The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com the b-side ‘World’ casts in A2 MTV’s ‘Real World’ looks for stars at Charley’s By ALLIE TAYLOR Daily Arts Writer “Real World,” MTV’s longest- running reality program, will be holding a casting call at Good Time Charley’s on South University Avenue from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednes- day, Mar. 23. Since 1992, “Real World” showcases and exposes the reality of how people between the ages of 21 and 25 interact with each other under intense, intimate cir- cumstances. Each season, seven to eight people live together under one roof for three months, undergoing chal- lenges, excursions and everyday experiences that assess the integ- rity and personality of each person. The cast members begin as com- plete strangers, often with extreme differences in beliefs, lifestyles, upbringings and personalities, creating an intense and intriguing environment. The show follows these people as they develop relationships with each other and evolve as people. Issues of sex, drugs, racism, par- tying, love, pain and truth are brought forth, leaving cast mem- bers challenged, confronted and vulnerable. Oftentimes, the cast members find themselves in situ- ations that test everything they know to be true about themselves and about the world around them. Kailah Casillas, a cast member of the upcoming 31st season “Real World: Go Big or Go Home,” grew up watching the show. In an inter- view with The Michigan Daily, Casillas said that being on the show was different from what she expected. “It’s a lot harder,” Casillas said. “I had the time of my life. But you don’t realize how hard it is psy- chologically, with all the cameras ... being away from home, being in a new environment and having to be very tolerant of other people and their behaviors and lifestyles. These people are culturally totally different from me.” Microphones and video camer- as follow each cast member around 24/7. “The only time we were allowed to take our microphone off was to shower and to sleep,” Casillas said. “We were filmed 24 hours a day and seven days a week.” Reality TV shows are often scrutinized for not being an accu- rate portrayal of real life, and questions arise regarding how authentic the “reality” part truly is. In “Real World,” however, the show seems to stay true to its name by refraining from interfering with each cast member’s life. The cast members are neither told what to do, nor given any kind of instruc- tion on how to act. “God, I wish it were staged,” Casillas said, when asked if any part of the show was orchestrated. “If it were staged, I would be able to blame all of my crazy antics on someone else. But, unfortunately, those are actually the things that I do.” “We take pride in the fact that we don’t coach the cast members,” “Real World” casting director Themi Chahales said in a separate interview with the Daily. “We real- ly let them bring their personalities to us.” When casting, Chahales looks for characters: people with strong personalities who aren’t afraid to speak their minds, people from diverse backgrounds, people who are open and honest about their daily experiences, people with over-the-top personalities and people who are dynamic. “People like to think we’re look- ing for a certain type of person, but really, the characters come to us,” Chahales said. “There’s an endless amount of characters with an end- less amount of stories. It’s not like some of those other reality shows that are really specific (with who they cast). There’s not a specific criteria for this show, and because of that, I think it allows the cast- ing of people to be endless. There’s always 20-somethings that are fig- uring out who they are.” The show serves as a major learning experience for everyone involved. When diverse groups of people are confined together for three months, attitudes change and mindsets open up. By the end of the season, cast members become different people. “I left a changed person because I saw what other people were going through,” Casillas said. “I saw that I need to be more open-minded. My beliefs were so questioned because everyone was so different from me. People have it much harder than I ever could have imagined. I left there completely mind-fucked. This experience made me think about everything I had ever been taught, and everything I ever believed in. I never had to think differently before this. When I got there, and lived with a kid who was pansexual, a girl who was from a really, really rough part of St. Louis and a girl who was adopted, I left there being like: ‘Wow, who am I?’ It really made me question all of my beliefs.” To the people who are consider- ing going to the casting call, Casil- las said, “Do it. This is something you will never ever be able to expe- rience anywhere else.” As for advice to people who want to be cast, both Chahales and Casillas emphasized the impor- tance of being yourself. “You never know what these casting directors are looking for,” Casillas said. “Being open and hon- est and being yourself is really the key to being on ‘Real World.’” Thursday, March 17, 2016 — 3B MTV This is like real-life Sims. COMMUNITY CULTURE PREVIEW ‘Real World’ Casting Call Wednesday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Good Time Charley’s Free A home state tourist By MERIN MCDIVITT Daily Arts Writer Saturday: 9 a.m: Before you do anything, pick up some carrots and curios at Eastern Market, America’s oldest continuously running farmer’s market. Long before “local” was a buzzword, the market was one of several in the city, one in each direction: Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western. Be sure to try some local coffee to kickstart a busy day, and perhaps some flowers, particularly if it’s around Flower Day on May 20, one of the biggest flower shows in the country. 