Virtual Masterclass 2026: Shakespeare Spoken Here
Kiki & David Gindler Performing Arts Center
Moderated by Dakin Matthews
12:00pm-3:00pm Pacific Standard Time
$125 for two 3-hour Zoom sessions
This Academy Class is designed for professional actors at every stage of their career, from those just starting out to seasoned performers looking to refine their craft.
Shakespeare Spoken Here
A two day online class with Dakin Matthews
A combined lecture/demonstration/acting class based on Mr. Matthews' approach to mining the text for the kinds of information that actors need to perform Shakespeare at the highest level of competence.
The first three-hour class will be a lecture/demonstration by Mr. Matthews, analyzing and illustrating his approach, and tracing its roots to Shakespeare’s own statements about what made for good acting and good speaking. The second three hours will use sonnets, monologues, or soliloquies selected and performed by class attendees, to test the method and improve the performances. Students who wish to work on specific texts must be off-book and must have submitted copies of their soliloquies, monologues, or sonnets in advance of the class. Because of time and size constraints, only a few students will be pre-selected. Please indicate if you’d like to be selected to work by emailing academy@antaeus.org.
*Please note, students under 18 require permission from the moderator to take this academy class. If you’re in this category, please reach out to us at academy@antaeus.org.
About Dakin Matthews:
At ANTAEUS: The Wood Demon, Mysteries and Mayhem, Of Mice and Men, The Man Who Had All The Luck, Mercadet, The Liar, The Proof of the Promise, Swansong, King Lear. Broadway: Camelot, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Iceman Cometh, Waitress: The Musical, The Audience, Rocky, The Best Man, A Man for All Seasons, Henry IV. Off-Broadway: Measure for Measure, All’s Well That Ends Well (Shakespeare in the Park); The Winter’s Tale, The Cherry Orchard (Bridge Project); The School for Scandal, The Hostage (Acting Company).
Regional: over 200 productions for (among others) Center Theatre Group, Old Globe, South Coast Rep, California Actors Theatre, Berkeley Rep, Dallas Theatre Center, and various Shakespeare Festivals. Film: over 25 films, including Lincoln, True Grit, Zero Charisma. TV: over 250 episodes, recurring on Desperate Housewives, Gilmore Girls, King of Queens. Also an Emeritus Professor of English, former Juilliard Instructor, Shakespeare scholar, and award-winning playwright, translator, and dramaturge.
