Tony Talks: The story behind MCTV’s Tony Tries
Tony Tries, is an MCTV segment where Tony, Senior Anthony Cascone, attempts to do the tasks of various positions around the school, like working in the cafeteria or library, or even trying out a dance class.
The show first aired during the 2025 to 2026 school year. I spoke with Cascone to get an in depth and behind the scenes view and his personal thoughts on the segment.
[Frame from Tony Tries Working in The Library]
Q: How did Tony Tries come to be, and what were your inspirations for the segment if you had any?
A: Tony Tries came about during a brainstorming session in my MCTV class. I originally presented the idea of making a behind-the-scenes video series. I wanted to work behind the camera. However, because the series required a front man and no one else was interested, I volunteered and it pushed me outside of my comfort zone. During the same class, Mr. McKenna helped me plan out the episode’s layout. He [McKenna] also mentioned a former MCTV student Liam [Lacanlale] who did something similar where he tried girls golf.
Q: What struggles have you faced when creating an episode of Tony Tries?
A: The struggles I’ve faced are schedule and date planning. I have wanted to film segments on a certain date but either the job I’m trying is unavailable or my cameramen, Danny [Landeza] and Shubh [Sharma] have other conflicts. This has forced me to have to film most of my episodes during my MCTV class period.
Q: How do you come up with the different things for you to try in each episode?
A: I come up with different ideas for Tony Tries by brainstorming with my crew, Danny and Shubh. I like to focus on one specific area of the school and see what jobs or activities come to mind. An example of this is the football field. Some things I can try are being an announcer, running tack, football kicker, cheer squad or working the snack shop. I also listen to ideas from my friends about what they want me to try.
[Frame from Tony Tries Track]
Q: How has your process changed from your first episode to your most recent? Do you find yourself doing anything differently now?
A: The process has completely changed since my first episode. I don’t think many people have noticed but I’ve added teasers into my episodes. At the end of each episode I like to show a location or person who I’m going to work with next. Originally, I would just think of an idea, reach out to the person in charge, and let them guide me through what they do. I still do that but now, I think of funny little bits to make the episode more entertaining. Some examples of this are giving out detentions or acting like I run the place in the MCTV host episode.
Q: Last year, there was the episode Jasper’s Journey. How did that episode come to be, and is there a possibility of seeing more episodes like that, where it’s another person in your place?
A: Jasper’s Journey came to be because I wanted to feature the campus supervisor job, but I realised it would be cooler to hand the microphone off to someone else. When we decided to let someone else do it, we landed on Jasper because we needed someone who people recognised and could bring immediate energy. For future episodes I would love to do one where I switch roles with another MCTV segment. I could take over MCTV Cribs while Maya McComb tries editing or hosting. If we continued Hot Seat on the Street, it would be fun if I could drive the cart or run alongside it while also trying to interview one of the teachers.
Q: Do you have a favorite episode of Tony Tries?
A: My favorite episode is Tony Tries Principal because I got to give Noah [Rocheford] a detention and I learned some secrets that didn’t make the final cut.
Q: If you could go back and redo any episode of Tony Tries, which would it be and why?
A: The episode I would want to redo is the Cafeteria Staff episode, for a number of reasons. Since it was my first episode, I was trying to lay the groundwork and get a feel for what I wanted to do. First, during the interview, I was in the shot and looking at my phone a lot for the quotations which didn’t look professional. Second, there wasn’t a proper intro so it jumped from me leaving the introduction to standing with the head chef. This transition felt random and out of place. Lastly the audio was a mess because it goes from dead silence to a loud cafeteria which doesn’t make the episode flow.
[Frame from Tony Tries Working in The Cafeteria]
Thank you to Anthony Cascone for providing a deeper insight into the show and check out his favorite episode where he takes over the role of principal of Moreau for a day.