Naya Rivera
Rivera in New York City, April 2011
Born	(1987-01-12) January 12, 1987 (age 25) Valencia, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress, singer, model
Years active	1991–present

Naya Rivera (born January 12, 1987) is an American actress and singer known for her role in the musical comedy television series Glee, as cheerleader Santana Lopez.

Early life[link]

Rivera was raised in Valencia, Santa Clarita, California and has lived in or around Los Angeles for most of her life. Rivera is of half Puerto Rican, quarter African, and quarter German descent.^[1] At eight or nine months old, she began to be represented by the same talent agent as her mother, who had moved to Los Angeles to pursue modeling.^[2]

Career[link]

As a baby, Rivera appeared in commercials for Kmart, but her first significant acting job was at the age of four when she starred as Hillary Winston in the Eddie Murphy produced sitcom The Royal Family in 1991.^[2] The show received positive reviews and high ratings initially, but when star Redd Foxx suffered a sudden heart attack on set the show never recovered and was soon canceled.^[3] Nonetheless, Rivera received a Young Artist Award nomination for her performance.

Between 1992 and 2002, she had small roles in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Family Matters, Live Shot, Baywatch, Smart Guy, The Jersey, House Blend, Even Stevens and The Master of Disguise. In 2002 she also appeared in the music video for B2K's "Why I Love You". She was hired for a single-episode guest appearance on The Bernie Mac Show in 2002, but was brought back to work on a further five episodes.^[1] She was later featured in single episodes of 8 Simple Rules and CSI: Miami.^[2][4] In between auditions and roles, Rivera worked odd jobs as a telemarketer, a nanny, and a greeter at an Abercrombie & Fitch store.^[5]

In 2006 and 2007, Rivera took part in a production of Mark E. Swinton's award-winning play "U Don't Know Me: The Musical", both in Los Angeles and when the production was taken on national tour.^[6]

In 2010, Rivera made the Maxim Hot 100 list, coming in at number 61.^[7] The following year, she was ranked number 43.^[8] On the 2011 AfterEllen Hot 100 list she was ranked #1.

In May 2011, it was announced that Rivera had signed a deal with Columbia Records to produce a solo album.^[9] That same month, Rivera hosted the San Francisco GLAAD Media Awards.^[10]

In November 2011, Rivera and Amber Riley performed at the 10th Annual Celebration of Dreams Event for the Dream Foundation.^[11] In December 2011 Rivera was revealed as the newest celebrity spokesperson for ProActiv.^[12]

In February 2012, Rivera was nominated for a NewNowNext Award. On March 24, 2012, she co-hosted the 23rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards in New York with co-star Cory Monteith. The two stars, along with John Stamos, continuing a tradition begun by Rivera when she hosted the 22nd Annual Media Awards in San Francisco, auctioned off kisses to the crowd, raising $15,000.^[13]

In April of 2012, Rivera was featured on the cover of Latina magazine.^[14] The following month she was also featured in the inaugural issue of Cosmo for Latinas,^[15] and was selected by People en Espanol for their 50 Most Beautiful list.^[16] Also in May, Rivera made FHM's 100 Sexiest Women List, coming in at number 39,^[17] and made the Maxim Hot 100 list for the third year in a row, moving up sixteen spots to number 27.^[18]

[edit] Glee

In 2009, Rivera was cast as Cheerios cheerleading squad member Santana Lopez on Fox's musical comedy series Glee, about a high school glee club. Rivera's character comes off as a cold-hearted and vicious cheerleader, who often shows her softer side to fellow cheerleader Brittany (played by Heather Morris). Rivera auditioned for the opportunity "to sing, dance and act all in the same show," and because she was a fan of co-creator Ryan Murphy's previous work on Nip/Tuck.^[4]

