Media to help ensure that music and the arts continue to thrive in schools.

"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.

For fans who want more of the "The Glee Project," 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. This week, Shazam users will be treated to extended footage from a one-on-one session with Ushkowitz and the homework assignment winner.

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.

About Education Through Music-Los Angeles

Founded in Los Angeles in the fall of 2006, Education Through Music-Los Angeles is an independent, 501(c)3 non-profit organization with the mission to provide music education to disadvantaged schools as part of the core curriculum in order to enhance students' academic performance and creative and general development. Education Through Music-Los Angeles forms long-term partnerships with elementary and middle schools, which lack the resources for school-wide music instruction, and is based on the proven ETM model that began in New York City in 1991. Education Through Music-Los Angeles:

  • provides every child in its partner schools with music, including those with special needs,
  • provides sequential, comprehensive music instruction lasting the entire school year,
  • involves the entire school community in developing a school culture that embraces the arts, and
  • helps schools create long-term, sustainable music programs.

Currently, Education Through Music-Los Angeles serves more than 3,000 children and plans to expand in the 2011-12 school year to reach an additional 1,000 children. We believe all children deserve a well-rounded education, one that includes music and the arts. Through the sustainable integration of music into the curricula of schools, Education Through Music-Los Angeles supports school reform and works to ensure all children receive equal opportunities for a brighter future.

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