To the delight of “Victorious” fans across Northeastern, stars Liz Gillies and Matt Bennett visited Blackman Auditorium March 25 for a moderated Q&A presented by the Council for University Programs, or CUP, delving into both the Nickelodeon television show and their individual careers.
Gillies and Bennett, who played Jade West and Robbie Shapiro on “Victorious,” respectively, have pursued their own paths since the show ended in 2013. Gillies became known for her portrayal of Fallon Carrington in “Dynasty” and recently as Audrey in the off-Broadway revival of “Little Shop of Horrors,” while Bennett found success through his DJ night tour “Party101 with Matt Bennett.”
“This year, the theme of Springfest is disco and parties,” said Anna Eaton, a third-year marine biology major, CUP’s director of showcases and the Q&A’s moderator. “We thought somebody from ‘Victorious’ would be a really good idea. We wanted to do a reunion, and that’s why we went with Liz and Matt. We thought they would be a really good duo to bring to campus.”
CUP proved itself right — the moment Gillies and Bennett stepped onto the stage, the audience went into a frenzy.
The audience learned all about Gillies and Bennett’s recent work; Gillies revealed “Little Shop of Horrors” as one of her dream roles.
“I mean, I would play Meg in Hercules,” Gillies said, which caused a resounding cheer. “Right now I would certainly rather act on stage. I’m really enjoying being in front of a live audience — like you guys — every night.”
Bennett explained his inspiration for Party101 to the audience, which began with him hearing a Hilary Duff song called “Candy Pop” playing in a Los Angeles venue. He realized he wanted to create a fun experience that would evoke early 2000s nostalgia, including Nickelodeon and Disney hits. This spring, he has 27 shows planned across the U.S.
“To have this amazing second life has just been so affirming and wonderful,” Bennett said. “I love that it’s something positive, too, that I can do. I get to travel, and everyone has a blast. I’m gonna give my hundred percent every night that I do it.”
Eaton said she had been trying to attend “Party101” for years with no luck, to which Bennett promised her she would be on the guest list for his next show.
Naturally, the main topic of interest was “Victorious.” Gillies and Bennett discussed their favorite lines, items they took from set, auditions and their creative involvement in the show. Neither of them expected “Victorious” to have such a lasting impact, but they partially credited it to how the show made up its own terms, some of which Gillies and Bennett still use. In an episode of “Dynasty,” Gillies calls another character a “gank,” even though it is not a real word.
“I think [social media] created this perpetual sense of ‘now’ around Victorious, not to mention the fact that everybody went on to fabulous careers and successes,” Bennett said. “So, no, I had no idea that I’d be at Northeastern on a random Tuesday talking about it 15, 16 years later.”
They also shared how they dealt with success and their strong desire to be taken seriously as teen actors.
“I think when you’re young, you’re always trying to be older and be seen as an adult,” Gillies said. “I look back on those funny little discussions we would have in my dressing room pretending that we’re these 25-year-olds when really, we’re just kids on Nickelodeon. So, enjoy where you’re at, and that’s in college too; enjoy where you’re at in college, that goes fast.”
Bennett spoke about how lucky he felt to be able to work on “Victorious” and how even though it was hyper-stimulating for a 17-year-old, he came out feeling like a professional.
“‘Victorious’ was the opportunity of my lifetime, but the biggest privilege of my life was getting to work with people like Liz, people like Ariana [Grande], people like Leon [Thomas III] — real professionals. I learned so much stuff from it,” Bennett said.
The two stars reassured Northeastern students by offering advice about the importance of doing things on your own and absorbing as much as possible from different experiences.
“Go learn the other person’s job, go find out what other people are doing no matter what field you’re in,” Gillies said. “Knowledge is power.”
“I know that it seems daunting sometimes, but really, I do find that different is always better,” Bennett said. “Whatever you guys can bring to the table that’s unique and different, that’s gonna set you guys off so well for the future. You guys are at a great school for it.”