Rivera drew on her own high school experience of unpopularity to prepare for the role, as well as watching films such as Mean Girls to "really get in the zone and feel like a bitchy Sophomore".^[19] She has described Santana as "your typical high school cheerleader, for the most part,"^[19] explaining: "She's really mean and loves boys. She's really witty so I love playing her."^[19] She has characterized Santana as "a bit of a bad girl" who is "really snarky and always has these really witty one-liners she throws out there."^[20] Rivera enjoys the fact Santana is competitive and headstrong as she herself shares those traits, but dislikes Santana's mean streak.^[21] She finds the show's pacing challenging, especially the dancing, and commented in June 2009 that her most memorable moment on Glee was performing the Cheerios' glee club audition piece, "I Say a Little Prayer".^[19] Santana played a more prominent part in the last nine episodes of Glee's first season.^[22] Rivera commented: "Santana's been wreaking havoc with people's boyfriends and people's babies and teachers—she's the high school terror, and she's going to continue to be the villain."^[23]

After having her screen time and musical involvement increased in the second half of the first season, Rivera was promoted to official series regular status as of the beginning of the second season.^[24] She was given her first solo in the fifth episode of season two, "The Rocky Horror Glee Show", and performed several others as the season progressed. During the second season, Rivera's role in the show was radically changed when it was revealed that her character was a lesbian. Rivera portrayed Santana struggling to come to terms with her sexuality, with her love for her best friend, and with her inability to come out of the closet. She received favorable reviews for her performance.^[25][26]

In January 2011 Rivera appeared in a parody of "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang", called "Nuthin' But a Glee Thang", co-written by her friend Heather Morris.^[27]

During the 2011 Glee Tour, Rivera teamed up with Amber Riley for the duet "River Deep, Mountain High" and performed solo on "Valerie" as well as lending back-up vocals to several other songs.

In July 2011, Rivera was nominated for two ALMA awards, in the categories of "Favorite Female Music Artist" and "Favorite TV Actress—Leading Role in a Comedy".^[28] BuddyTV ranked her #3 on its "TV's 100 Sexiest Women of 2011" list.^[29] Rivera received a great amount of critical praise for both her acting and her singing performances in the latter part of Season Two and the beginning of Season Three. As 2011 ended, she or her character was on many "Best Of" lists, including HitFix.com's 25 Breakout Stars of 2011,^[30] TV Guide's Best Performances of 2011,^[31] MTV's Best TV Characters of 2011,^[32] as well as others.

In the second half of Season 3, Rivera's critical acclaim and featured role continued. She was given the opportunity to do a duet with Ricky Martin,^[33] and work with Gloria Estefan, who was cast as Santana's mother.^[34] As Season 3 ended there was uncertainty about which characters and actors would return in Season 4, once a large portion of the characters had graduated high school. While attending the Fox Upfronts in May 2012, Rivera confirmed that she would be returning.^[35]

Personal life[link]

Rivera is an avid reader^[36] and dedicates her time to various charitable organizations.^[37] She took up songwriting at the age of 15.^[1] According to Rivera, "My passion for music is one of my greatest loves."^[38] Rivera has stated that if she could not act or sing she would work as a writer.^[39] She has completed several screenplays and television scripts.^[40] As on Glee, Rivera is best friends in real life with co-star Heather Morris.^[41] Rivera's brother, Mychal, plays tight end for the University of Tennessee. Her sister, Nickayla, is a model.

Filmography[link]

Rivera at the San Diego Comic-Con International in July 2010

Music videos[link]

Stage work[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

See also[link]

	African American portal
	Biography portal
	Puerto Rico portal

• List of notable Puerto Ricans

References[link]

External links[link]

• Naya Rivera at the Internet Movie Database
• Naya Rivera on Twitter

Rivera
—  Capital city  —
Obelisk of the Plaza Internacional, at the "Frontera de la Paz", cities of Rivera (Uruguay) and Santana do Livramento (Brasil).
Rivera Location in Uruguay
Coordinates: 30°54′9″S 55°33′2″W / 30.9025°S 55.55056°W / -30.9025; -55.55056Coordinates: 30°54′9″S 55°33′2″W / 30.9025°S 55.55056°W / -30.9025; -55.55056
Country	Uruguay
Department	Rivera Department
Population (2004)
• Total	64,426
• Demonym	riverense
Time zone	UTC -3
Postal code	40000
Area code(s)	+598 462

Rivera is the capital of Rivera Department of Uruguay. It is located at the north end of Route 5, on the border with Brazil. The Brazilian city of Santana do Livramento is right across the border, only a street away of it. Together they form an international city of around 200,000 inhabitants.

