16 April 20–26, 2023 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Keeping Minds Beautiful Rebel Theatrics adds mental health instruction. BY DANNY GALLAGHER R ejection is a certainty for any- one pursuing a career as an art- ist, but Rebel Theatrics co-founder Kellie Carroll says it doesn’t have to be a barrier to a passionate pursuit. “Rejection is a huge part of it,” Carroll says. “Especially with this business, it’s tricky be- cause you can be rejected for being yourself, the way you look, the way you talk. It could be as simple as, ‘You’re too tall.’” Rebel Theatrics, founded by Carroll and Lucas Atkins in 2021, recently implemented a new curriculum along with its arts pro- gramming to help students learn to weather a rejected audition or a career misstep, and how to take care of themselves at any stage of their career and their lives. “We want to bring them advanced train- ing to have a career in this wild industry, but what’s not talked about as much is the men- tal health of an artist,” Carroll says. “It’s al- ready hard enough being a teenager, but being a creator and have a career in the arts and can be really be demanding. The indus- try demands a lot of artists.” Carroll says she realized the importance of mental health in her students’ lives and even her own life when she and her family faced a tragic and sudden loss. “A few years ago, I lost my brother to sui- cide, and it’s something my family was very unprepared for and something we didn’t have any idea he was suffering from,” she says. “I had a lot of students who started to come to me with very vulnerable things, and I knew I wasn’t going to change my career but I wanted to provide a space where these con- versations are going to be had and a student is faced to explore all of their feelings, all of their challenges, all of their wins and lows.” Last fall, Rebel Theatrics held a weekend convention that provided artistic instruction and demonstration with a mental health awareness and practice program that adapted to students’ needs. “Some of it is as simple as they are required to do so many self-care hours a week,” Carroll says. “Some of it involves bringing in a health- care professional to talk about self-esteem or self-confidence after an audition or if they have a performance. One of the things we want from Rebel is a fluid company. It’s going to ebb and flow with the students we have.” The goal is for young artists to learn how to face them with skills and confidence. Carroll says she feels she has an impor- tant duty beyond helping her students be- come better performers. “I wanted to be someone who helps a kid feel like they are enough,” she says. ▼ LIFE ONLINE UNREAL ESTATE PEOPLE ARE BUYING DALLAS LAND IN THE METAVERSE. BY MALEN BLACKMON T he lines between the metaverse and the physical world continue to get blurrier. Anybody who has access to the internet around the world can now pur- chase digital Dallas land and real estate in the metaverse by using Next Earth, an Earth- based metaverse that is a complete digital version of the world map. The map looks similar to how the map on Google Earth or Google Maps street view would look as you scroll across the top of the American Airlines Center, Deep Ellum or your own home. Next Earth is a metaverse platform that aims to create a fair digital life for everyone through the power of web3 and artificial in- telligence. With more than 47,000 landown- ers and 303,000 registered users, Next Earth surpasses metaverse platform competitors like Sandbox and Decentraland. Users can buy virtual land as NFTs, which can be connected to their web2 busi- nesses or used to build applications using the Next Earth Operating System. The plat- form’s native currency is NXTT, which is used for land purchases, long-term token holding and fueling its complex ecosystem The platform also has a launchpad for start- ups to launch their tokens within the Next Earth economy. “The whole point of creating Next Earth is for us to create a fair digital life for consumers, which means ownership and agency over their data,” David Taylor, co-founder and chief product officer for Next Earth says. “Geo-data is a very im- portant aspect of the land, and that is where the landowners come in. So every- body who bought land on Next Earth, we are providing them more and more tools and things like resources, different enti- ties they can create to basically fill their land with data. “Then location-based businesses can ac- cess that data and when those become mon- etized those land owners get paid. It is the same logic as if you would get paid by Face- book for them using your data.” Landowners can also generate revenue by selling or renting their land or property for digital development projects like NFT art, online-business operations and future aug- mented-reality or virtual reality experiences. People can purchase their old school or university, their favorite bar, a house on White Rock Lake or a 20-acre ranch outside Dallas city limits. But don’t limit yourself. The Pyramid of Giza can be purchased from the current owner for around $1,300. Game developers, real-estate agents, marketing teams, airline companies, profes- sional sports teams, popular restaurants and everyday consumers are all welcome to build out their ideas and experiences on Next Earth, and it’s only a matter of time be- fore the physical world and the metaverse co-exist seamlessly. Maybe all the Erykah Badu birthday bash tickets will be sold out at The Factory, but there could still be 3D virtual reality tickets available for purchase in the meta- verse. So you would still be able to go to Deep Ellum in the metaverse, skip the line, save money on drinks and still have an ex- perience. You will just be able to attend in the metaverse. Next Earth also offers a work-to-earn system that allows users to earn rewards or money by completing various tasks. This includes participating in community events, contributing to the platform’s de- velopment or performing specific tasks for other users. Users can also stake their NXTT tokens and earn rewards for helping to secure the network. With its focus on economy, population, environment and governance, Next Earth offers a unique and holistic approach to cre- ating a virtual world that is accessible and inclusive. “Virtual land is becoming the new Face- book business page,” Taylor says. Courtesy of Rebel Theatrics Dancers practice their moves at Rebel Theatrics. ▼ Culture West Village• 214-750-5667 • www.avalon-salon.com Spring Sale Up to 30% Spa Services Massage Therapy, Dermaplaning, Hydrafacials, and Aveda Signature Facials March 3 – April 30 EARLY ENTRY EXCLUSIVE RESTAURANTS • AND MORE! BE VIP BE VIP Saturday, APRIL 29 11:30A.M. - 2:30P.M. | DALLAS CITY HALL PLAZA A D BRUNCH EVENT DOBRUNCHTHEMORNINGAFTER.COM
