What Glee Club Looked Like 60 Years Before <i>Glee</i>
What Glee Club Looked Like 60 Years Before Glee
2 minute read
Caption from LIFE. Dressed in white evening gowns, The Smith Singers get a tremendous ovation following a concert in weapons room of Dutch castle at Breukelen, namesake of New York's Brooklyn.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
The TV show Glee, which after six seasons airs its series finale Friday night, has been a goodwill ambassador for a capella since its first episode in 2009, drawing millions of viewers to a genre many are quick to label uncool. The show’s glee club, of course, has been as much a focal point as a vehicle to discuss things that really matter, like friendship, love and teamwork.
Back in 1952, another group of ambassadors used choral singing to forge meaningful connections. They were the Smith College Glee Club, 32 singers deep and proficient in everything, LIFE wrote, “from Bach to Hammerstein.” The singers traveled from Massachusetts to England, Switzerland, Brussels, Italy and the Netherlands, sharing their music but also, as the magazine emphasized, representing their home country’s “culture and charm.”
Their antics were more fit for the pages of a magazine than the script of a TV dramedy—from innocent dalliances with Dutchmen to misplaced passport fiascos, the drama wasn’t quite at the level of Glee’s jocks-versus-nerds war and pregnant cheerleaders. But drama or no, as Gleeks everywhere will tell you, glee has the power to topple barriers, whether they be between nations or cafeteria tables.
Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter at @LizabethRonk.
Caption from LIFE. Dressed in white evening gowns, The Smith Singers get a tremendous ovation following a concert in weapons room of Dutch castle at Breukelen, namesake of New York's Brooklyn.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSingers inspect a sign advertising their performance.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. Relaxing exercises prior to a rehearsal are led by Miss Hiatt (standing next to microphone) in the bar of a Swiss hotel. Girls were told to yawn, shake their shoulders, lift arms in the air. Rehearsal was for a 45-minute program, including both liturgical and popular songs, to be broadcast over Radio Lausanne.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. Girls rehearse in Amsterdam hotel room.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGlee Club singers onstage.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGlee Club members do some European sightseeing.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesStudent peers out a window at the landscape.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. Bodies sprawled, girls sleep away the trip from Brussels to Lucerne. Martha Stewart wears turban because she had set her hair with bobby pins.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. 'Cindy' Bliss bids a Dutch friend goodbye.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesPassing time on the train.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSmith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesTaking in some European sculpture.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSingers spend time looking at art.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSmith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesStudents celebrate alongside many empty Coca-Cola bottles.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesDowntime between performances.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSmith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGlee Club singers wear white dresses for a performance.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSmith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSmith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSmith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. Girls walk away from a Dutch windmill after photographing it.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