History[link]

On 7 May 1862 the town Pueblo de Ceballos was created in honour of the Spanish viceroy Pedro de Cevallos,. In July 1867 it took on the official name Rivera and was recognized as a city. The Brazilian town Santana do Livramento already existed just across the border.

In 1943, the Plaza Internacional Rivera-Livramento (see photo) was built to celebrate the Fifth Conference of the Commission Mixta for Mixed Limits and as a hope for the future integration of the two towns, claimed to be the only international square in the world. From 1851 to this day, inhabitants of both communities are free to move in both sides. Customs and checkpoints are located outside the cities.^[1] Today, duty free shops are one of the main economic resources of Rivera.^[2]

Population[link]

In 2004, Rivera had a population of 64,426^[3]

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística de Uruguay^[4] La población riverense se compondría de españoles, italianos, portugueses y principalmente de uruguayos y brasileños que provenían de otros sectores del país.

Consular representation[link]

Brazil keeps an official resident of someone who looks after their events in a different country in Rivera.^{[citation needed]}

Notable local person[link]

• Aparicio Méndez, from Rivera, was President of Uruguay from 1976 to 1981. He was never elected democratically and was chosen by the Military dictatorship.

Transportation[link]

There are regular bus services to Montevideo. A rail service to Tacuarembó has been run intermittently. There is an airport which receives light aircraft and an irregular service by a Brazilian airline to Porto Alegre.

Rivera is served by Pres. Gral. Óscar D. Gestido International Airport.

Sports[link]

Inside the city of Rivera, we can find the multi used stadium Estadio Atilio Paiva Olivera which holds 28,000 people. It was used in the 1995 Copa America.

In Rivera we can find the Skatepark of Rivera, in Presidente Viera Street

See also[link]

• Rivera Department
• List of diplomatic missions in Uruguay#Consulate in Rivera

References[link]

External links[link]

• INE map of Rivera

v t e Rivera Department of Uruguay Capital: Rivera Towns and villages La Pedrera Lagunón Lapuente Mandubí Masoller Minas de Corrales Paso Hospital Rivera Santa Teresa Tranqueras Vichadero Sights

Heather Morris
Morris at the San Diego Comic-Con International, July 2010
Born	Heather Elizabeth Morris (1987-02-01) February 1, 1987 (age 25) Thousand Oaks, California, U.S.
Occupation	Dancer, actress, singer
Years active	2006–present
Height	1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)

Heather Elizabeth Morris (born February 1, 1987) is an American actress, dancer, and singer, known for her role as the cheerleader Brittany S. Pierce in the musical comedy series Glee.

Early life[link]

She began dancing when she was one.^[1] Morris competed at a young age in a variety of styles including jazz, tap, and contemporary. Morris's father passed away of cancer when she was 14 years old. "It's something that is hard for me, because I'm sad about it, but I don't dwell on it," she said during an interview workshop with students in December 2009. "I know he's in a better place, instead of suffering."^[2][3] After graduating from Desert Mountain High School, Morris decided to enroll in a local university but realized she was in the wrong place and moved to L.A. instead at age 19.^[4]

Career[link]

Morris' first significant appearance was in 2006 on So You Think You Can Dance Season 2 where she made the "green mile" or "Vegas Week" but failed to make the final 20 by a vote of 3-2.^[5]

Not discouraged, Morris moved to Los Angeles and actively pursued a career in dancing and was trained in jazz dance. Her big break came in 2007 via Beyoncé. Morris was one of Beyoncé's backup dancers on The Beyoncé Experience world tour and,^[6] following that, worked again with Beyoncé on a mini "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" promotional tour that included 2008 performances on the American Music Awards,^[7] Saturday Night Live,^[8] The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Today,^[8] and MTV's Total Request Live Finale. She also danced backup for Beyoncé and Tina Turner at the 50th Grammy Awards in 2008.^[9][10] She later appeared in a small role in the movie Fired Up, where she met choreographer Zach Woodlee. Following that film, Woodlee brought Morris in to dance on other shows he was choreographing, including episodes of Eli Stone and Swingtown, the movie Bedtime Stories, and eventually Glee.^[11]

In December 2010 Morris was named the Celebrity Style Ambassador for FLIRT! Cosmetics, an Estee Lauder cosmetics line.^[12]

In 2010 Morris made the Maxim Hot 100 list, coming in at number 85. On the AfterEllen hot 100 list she was ranked #2 behind Naya Rivera.

