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Master Class
Master Class is a pyrotechnical theater—fireworks in a contained space where Maria Callas is brought back to life in Sturm und Drang. Inspired by a series of master classes the great diva conducted at Juilliard toward the end of her career, this drama puts Maria Callas at center stage again as she coaxes, prods, and inspires students—"victims" as she calls them—into giving the performances of their lives while revealing her own. As she slips off into memories, we experience her days at La Scala, her marriage to Meneghini, and her great doomed love for Aristotle Onassis. But the dazzling theatricality comes from Callas's emotional explosions, her cutting wit, and the soaring music as each student sings an aria that exposes the Divina's vulnerabilities … and her genius.
62 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
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377 people want to read
About the author
Terrence McNally
104 books32 followersTerrence McNally was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. Described as "the bard of American theater" and "one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced," McNally was the recipient of five Tony Awards. He won the Tony Award for Best Play for Love! Valour!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
October 28, 2019
Fabulous.
The “plot”: Maria Callas holds a master class on singing, where she picks apart her students while reliving her own career.
I am in awe of how McNally creates an engaging evening at the theatre – along with engaging characters – in a few strokes. If someone asked me if I wanted to see a play about a class, my likely answer would be no. McNally, however, proves that, in the right hands, any subject can become brilliant.
Wow do I want to see this performed. Highly recommended.
The “plot”: Maria Callas holds a master class on singing, where she picks apart her students while reliving her own career.
I am in awe of how McNally creates an engaging evening at the theatre – along with engaging characters – in a few strokes. If someone asked me if I wanted to see a play about a class, my likely answer would be no. McNally, however, proves that, in the right hands, any subject can become brilliant.
Wow do I want to see this performed. Highly recommended.
November 21, 2008
Are we really missing something when we read a play, as opposed to watching a performance of it? Maybe. Then again, maybe not. I suppose it depends on the richness of the text itself, and whether the characters, stage direction, and dialogue are so vivid that you can actually see the performance in your head. With this in mind, I must say I really enjoyed reading Terrence McNally's 1995 play Master Class. It played beautifully in my imagination.
Unfortunately, I've never seen an actual performance of any of McNally's play, but I hope to do so when his next play opens on Broadway. But I have read another one of his plays, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune and enjoyed that play as well.
Master Class is an altogether different piece for McNally because its main protagonist was a real person. The character? La Divina, the legendary opera star Maria Callas. McNally based Master Class on the vocal classes she coached at Julliard toward the end of her life.
Let's not mince words...on the surface, McNally's Maria Callas is a first-class, grade A, all-around bitch. She's self-absorbed, she's narcissistic, she's intensely critical of her students, she's demanding, she's ruthless...she's even human.
The play is simple..Maria Callas holds private vocal lessons for three music students (two women, one man). And that's it. On the surface, at least.
McNally's Callas expects her students to know exactly what she expects, how they are to improve according to her standards, no matter how vague her instructions are. Callas has set her standards skyward and expects nothing but perfection.
In between her brutal criticism, her pontification, her tearing down the confidence of her students, Callas relives her key events in her life through her imagination, which sort of serve as a peephole into her psyche. Her first performance, the jealousy she felt from her former fellow performers, the abortion she had at baby daddy Aristotle Onassis's insistence (even though he originally told her he would love the child she would bear him, if she ever bore him a child, but never her). Perhaps the most vicious revelation is from Callas's final student, who reveals out loud that, after 10 years as a renown opera diva, Callas has lost her voice and is jealous of her students--for they have what she herself will never have again.
McNally's Callas is so complex--you hate her on one page and completely empathize with her on the next.
The published play features a series of photographs from the original Broadway production of Master Class, with Zoe Caldwell portraying Callas. But also of note is that Caldwell's replacement was none other than Patti LuPone. Both performers earned rave reviews during the play's original Broadway run.
