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 Todd Wetherington | Daily Herald Courtney Burlingame of WNCT Channel 9 takes a snapshot of Crystal Pittman following her audition for the reality television show “Big Brother” Saturday at The Roanoke Rapids Theatre. |
Representatives from the CBS affiliate in Greenville came to The Roanoke Rapids Theatre Saturday, looking for possible housemates for the upcoming “Big Brother 10.”
In “Big Brother,” more than a dozen people agree to live in a house and be filmed 24/7. This is how the Big Brother Web site described the beginning of last season's 11-episode series:
“From gigantic furniture to hobbit-sized beds, this unsuspecting troupe enters into a world of twists and turns, secrets and lies and unexpected encounters as six of them are brought face-to-face with people from their past that they'd hoped were gone for good. Why endure a summer of sycophantic schmoozing, blatant brown-nosing, back-biting, back-stabbing and bitching? For the half-million dollar prize-money and bragging rights, after all; to be the last house guest standing is to be a member of an exclusive survival club.”
That's what may be in store for those who survive the “Big Brother” casting call and land a bed in next year's house.
There were two North Carolina cities taking part in the open casting calls Saturday - Roanoke Rapids and Greenville - and most all other states will also have at least one, so the odds were against the 31 people who auditioned.
Those odds did not dampen the spirit of any of the local Big Brother applicants, however. Several were waiting at the door of the theater before the 1 p.m. start and by 3 p.m., more than 20 had filled out the 10-page application form and made short, two-minute demo tapes, which will be sent to the show's producers. Local resident Justin Harris was one of the first to be called in for his demo taping. He explained a little about himself and then said, “I'd love to get out of Roanoke Rapids, so if you could, please select me. I'll give you something you'll want to see on TV.”
After his taping, Harris said many of his friends had called him, urging him to go and make the demo tape. They told him his personality and looks would be perfect for the “Big Brother” show. “If it was just picking from this group here, my chances would be pretty good,” Harris said with a chuckle.
Not all of the Big Brother hopefuls were from the immediate area. Debra Teasley, a mother of two and full-time college student at Methodist University in Fayetteville, drove up early and was seventh in line.
Teasley is not new to television, having been on “Wheel of Fortune” in 2007. When the camerawoman gave Teasley her cue, she went into a well-prepared routine directed at Julie Chen, host of “Big Brother.”
“My dream is to be on America's number-one TV reality show, “Big Brother 10,'” Teasley said, smiling into the camera. She finished with, “I'll see you this summer, Julie, and I'll see you, CBS, once we get to the second round!”
Most of the applicants were no where near as prepared as Teasley, though. Brian Dottin told the camera he is originally from Queens, N.Y., and would love to be on the show. “I've never seen the show, but I think I would be good on it,” he said. As the applicants came and went, Courtney Burlingame and Joel Bullard, of CBS affiliate WNCT in Greenville, who were doing the demo filming, couldn't help but laugh.
“You would think some of these people would at least find out what the show was all about before trying to get on it - do a little bit of homework,” laughed Burlingame.
The demos, which are being taken from all around the country, must be turned in by April 25, with semi-finalist interviews currently scheduled for May or June.
The show was one of the first of the genre in the U.S. and was adapted from a similar British TV series. It debuted on CBS in July 2000, and has gained popularity each year since, according the CBS Web site.
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