Shockingly, Bennett and Gillies revealed that they didn’t actually like each other in season one of “Victorious.” Gillies admitted she gradually grew to like him, but at the time, he was a little too much for her. He agreed, reminiscing back to when he would randomly take off his shirt to be like Gibby from “iCarly.”
Funny behind-the-scenes moments like these, from late-night laughing fits to hilarious inside jokes, brought the entire “Victorious” cast together. They recalled one of their favorite episodes where they get stuck in an RV and reminisced on how it was a real bonding experience.
Toward the end of the main Q&A, Gillies and Bennett competed to see who knew the most “Victorious” trivia. They covered obscure topics from the song Robbie wrote for the Diddly-Bops to general questions like the name of Jade’s boyfriend, with Gillies slyly responding “Tori” before quickly changing her answer to Beck, causing havoc in the crowd.
The trivia closed with chatter about iconic “Victorious” quotes before Eaton moved on to the audience Q&A. One audience member asked how Gillies and Bennett transitioned to projects for an older audience, to which both of them had a similar response: They dived headfirst into them.
“‘Victorious’ sort of did skew towards the older side of things, and I think that’s one of the reasons why it still feels kind of fresh,” Bennett said. “I want an audience of 8 to 80. I want to do stuff that appeals to everybody and everybody can come to and enjoy.”
Another audience member asked what Bennett and Gillies spent their “Victorious” money on, to which Gillies responded “rent.”
“Honestly, that’s all that was for — that’s all that covered,” Gillies said, causing “oohs” from the audience.
“We don’t get residuals for ‘Victorious,’” Bennett said. “That’s one thing I think is really important. Especially now, these programs go so far and wide. For these kids, getting more protections in place — I think it’s something we could do to help safeguard future generations of actors.”
As time was running out, the crowd began shouting again, asking for Bennett and Gillies to sing. Among the shouts, one person yelled, “I think we all sing,” referencing the iconic “Victorious” interview.
“Ultimately, she was right — we all sing, and she’s good,” Bennett said.
After making the audience sing trending TikTok sounds with him, including the “Defying Gravity” riff, Bennett grabbed a Sikowitz coconut and ran through the crowd until finally presenting it to an individual in the audience. The audience cheered as Bennett and Gillies left the stage, though Bennett did come back for a bit to give the audience a box of vegetables.
Emma Albert, a fourth-year public health major and the lucky girl who received the coconut, recounted how unreal the entire experience was, especially at her first-ever CUP event.
“I thought they were gonna give it to the moderator, but the next thing I know, I feel his hand on my shoulder and I’m being presented with the coconut,” Albert said. “I honestly think I blacked out a little bit. He called me the coconut queen, which was very eventful.”
Though the rest of the audience didn’t get their own coconuts, they wholeheartedly enjoyed the Q&A.
“They seem so friendly, and they had a sibling dynamic too — just so fun,” said Shrutika Kumar, a third-year data science and health science combined major. “I feel like it was a really good call to have them both because I think one on their own would have been fantastic, but the two of them were like the icing on the cake.”
“Victorious was my childhood, and I love them as actors and actresses,” said Kaci Fisher, a first-year business administration and criminal justice combined major. “My favorite part was probably them talking about their favorite ‘Victorious’ episode and just the advice that they gave for aspiring actresses and actors. Literally childhood came true.”
In an interview with The Huntington News, Bennett spoke about the significance of coming to Northeastern with his father, an alum who graduated in 1974 and sat in the crowd during the Q&A.
“We’ve driven through Northeastern a number of times since I was a little kid, so it really meant a lot, especially because I never went to college,” Bennett said. “To be able to come and look cool in front of my dad was really important and special to me, but also, I just think there’s more stuff that I kind of want to impart to the next generation of kids. I’m hoping that maybe people learned a little something about the entertainment industry and learned about all this, made it a little less scary, a little less intimidating, made them feel empowered.”
