EVERETT — “Wheel of Fortune” will begin its 33rd season in September, but the allure of appearing on the show hasn’t waned over its three decades.
An estimated 2,000 people turned out at XFINITY Arena on Sunday for the chance to audition as a guest on the show. This is the first time the tryouts have been held in Everett.
The event began with what could only be called a pep rally, with traveling road host Marty Lublin whipping the crowd into a frenzied excitement.
“Are you ready?” he asked. When the response wasn’t quite loud enough, he told the crowd, “I can’t hear you!”
When he wondered aloud, “Who wants to be a contestant?” the crowd responded with loud cheers and waving hands. “A teacher in Everett won $100,000 — that could be you!” he said.
Peggy Gamache, 30, from Duvall, drove to the event with her fiance, Mickey Hill. “Wheel of Fortune” tryouts also had been held in Tacoma on July 23. Gamache said she also attended that event. “I do this every year,” she said. “I’ve wanted to be on the show forever.”
Gamache said as a child she watched the show every night with her grandmother. “I’m a good puzzle solver,” she said, and smiled as she added, “And I guess I’m a little competitive.”
Angela Gesacion, of DuPont, said Sunday’s event was the first time she had tried out for the show. Her parents live in Lynnwood, so there was “free babysitting at grandma’s house,” she said. Her sister, Lenita Knowles, 42, of Lynnwood, said her girls have been egging her on for several years to attend a tryout.
Tom Moran, 61, of Lake Stevens, said he and his wife, Janine Moran, have been watching the show for more than 30 years.
Loni Nealy, Wenatchee, said she didn’t think twice about driving to Everett for the tryout. “It’s on my bucket list,” she said.
Contestants were brought up in groups of about five people for the tryout. “We do an interview and then we spin our promotional wheel,” said David Strathearn, the show’s director of marketing and promotions. “Then they do a version of the speed-up round.” The show’s producers watch how potential contestants interact with the host and how well they play the game, he said.
Contestants also need to have a “fun, gregarious personality,” and a good stage presence, he said. “The deer in the headlights is what you want to avoid.”
Typically 40 to 50 people from these events will be selected for a second, closed, round of auditions, which will be conducted later this year in the Northwest. From that round of testing, a group of 15 to 20 people will be chosen to participate on the show. Last year, more than one million people auditioned and 600 ultimately appeared on the show.
One of the initial round winners at Sunday’s event was Christina Sabello, 46, of Arlington, who was able to guess the correct phrase, “planting a tree,” in three seconds.
Just because she won that round doesn’t guarantee a slot on the show, she said. She and other winners will be notified if they’ve been selected for the second round of testing in about three months.
Despite that uncertainty, Sabello was happy to bask in glory of the moment, from the cheers and applause from the crowd to her obvious excitement and beaming smile.
“It was awesome,” she said.
Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486; salyer@heraldnet.com.
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