In this Quick Hits, Lecturer in Theater Tory Matsos talks Bruce Springsteen, Judy Dench, and Shakespeare.
What is your favorite play?
I don’t know if I have one. The best answer is probably whichever play I am working on at the moment.
If you were to teach something other than theater, what would it be?
I already often have the opportunity to work with students in other disciplines through my course in Alexander Technique. I’ve had students from RPA, music, and even athletes take that course to help improve a variety of performance skills. So, I’m happy to already have that opportunity to support student work in a variety of areas.
What is your favorite film?
My favorite film is a Tom Hanks film which may be one of his more underappreciated movies, “That Thing You Do.” It is just a really fun, delightful movie.
What is one of your most unpopular opinions?
I don’t know if this is unpopular, but I really find that Shakespeare is best understood by encountering it on its feet, rather than through reading of the text.
What is the best class you took while at Hillsdale?
The Civil War class with Dr. Birzer was really impactful for me, in part because he was so skillful in delivering the course through storytelling, and it resonated so deeply because of that. He had a way of drawing out of you a contribution to the topic.
If you could only listen to one album on loop, what would it be?
It would probably be Bruce Springstein’s “Greatest Hits.”
If you could have dinner with any three people, alive or dead, who would they be? Shakespeare, Judy Dench, and Greg Doran, who is the past Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company. I’d like to hear the three of them talk about Shakespearean performance.
What is one of your most unpopular opinions?
I really find that Shakespeare is best understood by encountering it on its feet, rather than through reading of the text.
What is one thing you wish you learned sooner?
That if you’re truly interested in learning, failure is more useful than success.
What is your favorite thing to do in your free time?
I do a lot of reading and baking, and I’m just generally a bit of a homebody.
If you could add one statue to the Liberty Walk, who would it be?
I would add the 18th-century playwright Friedrich Schiller.
