Graduate Profile: Jason Reskinoff

Jason Resnikoff’s mother watched proudly as her son got stabbed in the back by a vicious murderer. But she wasn’t upset—Resnikoff was playing the Duke of Clarence in a student production of Shakespeare’s Richard III.

Ever since high school, the Columbia College student has been passionate about Shakespeare. To him, Shakespeare is “something essential, something good for the soul—not just an extracurricular activity or a pastime.”

When Resnikoff auditioned as a first-year for a part in King’s Crown Shakespeare Troupe’s production of Macbeth, he did not get it. Instead, he pursued his interest in theater by becoming involved in Barnard’s theater department and in student theater groups such as LateNite Theatre and Chowdah sketch comedy.

The summer before his sophomore year, he worked on perfecting his favorite monologue from King Lear. He did not simply memorize the text—as Resnikoff explained, he “learned it by heart so that the words bubbled out” of him with a certain “emotional rhythm.”

At his next audition, he got the part of Shylock in The Merchant of Venice, which set him on the path toward what he described as a “rewarding and meaningful” theater experience at Columbia. Since then, he has been cast—mostly in the part of the sympathetic villain—in many Shakespeare productions, playing the Duke of Clarence in Richard III, Don John in Much Ado About Nothing, and Hubert in King John.

Last semester, he was cast as King Lear in KCST’s production of King Lear. This was Resnikoff’s most challenging part yet in his theater life, as the play itself was difficult to understand. According to him, the meaning in Shakespeare’s work evolved in his mind similar to the way Michelangelo “released” his sculptures from the marble. “It was a revelation—I finally got it,” he said. “This guy’s touching on truth.”

Aside from what he calls the “visceral and intellectual satisfaction” of theater, Resnikoff has also developed an academic interest in history. His thesis on the history of the Second World War has gained him two honors, the Garrett Mattingly Prize in History and the Chanler Historical Prize. Writing about history requires persuasiveness, according to Resnikoff, who described it as “like being a lawyer of the past.”

Through classes such as Literature Humanities and Contemporary Civilization, Reskinoff has developed his critical-thinking abilities and an appreciation for reading. His interactions with “inspiring” professors, such as history professor Barbara J. Fields, whom he regards as a mentor, have contributed to his development. “Senior year in high school, I wouldn’t have been able to recognize myself today,” he said. “My education here has liberated me.”