Now if only there were a revival...After all it's been almost ten years. Isn't it time? I think so. I just hope it lives up to my imagination...
whatbillsbeendoin.blogspot.com
Unfortunately, I've never seen an actual performance of any of McNally's play, but I hope to do so when his next play opens on Broadway. But I have read another one of his plays, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune and enjoyed that play as well.
Master Class is an altogether different piece for McNally because its main protagonist was a real person. The character? La Divina, the legendary opera star Maria Callas. McNally based Master Class on the vocal classes she coached at Julliard toward the end of her life.
Let's not mince words...on the surface, McNally's Maria Callas is a first-class, grade A, all-around bitch. She's self-absorbed, she's narcissistic, she's intensely critical of her students, she's demanding, she's ruthless...she's even human.
The play is simple..Maria Callas holds private vocal lessons for three music students (two women, one man). And that's it. On the surface, at least.
McNally's Callas expects her students to know exactly what she expects, how they are to improve according to her standards, no matter how vague her instructions are. Callas has set her standards skyward and expects nothing but perfection.
In between her brutal criticism, her pontification, her tearing down the confidence of her students, Callas relives her key events in her life through her imagination, which sort of serve as a peephole into her psyche. Her first performance, the jealousy she felt from her former fellow performers, the abortion she had at baby daddy Aristotle Onassis's insistence (even though he originally told her he would love the child she would bear him, if she ever bore him a child, but never her). Perhaps the most vicious revelation is from Callas's final student, who reveals out loud that, after 10 years as a renown opera diva, Callas has lost her voice and is jealous of her students--for they have what she herself will never have again.
McNally's Callas is so complex--you hate her on one page and completely empathize with her on the next.
The published play features a series of photographs from the original Broadway production of Master Class, with Zoe Caldwell portraying Callas. But also of note is that Caldwell's replacement was none other than Patti LuPone. Both performers earned rave reviews during the play's original Broadway run.
Now if only there were a revival...After all it's been almost ten years. Isn't it time? I think so. I just hope it lives up to my imagination...
whatbillsbeendoin.blogspot.com
January 27, 2015
"The only thanks I ask is that you sing properly and honestly. If you do this, I will feel repaid."
Plays with music, I think, are hard to read. Reading the text just doesn't have the same effect as sitting in the theatre and listening to the songs (in this case, arias) being sung before you. So what I did was I YouTubed the various selections in the play and listened to them along with McNally's text as I read. It greatly helped the reading experience and since I don't read Italian, it saved me from butchering that gorgeous language. I wish I had recorded myself trying to pronounce these Italian lyrics...heinous, I tell you, heinous!
Maria Callas is a woman you hear of often when talking about the operatic legends. I imagine she was as brash and annoying and ruthless in her quest for musical honesty as the play makes her out to be. She's a woman of her generation trying to teach another generation HER rules; rules that have probably been thrown out years ago. The master class participants seem like clueless singers in Maria's presence but I can imagine if I were standing in, say, Meryl Streep or Al Pacino's presence and had to perform for them, I would probably be as dumbfounded as the two sopranos and tenor in this play.
I know why the master class setting is needed in the play. There were just so many times when Maria would go into her memory/head space and I just wanted it to be a whole, new play entirely. I wanted to see her husbands and her time at La Scala. Her monologues about her life were just not enough. I wanted more. But overall, the play helped me learn more about Maria Callas and what she might have been like which was probably the main goal of the whole thing. Listening to her singing, I can see why she was as hailed as she was. As the quote on the front cover from the Los Angeles Times says "McNally's love letter to Callas..." You betcha.
My kingdom for a time machine and a comp ticket to go back in time and see a performance on Broadway of this play.
Plays with music, I think, are hard to read. Reading the text just doesn't have the same effect as sitting in the theatre and listening to the songs (in this case, arias) being sung before you. So what I did was I YouTubed the various selections in the play and listened to them along with McNally's text as I read. It greatly helped the reading experience and since I don't read Italian, it saved me from butchering that gorgeous language. I wish I had recorded myself trying to pronounce these Italian lyrics...heinous, I tell you, heinous!
