College-age Philadelphians now have the chance to stop being polite and start getting real.
This Saturday, The Real World will hold a casting call for its next season at the Raven Lounge on 1718 Sansom Street from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The location for the season has not yet been determined, and Real World producers are scouting different areas at the moment, casting director Megan Sleeper said.
According to Sleeper, the Real World team is looking for students.
"We are really open to what we do find," she said.
But, they are definitely looking for "charismatic" people, since the people they choose will live in a house together for four months.
"We want people you want to know more about, people actually open to the process and people who can't help but be themselves," Sleeper said.
She added that passionate people, those with great career goals or who are quite concerned about social issues, are welcome, as are people who "wouldn't necessarily think to go to a Real World casting call."
For example, in the current season, set in Brooklyn, one cast member, Caitlin, is transgendered.
To follow suit, the casting company "would love to have someone coming out of the foster-care system, physically challenged, dealing with weight issues, or going through the citizenship process," Sleeper said.
She warned those interested, however, against pretending to be something they are not.
"Sometimes people pretend to be what they think we want," she said. "But it's obvious to us when someone is coming to us putting on a show."
While not all Penn students are willing to be one of seven strangers just yet, some feel that a cast member from Penn would make them more likely to watch The Real World.
"I'd definitely watch it more if there was a Penn student in it than if not," College sophomore Renata Sotomayor said.
And Sleeper is excited to see what Philadelphia has to offer.
"We always do really well in Philly," she said.
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