INTRODUCING... RACHEL BERRY’S FAMILY
Hiram Berry nee Goldstein, 56 - Abba/daddy (David Schwimmer)
Leroy Berry, 59 - Papa (Lenny Henry)
Shelby Corcoran, 40 - Biological mother (Alison Brie)
Boq, 8 - Dog/Bestie (Name inspired by the Wicked character)
Rachel was born via surrogate to Hiram and Leroy Berry, and up until the age of fourteen, knew absolutely nothing about her birth mother. Her fathers gave her everything she ever asked for, be it singing lessons, dancing lessons, acting lessons... or just a whole shelf of Lelli Kelly shoes. Her fathers absolutely spoiled her rotten, which is definitely a contributor to Rachel’s egotistical tendencies. Hiram and Leroy have always been the perfect example of a loving, happy and healthy relationship, and their love for each other has given Rachel pretty high expectations for romance.
Whilst Rachel might seem uptight, her upbringing was anything but strict. Neither Hiram nor Leroy set out with intentions of their little girl being a star, and were the furthest thing from those pushy stage parents they met at every audition and competition. They have always been Rachel’s biggest cheerleaders in everything she does, and they have a total honesty policy in the house, so Rachel knows she can talk to her fathers about absolutely anything that’s on her mind.
But just before her fourteenth birthday, Rachel’s interest in finding out about her birth mother began to grow - something about changing hormones, and being in a house of two men who didn’t know their tampons from their menstrual cups. After digging around in memory boxes and trawling deep through the internet, Rachel discovered that her biological mother was Shelby Corcoran, then a performing arts teacher at OSUCA. Rachel contacted Shelby, and they arranged to meet. At first her fathers were hesitant, as Shelby had previously opted to have no contact with Rachel when she was born, but the two got along perfectly.
Shelby introduced Rachel to new musicals she’d never even heard of (her fathers have always been into the classics), and she took her for her first mani pedi, and bought her her first proper bra. Though whilst Rachel was instantly enamoured by Shelby, she never really saw her as her mom. She was more like a big sister, or a fun aunt, or even just an older, more mature friend. Before Rachel started at OSUCA, she made the trip to see Shelby at least twice a year, and Shelby would do the same to Philadelphia. Then when Rachel flopped at her big NYADA audition, Shelby (who was now the head of the school of the performing arts) pulled some strings to get her into OSUCA, despite her not applying to any backup colleges.
Rachel strives to keep a professional relationship with Shelby during termtime, and most students are completely oblivious to their family connection, but the two make the effort to see each other regularly, despite both their busy schedules.
OTHER CHARACTERS, NOT PICTURED
Mayim Goldstein, nee Benowitz, 78 - Bubbe/Hiram’s mother (Miriam Margolyes)
Benjamin Goldstein, 81 - Zadie/Hiram’s father (Elliott Gould)
Lucille Berry, nee Simpson, 80 - Grandma/Leroy’s mother (Lillian Dube)
Cedric Berry, 83 - Grandpops/Leroy’s father (Garrett Morris)