By Dani Elle Brissette

LINCOLN — The lobby at the south entrance of Twin River could barely contain the swarms of humanity Saturday morning as people waited for friends and loved ones to emerge from behind the closed doors of the Event Center.

The pandemonium on an early Saturday morning was due to an exclusive casting call for NBC’s “Deal or No Deal,” a game show which features contestants playing to eliminate cases of dollar amounts at a chance to win $1 million.” From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., people were invited to wait in line for a twenty second interview with the casting director for a chance to be a contestant on the show.
According to Twin River’s Director of Public and Community Affairs Kim Ward, some of the show’s enthusiasts attempted to get ahead of the competition by forming a line on Thursday morning, nearly two days before the actual event.
“We knew people would be sleeping here on Friday night but we just couldn’t allow it on Thursday,” Ward said.
The entire process officially began at midnight on Friday, when contestants were allowed to begin forming a line just outside the south entrance of the building. Around 8:30 a.m., people began entering the building, only to be queued inside Twin River’s event center before moving on to the interview process. According to Twin River staff, the head count inside the building surpassed 2,000 around 11 a.m.
“There were a ton of people. We were way out in the back parking lot in a twisted line,” said Maria Boulmetis of Coventry who arrived at 7:30 a.m. on Friday morning and relieved to have finally made it inside.
Though both the line and the wait were long for most, not everyone had to maintain patience. Cranston resident Judith Fraraccio was awarded a “Deal or No Deal” suitcase with a golden ticket inside which allowed her a one-on-one interview with the casting director. The golden ticket award was the result of a contest in which contests registered to win online at turnto10.com.
Fraraccio wasn’t the only one allowed to cut the line. According to NBC spokespersons, a secret pass phrase or word, which was available through a handful of undisclosed sources, enabled hopeful contenders to skip the masses ahead of them and advance directly to the beginning of the queue. Those fortunate enough to know the clandestine term were immediately advanced.
Even as the line wrapped around the building, more people continued to arrive, however not everyone would be permitted to participate. With thousands of people lined up inside the event center and thousands still standing outside, Ward explained that staff would be on-hand for as long as it took to interview anyone who arrived before the 1 p.m. cut-off time.
The event was sponsored by NBC and Twin River.