In 2011 Morris starred in a back-to-school commercial for Staples Canada that featured her dancing.

In the October 2011 issue of Fitness magazine, Heather Morris stated that she has had her breast implants removed. She was quoted saying "Implants were something I thought I wanted when I was younger, and now I don't, It was hard being active with them, because my chest was always sore. It hurt a lot, and I didn't like always being in pain, so they had to go!"^[13] Her breast implant surgery was done sometime between her time on So You Think You Can Dance at age 18 and age 21 when she was a backup dancer for Beyoncé. ^[14]

[edit] Glee

Morris was taking acting classes and actively pursuing an acting career when she was asked by Woodlee to teach the choreography for Beyoncé's "Single Ladies" dance to the Glee actors. At the same time, the show was looking for a third cheerleader, and Morris ended up landing the role of Brittany.^[8] Initially a background character who hardly ever spoke, the role grew as writers discovered Morris had a gift for delivering one-liners.^[15] Jarrett Wieselman of the New York Post opined that Morris has "emerged as one of the funniest second bananas on TV right now"^[16] and the LA Times wrote of having a "...comedy crush on Morris, who plays the galactically dim Glee Club cheerleader Brittany".^[17]

When a promotional clip for the episode "Sectionals" indicated that Brittany Pierce and Santana Lopez had slept together, Dorothy Snarker, writing for lesbian entertainment website After Ellen, praised the pairing, referring to them by the portmanteau "Brittana".^[18] Snarker called the two her "new favorite Glee pairing", commenting that: "While Heather Morris (Brittany) and Naya Rivera (Santana) have had minimal screen time, they've made it count. Heather in particular has brought the laughs as the Cheerio least likely to get a Mensa invitation. Never mind Finn and Rachel — I'm on Team Brittana now."^[18]

Morris' role became more prominent during the final nine episodes of season one and, due to the overwhelmingly positive response to her character, was promoted to official series regular status during season two.^[19] She was at the center of the second episode, "Britney/Brittany", (a tribute to Britney Spears) where she made her singing debut covering Spears' "I'm a Slave 4 U" solo and dueting with Naya Rivera on "Me Against the Music". She later got many other singing, and dancing solos. The second half of season two saw Morris' character engage in a lesbian storyline with Rivera's character. Both the arc along with Rivera's and Morris' performances were met with critical acclaim. As on Glee, Morris is best friends in real life with co-star Rivera.^[20]

In Season 3, her and Rivera's characters continues with the lesbian storyline, and others. For example she had a large role in the episode "Promasaurus".

During the 2011 Glee Tour Heather performed Britney Spears' song "I'm a Slave 4 U". She also had a dance spotlight with castmate Harry Shum Jr. during Naya Rivera's performance of "Valerie," and was one of the dancers in the Single Ladies and Safety Dance numbers.

Morris co-wrote and appeared in a January 2011 video for Funny or Die, "Nuthin' But A Glee Thang," a take-off of the Dr. Dre/Snoop Dogg collaboration "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang". Co-written with actresses Ashley Lendzion and Riki Lindhome, the video features appearances from Modern Family's Sofia Vergara and Morris's Glee castmates Matthew Morrison, Cory Monteith, Harry Shum, Jr., and Naya Rivera.^[21]

Filmography[link]

Morris in March 2011

Awards and nominations[link]

Discography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Heather Morris

• Heather Morris at the Internet Movie Database

Santana Lopez
Naya Rivera as Santana on the Glee Live! In Concert! tour.
First appearance	"Pilot"
Created by	Ryan Murphy Brad Falchuk Ian Brennan
Portrayed by	Naya Rivera
Information
Occupation	High school student
Family	Maribel Lopez (mother)
Significant other(s)	Brittany Pierce Noah "Puck" Puckerman

