Rachel Berry from Glee
Rachel Barbra Berry is a fictional character and de facto female lead from the Fox musical comedy-drama series Glee. The character is portrayed by actress Lea Michele, and has appeared in Glee from its pilot episode, first broadcast on May 19, 2009. Rachel was developed by Glee creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan. She is the glee club star of the fictional William McKinley High School in Lima, Ohio, where the show is set. Her storylines have seen her suffer peer alienation due to her Broadway ambitions, and develop romantic feelings for Jesse St. James (Jonathan Groff), a member of rival glee club Vocal Adrenaline, but primarily for quarterback and glee club co-captain Finn Hudson (Cory Monteith), to whom she eventually becomes engaged.
Michele bases Rachel on herself when she was younger, and also draws inspiration for the character variously from films including Election, and television portrayals such as the Gossip Girl character Blair Waldorf. Michele has said that she draws on a lot of vulnerability playing Rachel, much like Blair Waldorf. She noted, "Rachel will never be popular because her looks aren't considered beautiful, and when I was in high school it was the same for me. I didn't get a nose job, and every single girl around me did. Therefore, I was out." Michele added, "What's so great about Glee is that it shows you how that kind of stuff hurts, but it doesn't matter: You can still be who you want to be."
Rachel is a "strong, driven girl" but somewhat neurotic, and Glee follows Rachel's journey to become more of a team player as well as fulfill her own aspirations. Michele was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2010, and for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy in 2010 and 2011 for her performance in the role. Rachel has received mostly positive reviews from critics: Maureen Ryan of The Chicago Tribune praised Michele for making the character "more than a humorless stereotype", though The Wall Street Journal's Raymund Flandez has described Rachel as "insufferable". Several songs performed by Michele as Rachel have been released as singles, available for digital download, and also feature on the show's soundtrack albums.
Quotes·Quotations by Rachel Berry
Lea Michele as Rachel Berry from Glee (2009)
¶ Now-a-days being anonymous is worse than being poor. Fame is the most important thing in our culture now. And if there is one thing I've learned it is that no one is just going to hand it to you.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rachel_Berry