Maria Callas is a woman you hear of often when talking about the operatic legends. I imagine she was as brash and annoying and ruthless in her quest for musical honesty as the play makes her out to be. She's a woman of her generation trying to teach another generation HER rules; rules that have probably been thrown out years ago. The master class participants seem like clueless singers in Maria's presence but I can imagine if I were standing in, say, Meryl Streep or Al Pacino's presence and had to perform for them, I would probably be as dumbfounded as the two sopranos and tenor in this play.
I know why the master class setting is needed in the play. There were just so many times when Maria would go into her memory/head space and I just wanted it to be a whole, new play entirely. I wanted to see her husbands and her time at La Scala. Her monologues about her life were just not enough. I wanted more. But overall, the play helped me learn more about Maria Callas and what she might have been like which was probably the main goal of the whole thing. Listening to her singing, I can see why she was as hailed as she was. As the quote on the front cover from the Los Angeles Times says "McNally's love letter to Callas..." You betcha.
My kingdom for a time machine and a comp ticket to go back in time and see a performance on Broadway of this play.
April 7, 2015
What an amazing play! I haven't seen it onstage, but I have been approached to direct it soon.
Even without the music, the "dialogue" (it's mostly Callas) really sings with its rhythm, its ebb and flow, its highs and lows.
Some may find the languages (mostly Italian, with a smattering of French, German, and Greek) intimidating, but most of it is translated within the script. Some may find the operatic subject matter intimidating, but it is not about opera or singing--it is about a woman (Callas) and her journey to this point in "history." Some may find the classical singing intimidating, but it is not a play about vocal technique and prowess as much as it is a play about how we all approach life and art (or whatever we may do) in the face of so many distractions and disappointments.
My only "criticism" of the play is that the penultimate monologue (over the Macbeth aria) is a little "too-much-all-at-once" with Callas channeling both her husband and her lover. The dramatic impact is duly noted, but there wasn't enough setup.
On a similar note, the final monologue about art and commitment could be taken many different ways, some that could mar the work and some that could elevate it to the sublime. If I direct it I'll aim for the latter.
Even without the music, the "dialogue" (it's mostly Callas) really sings with its rhythm, its ebb and flow, its highs and lows.
Some may find the languages (mostly Italian, with a smattering of French, German, and Greek) intimidating, but most of it is translated within the script. Some may find the operatic subject matter intimidating, but it is not about opera or singing--it is about a woman (Callas) and her journey to this point in "history." Some may find the classical singing intimidating, but it is not a play about vocal technique and prowess as much as it is a play about how we all approach life and art (or whatever we may do) in the face of so many distractions and disappointments.
My only "criticism" of the play is that the penultimate monologue (over the Macbeth aria) is a little "too-much-all-at-once" with Callas channeling both her husband and her lover. The dramatic impact is duly noted, but there wasn't enough setup.
On a similar note, the final monologue about art and commitment could be taken many different ways, some that could mar the work and some that could elevate it to the sublime. If I direct it I'll aim for the latter.
December 26, 2019
It has been forever since I read a play, and a friend recommended this one AND the library had it. Win. Conclusion: I should read more plays. As an opera diva gives a master class, she tears apart her students while reliving--and rewriting--her own history. A tightly constructed work where every word counts. Recommended.
January 17, 2013
(Obviously this was a for-speech read) I had an idea in my head of what this would look like and some of it seemed a little over the top. As a realist and fan of the realist oeuvre (yes I just used that word to be fancy), I thought that Callas's "interactions" with Ari in the middle of the show to be too much. On the other hand, her one-sided conversation with him at the end was much more believable. I think if I were staging this (which I'm not) I would employ different characters as Callas - her in flashbacks would be probably not what the author/director envisioned, but would resonate more with me.