Santana Lopez is a fictional character from the Fox musical comedy-drama series Glee. The character is portrayed by actress Naya Rivera, and has appeared in Glee from its pilot episode, first broadcast on May 19, 2009. Santana was developed by Glee creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan. Introduced as a minor antagonist and a sidekick to Quinn Fabray (Dianna Agron) in first episode of Glee, Santana's role grew over the course of the show's first season. In the second season, Rivera was promoted to series regular, and Santana was given more high profile storylines, such as the development of her romantic feelings for her best friend Brittany Pierce (Heather Morris), and subsequent realization that she is a lesbian. Rivera, who has been vocally supportive of the love story between her and Morris' characters,^[1][2] has received ongoing praise for her portrayal of Santana, as well as for her for vocal work in numerous songs performed as part of the show's central glee club, New Directions.

Santana is introduced alongside Quinn and Brittany as one of the three most popular cheerleaders at the fictional William McKinley High School in Lima, Ohio, where the show is set.^[3] She joins the school's glee club, and soon is spying on it for Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch), coach of the cheerleading team the Cheerios. As the season progresses, she becomes more sympathetic to other glee club members, saying she is staying in the club not because Sue is forcing her, but because she likes it. She has several romantic relationships, briefly dating Puck (Mark Salling), taking Finn Hudson's (Cory Monteith) virginity, and carrying on a friends with benefits relationship with Brittany. In season two, the show delves into the motivations behind Santana's antagonism and her sexual aggressiveness towards boys; it is later revealed that her cruel attitude is because she is struggling with her romantic feelings towards Brittany, and subsequently with her lesbian identity. This storyline has been positively received by critics.

Storylines[link]

Santana is introduced as a popular cheerleader at William McKinley High School. Santana and her friends, cheerleaders Quinn Fabray (Dianna Agron) and Brittany Pierce (Heather Morris), join the school glee club, New Directions, because Quinn wants to keep an eye on her boyfriend Finn Hudson (Cory Monteith); cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) then enlists the three of them to help her destroy the glee club from the inside.^[4] Initially romantically linked to football player Noah "Puck" Puckerman (Mark Salling), Santana soon breaks up with him over his bad credit score,^[5] though the two have an on-again, off-again relationship well into the show's second season. Brittany also reveals in an offhand comment that she and Santana have slept together. When the two are accused of giving Sue the New Directions set list for their first show choir competition, Santana defends herself and admits that she has come to enjoy participating in the club.^[6] After Quinn is kicked off the cheerleading squad due to her pregnancy, Santana takes over as head cheerleader. At Sue's behest, Santana and Brittany go on a date with Finn, who is now the glee club co-captain.^[7] Santana takes his virginity, though Finn immediately regrets sleeping with her.^[8] When Puck briefly dates Mercedes Jones (Amber Riley), Santana is jealous and confronts her with an aggressive duet of "The Boy Is Mine".^[9] A similar confrontation, though entirely physical, occurs in the second season after Puck sings a love song to Lauren Zizes (Ashley Fink) in front of the glee club, though Santana loses badly to Lauren.^[10]

In season two, Santana is demoted from her position as head cheerleader when Quinn reveals that she had breast implants over the summer, leading to a physical fight between the two.^[11] While making out, Brittany suggests to Santana that the two of them should sing Melissa Etheridge's "Come To My Window" for a glee club duet competition. Alarmed, Santana claims that she was only sleeping with Brittany because Puck was temporarily unavailable. Brittany begins to date club member Artie Abrams (Kevin McHale), which piques Santana's jealousy.^[12] She briefly quits the glee club with Brittany and Quinn when Sue demands that they choose between it and being cheerleaders, but Finn convinces them to reverse their decision, and they quit the Cheerios instead.^[13] Temporarily without a boyfriend after Puck begins dating Lauren, she breaks up Quinn and her boyfriend Sam Evans (Chord Overstreet), and dates him herself for several weeks.^[14] Confronted by Brittany about her feelings for her, Santana confesses that she is in love with her, but fears being ostracized by the student body for being in a same-sex relationship. Brittany says she reciprocates her love, but as she also loves Artie, she will not break up with him.^[15] In the hope of convincing Brittany to drop Artie and be with her, Santana runs for school prom queen. She blackmails closeted jock Dave Karofsky (Max Adler) into becoming her beard and running mate; he wins prom king, but Santana is not named queen.^[16] Brittany comforts her, and encourages her to embrace her true identity.

