4 1/2 Questions with Matthew Golden

At PA On Stage, we’re always trying to find out more about the people who make up the theatre community.  So, we came up with our 4 1/2 Questions.  That’s 4 specific, getting-to-know questions from the PA On Stage team — and one partial question that our interviewees can ‘make their own.’

This week? 4 ½ Questions with actor, director, and comedy improviser Matthew Golden, who will be appearing  in Oyster Mill Playhouse’s production of Moonlight and Magnolias, which opens this weekend and runs through May 29.

1. What is a film that you are a little embarrassed to admit you haven't seen?

Since it's connected to the production I'm currently in, I have to say I'm embarrassed not having seen "Gone with the Wind" prior to being cast in Moonlight and Magnolias at Oyster Mill.  Now having watched it in full I can see why it was such an event in 1939 and why the film endures today. Vivien Leigh is absolutely mesmerizing as Scarlett O'Hara.

2. What fictional character do you identify with most, and why?

Laurie Strode. She's just this ordinary girl who suffers a terrible trauma. And she survives, and survives, and survives.  Characters like Laurie show us how to overcome the boogeymen, literal or figurative, and confront what we can't control.  

3. What piece of clothing do you own that you really should get rid of, but just can’t?

Last year I bought a plain green baseball cap to wear in a show. The hat became a security blanket to me both in and out of character. Another character beats the hell out of it during an emotional moment and now it is held together by mere threads. I keep it because that was the first time I played a large role and that character stayed with me for long time. And it's not just because I still wear the hat!

4. If you had a coat of arms, what three things would be on it?

I asked for help on this one! My college friends suggested a list of things and from that I've settled on 1) A jack o' lantern because I love Halloween and autumn and I'm a huge horror fan, 2) A playbill to represent my work in and support of the arts and 3) A cocktail because...well I did say they were my college friends, right?

1/2

 What celebrity can’t you

-- believe is gone?  Betty White. Really any of the four Golden Girls. They were just such vibrant figures. If you watch reruns and interviews they just fill up the screen. I was never able to meet any of the girls but I still feel like I know them all. 

For more information about Moonlight and Magnolias, click the link below.