December 21, 2015
A colleague recommended that I read this drama since it refers to Maria Callas' abortion, which her character mentions four pages from the end of the work (on page 59 in this edition) in her "dialogue" with Onassis. While anti-lifers will not appreciate that she deeply regrets having aborted her child, pro-lifers will immediately recognize that Callas' abortion accounts for the character's rough demeanor and seemingly callous (no pun intended) attitude toward the students seeking advice in her master opera class. How unfortunate that the person of Maria Callas was ruined by the destruction of her maternal instinct.
February 25, 2010
One of my favorite McNally works, this play explores the real life of renowned opera diva Maria Callas, a deeply complex and fascinating character who defies easy classification. The play's vicious and skewering wit combines with deep and often painful introspection, creating a riveting portrait of one of opera's greatest treasures.
December 27, 2014
I read this in preparation for the much anticipated film with Meryl Streep (is there NOTHING she can do?), but with the recent passing of Mike Nichols, I wonder if it will be finished. That said, it is a very interesting play but it lies flat on the page without someone inhabiting the role. Hopefully, the film was completed before Nichols passed away.
April 2, 2015
Years ago I saw the play in NYC. A line stuck in my had "You need a look." Maria Callas as portrayed in this play was quite the character with with and lines stuck in my memory. Was a delightful second read. As with any play, one must have a mind to create your own visualization. That's part of the appeal.
November 22, 2016
Good Play but done before great artist is an A--hole but we have sympathy. Callas is Myopic and a little to charactured. A lot more could be done with this character but it was a good play worth reading much more likley needs to be seen since opera singing is a big part of the play and you really can't play that part in your head.
March 5, 2017
Great play, just could see why it would be difficult to produce in local theatre - - an actress is needed that could have the presence of Callas and then three supporting cast members who are able to sing opera. I would like to see it. Unfortunately, the HBO production that was to star Meryl Streep was shelved due to the death of the intended director, Mike Nichols.
August 5, 2010
There are no words to say just how deeply this impressed me. What an incredible play, and witty too. I must read this one much much more often. Yes, I think this will be very precious to me, not just because it was such a fantastic gift. (Thanks again Ruby!) Can't wait to see this live in March.
July 14, 2011
I wish the three students were fleshed out a bit more. That having been said, Callas is larger than life in this play (as she always was in life). She is blunt, brutal, and spot-on with her suggestions to them. But, if she tries to say that this is not about her...it's ALWAYS about her.
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August 3, 2011It is a really great play. At first I thought she is too much of a hysteric woman, but you can really see into the character afterwards.
You really have to be a very good acress to be able to play it.
I would love to see it on stage
You really have to be a very good acress to be able to play it.
I would love to see it on stage
May 14, 2009
I wouldn't care to be Ms Callas' student, but loved to be there as she taught! (a la McNally)!
September 7, 2011
great play; sad. i was, however, a bit disappointed by the ending.
May 1, 2012
I literally read this in under an hour today at the library. I LOVED this play.
February 22, 2014
I think there are some great messages in this book for performers and I think the Soprano #2's remarks to the Maria are true with some teachers.
July 5, 2012
Crazy people on display is always entertaining.
November 21, 2012
Some plays are better read than seen. This one I want to see.
January 4, 2013
This play is a masterpiece. I saw it performed and it was life-changing. So many great lines to remember as a performer
March 10, 2015
This play has deepened (and maybe renewed) my love for art and theatre, and the courage that is necessary to succeed.
June 22, 2016
Very powerful view of Maria Callas, not only of her voice but her personality. Spellbinding, even on the printed page. Must be quite an experience to see it acted on stage.
August 4, 2018
Some very brief funny moments, but overall very slow and hard to get through.
May 11, 2019
https://dominicamat.blogspot.com/2019...