In season three, Santana and Brittany rejoin the Cheerios, and Sue appoints Santana co-captain along with Becky Jackson (Lauren Potter).^[17] Santana is briefly banished from New Directions for disloyalty, and though she is soon allowed to return, she leaves again to join Mercedes in a newly formed all-girl glee club, the Troubletones, and convinces Brittany, who is now her girlfriend, to come with her.^[18] In "Mash Off", Santana pushes the growing rivalry between the clubs to a new level by bullying Finn and Rory. When her supposed apology to Finn becomes another stream of insults, he accuses her of being a coward for tearing other people down because she can't admit that she's in love with Brittany. They are overheard, and Santana's now-revealed lesbianism is used in an "attack" ad against Sue by one of her opponents in the congressional election campaign. Though Santana is warned before the ad runs, she is nevertheless devastated by being publicly outed: she hadn't yet come out to her parents.^[19] She does so, and they accept her declaration, but her grandmother is offended that Santana has made her sexuality public, and disowns her, leaving Santana heartbroken.^[20] The Troubletones are defeated by New Directions at Sectionals, and Quinn convinces Santana, Brittany and Mercedes to return to the New Directions, having arranged for them to be guaranteed one Troubletones number in all future competitions.^[21] When Principal Figgins tells Santana and Brittany in "Heart" to stop kissing publicly at school because he's received complaints, despite not enforcing the same ban on heterosexual couples, Santana is angry, and uses the God Squad's singing-valentine fundraiser to make a point by hiring them to deliver a lovesong valentine to Brittany.^[22] New Directions competes at Regionals, and with the aid of the Troubletones number featuring Santana, Brittany and Mercedes, the club wins.^[23]

Development[link]

Over the course of the series, Santana (Rivera, pictured) begins to struggle with her sexual identity.

Before her casting on Glee, Naya Rivera had made numerous appearances in small roles on popular primetime television shows. In casting Glee, series creator Ryan Murphy sought actors who could identify with the rush of starring in theatrical roles. Auditioning actors with no theatrical experience were required to prove they could sing and dance as well as act.^[24] Rivera drew on her own high school experience of unpopularity to prepare for the role, as well as watching films such as Mean Girls to "really get in the zone and feel like a bitchy Sophomore".^[25] She has described Santana as "your typical high school cheerleader, for the most part,"^[25] explaining: "She's really mean and loves boys. She's really witty so I love playing her."^[25] She has characterized Santana as "a bit of a bad girl" who is "really snarky and always has these really witty one-liners she throws out there."^[26] Rivera enjoys the fact Santana is competitive and headstrong as she herself shares those traits, but dislikes Santana's mean streak.^[27] She auditioned for the role as she loves singing, dancing and acting, and had never before had the opportunity to combine all three skills in one project. She finds the show's pacing challenging, especially the dancing, and commented in June 2009 that her most memorable moment on Glee was performing the Cheerios' glee club audition piece, "I Say a Little Prayer".^[25] Santana played a more prominent part in the last nine episodes of Glee's first season.^[28] Rivera commented: "Santana's been wreaking havoc with people's boyfriends and people's babies and teachers—she's the high school terror, and she's going to continue to be the villain." Although Santana continues to step over others to get what she wants, she exhibits moments of compassion and loyalty to the glee club.^[29]