11 a.m: Drop off your bags at The Inn on Ferry Street. With a prime location in Midtown on, you guessed it, Ferry Street, the historic hotel’s four renovated Victorian homes ooze with old world charm. In spring, the inn gives you a perfect vantage point to enjoy the blooming green spaces scattered around the urban jungle. 12 p.m: Head down the street to a delicious lunch at Maccabees at Midtown, a perennial favorite bursting with Detroiters and out-of- towners alike. If you can wind your way through the light rail construction on Woodward to find it, you’ll discover one of Detroit architecture’s best kept secrets: the Maccabee building, an Art Deco treasure built by the Jewish organization Knights of the Maccabees in the 1920s. 2 p.m: Pop across the street to spend the afternoon exploring the city’s art scene from yesterday and today. The Detroit Institute of Arts is the legendary home of Picassos, Van Goghs, the famous Rivera mural and one of the finest collections of African American contemporary art in the country. Be sure to check out the spring exhibition of art from kids throughout the Detroit Public Schools, featured until Jun. 12. Then head down Woodward a few blocks to the more unconventional Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, featuring avant garde works from around the world, including the fantastic Detroit Affinities photography series on display until April 24. Finally, catch the end of the Detroit Historical Museum’s exhibition Fashion D.Fined, a look into the city’s lesser known, but still significant contributions to the world of fashion. 6 p.m: Exhausted from a day wandering among masterpieces? There’s no better place to unwind than the Whitney Mansion. A historic 1890s home built with the city’s pre-industrial riches, the Whitney is now one of Detroit’s foremost restaurants. Expect a classy atmosphere, top-notch food and a seat in the mansion’s exquisite interior, or even the beautiful gardens if the night is warm. If you’re in a slightly less classy mood after dinner, you can hit Midtown’s newfound nightlife down the street, including the beloved Cafe D’Mongo’s. Sunday: 10 a.m: Before you check out of the inn, scurry down the street to a mysterious little stone building called the Scarab Club. Tucked away in the Museum District, this discreet, historic building is still home to the city’s oldest association of artists. With tours of its art collection as well as painting and sketching classes, the club has produced some of the area’s most prominent artists. 11 a.m: Then head over to Cliff Bell’s famous jazzy brunch downtown. One of Detroit’s legendary jazz clubs, at night Cliff Bell’s is full of speakeasy charm. But every Sunday, their brunch, accompanied by famous jazz musicians, is just as popular in town. 1 p.m: While Detroit may be better known for its urban grit and downtown hipsters than it is for natural beauty, there’s plenty to be found along the Detroit Riverfront, the gorgeous public walkway along the river that will eventually connect large swaths of the city. If you stroll along it long enough, you’ll come across plenty of landmarks, from the Joe Louis Fist, the famous statue on West Grand Boulevard commemorating the local boxing hero, to the Underground Railroad Monument, a stirring tribute to the city’s role as the end of the Underground Railroad, which then transported escaped slaves across the river to freedom in Canada. If you continue even further, you’ll pass the Renaissance Center, headquarters to General Motors, and you can even stop by Belle Isle, the beloved park in the middle of the river that was designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, the same famous designer who created Central Park. 5 p.m: You’ve had quite the afternoon. Before leaving town, head down the freeway to Southwest Detroit. At Mexicantown Bakery, you can pick up some churros, tres leches and other traditional sweets for the road. Just down the street go to Lupita’s Taquería, a favorite among everyone from locals to Canadians visiting from over the border, for a phenomenal bowl of pozole or some top notch tacos. Finally, grab a coffee or dessert a few blocks over at Café con Leche or its ice cream-themed neighbor La Michoacana. It’s time to go, but now that you’ve had a taste of what the city has to offer, you’ll be back soon enough. H ow does a musical gain a following? How does it keep it? On the surface, there’s really nothing relatable about a musical. People rarely just break out into song and dance about some- thing they’re thinking or talking about. It’s not realistic. Yet so many musi- cals have gained our support. Why in the world do we love them so much? I went over to Google to do a little research on which musicals were considered the best of Broadway. I realized quickly that a lot of Google sites claim to know the top ten best musicals — and they all list a different top ten. I decided instead to look at the longest running musicals. Here they are, according to Wikipedia: “The Phantom Of the Opera,” “Chicago,” “The Lion King,” “Cats,” “Les Misérables,” “A Chorus Line,” “Mamma Mia,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Wicked” and “Rent.” All of these productions get at something that we want in a musical. Here is a breakdown of the major components these musicals are built upon: The first: the story. Though people often want a story that is relatable to their own lives, interest towards a musical isn’t usually lost if the relatability is. “The Lion King” does not directly correlate to events that take place in our daily lives, and it doesn’t have to. We love it, and frankly, that’s enough. A story of love, of growing up, of finding one’s place in the world — these are aspects of a musical that produce an audience’s devotion. All of these musicals in some way or another comment on the parts of a story that make