Rivera has been vocal in her support of the Santana/Brittany relationship, and her attitudes toward Santana's emotional attachment have informed her portrayal of the character. In April 2010, when asked if any of "the guys" were Santana's soul mate, Rivera answered, "I think that Brittany is her soul mate. I think that they should end up together. They're in love."^[1] A month later, when interviewed by The Advocate, she reiterated this point, saying, "Maybe they’ll fall in love. I do think they're soul mates. Brittany just gets Santana, even though a lot of people don’t like her."^[30] On December 8, 2010, after a surge of fan disappointment over Twitter at the recent absence of Brittana, Rivera tweeted, "There’s been a Brittana fan uproar…Don’t worry, I miss it too."^[2] In January 2011, after several more "Brittana fan uproars", in an article entitled "The future of Brittana: Outlook Not so good", Rivera expressed the reason for such strong fan response: "Honestly, on a deeper level, to the girls that are going through that and it's not so comical in their world, in their everyday lives, they kind of looked up to us, in a sense. That's kind of my reason for hoping they continue the storyline."^[31] Ironically, soon after this pessimistic article, Brad Falchuk, co-creator of Glee, tweeted on January 20, "Brittana is on. Brittana was always on."^[32]

Santana's arc following "Sexy", where she admits her romantic feelings for Brittany, sees Santana come to terms with her sexual orientation. Falchuk describes Santana, from this point, as having come out internally to herself, but being afraid of coming out to her peers. "Santana is a lesbian. She might not be ready to come out yet, but she is."^[33] By the middle of the third season, Santana is both out to her peers, and in a public romantic relationship with Brittany.

Reception[link]

Critical response[link]

The relationship between Santana (Naya Rivera, left) and Brittany (Heather Morris, right) has been well-received by critics and viewers.

When a promotional clip for the episode "Sectionals" indicated that Brittany and Santana had slept together, Dorothy Snarker, writing for lesbian entertainment website AfterEllen.com, praised the pairing, referring to them by the portmanteau "Brittana". Snarker called the two her "new favorite Glee pairing", commenting that: "While Heather Morris (Brittany) and Naya Rivera (Santana) have had minimal screen time, they’ve made it count. [...] Never mind Finn and Rachel—I'm on Team Brittana now."^[34]

For her role in Sexy Santana has received critical acclaim. Sandra Gonzalez of Entertainment Weekly was somewhat surprised by the storyline, observing that Santana had not previously been portrayed as "so serious and vulnerable", but enjoyed the depth it brought to her character.^[35] She and Time's James Poniewozik both praised Rivera's acting, with Gonzalez calling her "heartbreakingly perfect".^[35] Poniewozik did not find Santana's revelation sudden; he was impressed that the episode found "pathos and heartbreak" in a coupling formerly treated humorously.^[36] Todd VanDerWerff of The A.V. Club deemed it the best storyline of the episode, saying it was almost alone the reason the episode received a "B". He called the scene where Santana confessed her feelings for Brittany one of the best moments of the season.^[37] Patrick Burns of The Atlantic was pleased that the storyline was "treated with a tender realness," something generally lacking on network television,^[38] and Brown, though unconvinced that Santana's conflicted sexuality adequately explained her abrasive personality, praised the series for "exploring some of the more complicated aspects of adolescent sexuality", writing that "Glee does an admirable job of attempting to be all-inclusive."^[38]

VanDerWerff praised the character development of Santana, calling it the highlight of the episode "Born This Way". He continued, "The best thing about this episode is Naya Rivera’s work as Santana and the story the three writers have cooked up for her. Rivera's really come into her own this season, going from just a generic bitchy cheerleader to an actual character who has motivations and might be a better villain for the show than Sue. [...] On a show where we’re meant to accept that the characters do whatever the fuck the writers need them to from scene to scene, the storyline of Santana realizing she was in love with Brittany and [...] is probably a lesbian has been nicely plotted and surprisingly deep. The reveal about Santana hasn't washed away her less savory qualities; indeed, it's heightened them, to a degree, as she struggles to be true to herself and still maintain her status as the hottest girl in school."^[39]

Accolades[link]

At the 2010 AfterEllen.com Visibility Awards, Brittany and Santana were nominated for the Favorite Fictional Lesbian Couple award, and Rivera was nominated in the Favorite TV Actress category.^[40] Also that year, Rivera was nominated in the Best Supporting Actress/Television category at the Imagen Awards,^[41] and she and her co-stars won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series.^[42] They were nominated in the same category the following year.^[43] At the 2011 ALMA Awards, Rivera was nominated in the Favorite TV Actress – Leading Role in a Comedy category.^[44]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Santana Lopez at Fox.com
• Santana Lopez at the Internet Movie Database