us want more. The second: the music. Since the musical scores within all these shows are all different and unique, there isn’t one universal component that I can say leads to a musical’s success. The songs become popular and loved when people start to attach real emotions to them. There is something in the lyrics and music that has to hook an audience and for these “longest running musicals,” people have stayed hooked for years. The third: the cast. The original cast of a musical is often credited with a huge portion of why a musical is so successful. And that makes sense. The relationships between characters and the emotions behind them are brought out through the cast. If people see those relationships and characters as genuine, they naturally “root” for them. Thus, the musical gains a following. The question at the heart of any musical is this: why should we care? When these musicals answer that question, people remain loyal. The heart of the story, the music, the people — it has to get us to a place where we care. We need something that speaks to the truth of what is in our world today. We crave that from entertainment. If people watch a musical that is upbeat and lively, they might react saying, “yeah, that was fun.” Or reversely, with a drama, “that was sad.” We need something more, something gained or something learned. I think the musicals listed above get us there. Modern controversy behind popular musicals on Broadway today comes from a worry that many popular musicals are only successful because they are tied to a well-known film, book or character, which has “commercialized” the Broadway stage. These debates make it difficult to distinguish if there are specific elements that make a musical successful or if it is simply a result of the audience’s recognition of a familiar story, with praise that follows when it’s brought to the stage. I think by dwelling on concerns like these, we lose what makes a musical so magical. The reason that these musicals have gained support and praise is because a story (whether it comes from a book or movie or not), a musical score and a talented cast have come together and brought these elements to life. The audience is captivated by what they see in front of them, and they’re taken to a different place — a different world. They leave the show in awe of what they witnessed and eager for more. If a musical has produced reactions like these, it deserves a following. Kadian is trying to get tickets for ‘Hamilton.’ To donate, email bkadian@umich.edu. COMMUNITY CULTURE COLUMN What we love about musicals BAILEY KADIAN We need something that speaks truth. By ARIANNA ASSAF Daily Arts Writer What do you get when you give a weapons developer, a street art- ist and a derivatives trader a stage name? Art. Meet Autograf, three artists in their own right who turned loft party DJing into the career path of their dreams. Jake Carpenter, Louis Kha and Mikul Wing com- prise a Chicago-based DJ/pro- ducer/artist trio, currently taking the dance music scene by a tropical house storm. After catching them at a festival over New Year’s, I got a chance to see them again when they stopped at Populux as part of their three-month Metaphysical tour, which will culminate in New Orleans at the Buku Music + Art Project. Maybe it’s because I’m writing this on a beach listening to Dream (thank you, indulgent affordanc- es of college lifestyle and Spring Break), but thinking back on last Saturday gives the feeling of sway- ing in a hammock to the beat of twinkly piano lines. Though their style is certainly more laid back than some other electronic art- ists, the show still buzzed with energy and excitement. I can tell you from personal experience that it’s not quite fit for a booze cruise, but that’s OK. The boys of Autograf aren’t exactly going for the debauchery of an all-you-can- drink vibe. Though they all have differ- ent artistic and educational back- grounds, the music certainly comes together nicely. Wing, the street artist (who unfortunately, was absent due to a bad case of strep throat) had a few galleries in Chicago, and Kha the derivatives trader, studied economics at the University of Virginia in Arlington. Carpenter, who went to Colum- bus College of Art and Design for metal sculpture, worked for the Department of Defense as weap- ons developer, also doing research and development and underwater robotics. The fact that all three were indi- vidually involved with music made coming together as Autograf natu- ral. “My mom made me take piano lessons for ten years,” Carpenter said of the start of his music edu- cation. “I did drum lessons for five years. In high school I played in the jazz band and marching band, but I didn’t do any art until the end of high school/start of college. It was just recently that I started doing art again with music.” Kha, on the other hand, picked up music as a hobby and assumes he would still be in economics had production not taken over. “I feel like most people are put on a path at an early age, a lot of times they kinda stay on that path,” he said. “For me, I jumped around … a lot of people have idealistic dreams when they’re young and if you don’t pursue it, a lot of times you forget about it. I was just for- tunate enough to pursue it and be successful with it.” That idealistic dream has taken shape in the form of a thriving endeavor to create music and per- form live. Detroit was treated to a gorgeous set — complete with Carpenter on drums — that had Populux holding on to every note. From start to finish, whether play- ing their most well-known hits like “Dream” and “Metaphysical,” or spinning out some nuanced noises that can’t quite be categorized, we were in it. Based on what I’ve seen and heard, it appears fans of the trio can only continue to grow in dedication and numbers. Autograf brings its tropical house sound NO FILTER