Πόσο χαίρομαι όταν έχω την ευκαιρία να διαβάσω βιβλία που να έχουν κάτι το ξεχωριστό να μας πούν. Ένα τέτοιο βιβλίο διάβασα σήμερα καί αποφάσισα να μοιραστώ μαζί σας τις εντυπώσεις που μου άφησε. Ο λόγος για το βιβλίο MC Master Class από τον συγγραφέα Τέρενς Μακ Νάλι. Ένα βιβλίο σχεδόν βιογραφικό αφού έχει βασιστεί σε ένα master class που έγινε πρίν πολλά χρόνια με την εποπτεία της Μαρίας Κάλλας. Θα αναρωτηθείτε εύλογα γιατί θεωρείται σχεδόν βιογραφικό από αυτό καί μόνο γεγονός. Θα σας απαντήσω. Έντεχνα ο συγγραφέας έχει δώσει στην ιστορία καί στην γραφή του βιβλίου ένα θεατρικό χαρακτήρα με πρωταγωνίστρια την σπουδαία αυτήν τραγουδίστρια. Με αυτόν τον τρόπο λοιπόν βλέπουμε τις αντιδράσεις της καί τις σκέψεις σε συνδυασμό με τα συναισθήματα που γεννιούνται μέσα της κατά την διάρκεια εκείνου του σεμιναρίου. Έχει ένα ''εξομολογητικό'' χαρακτήρα από μεριάς της. Για μένα είναι σαν να ανοίγει ένα παράθυρο που μας επιτρέπει να δούμε μέσα στην ψυχή καί στις αναμνήσεις της. Δεν είναι λίγες οι φορές που μπορώ να πώ ότι αφέθηκα στον λόγο της καί προσπάθησα να δώ την απλή γυναίκα πίσω από την δυναμική καί ταλαντούχα γυναίκα. Σίγουρα στο τέλος θα έχετε νιώσει με κάποιο τρόπο παρόντες σε εκείνο το σεμινάριο. Εμένα μου άρεσε πάρα πολύ! Αξίζει να το αναζητήσετε.
Πόσο χαίρομαι όταν έχω την ευκαιρία να διαβάσω βιβλία που να έχουν κάτι το ξεχωριστό να μας πούν. Ένα τέτοιο βιβλίο διάβασα σήμερα καί αποφάσισα να μοιραστώ μαζί σας τις εντυπώσεις που μου άφησε. Ο λόγος για το βιβλίο MC Master Class από τον συγγραφέα Τέρενς Μακ Νάλι. Ένα βιβλίο σχεδόν βιογραφικό αφού έχει βασιστεί σε ένα master class που έγινε πρίν πολλά χρόνια με την εποπτεία της Μαρίας Κάλλας. Θα αναρωτηθείτε εύλογα γιατί θεωρείται σχεδόν βιογραφικό από αυτό καί μόνο γεγονός. Θα σας απαντήσω. Έντεχνα ο συγγραφέας έχει δώσει στην ιστορία καί στην γραφή του βιβλίου ένα θεατρικό χαρακτήρα με πρωταγωνίστρια την σπουδαία αυτήν τραγουδίστρια. Με αυτόν τον τρόπο λοιπόν βλέπουμε τις αντιδράσεις της καί τις σκέψεις σε συνδυασμό με τα συναισθήματα που γεννιούνται μέσα της κατά την διάρκεια εκείνου του σεμιναρίου. Έχει ένα ''εξομολογητικό'' χαρακτήρα από μεριάς της. Για μένα είναι σαν να ανοίγει ένα παράθυρο που μας επιτρέπει να δούμε μέσα στην ψυχή καί στις αναμνήσεις της. Δεν είναι λίγες οι φορές που μπορώ να πώ ότι αφέθηκα στον λόγο της καί προσπάθησα να δώ την απλή γυναίκα πίσω από την δυναμική καί ταλαντούχα γυναίκα. Σίγουρα στο τέλος θα έχετε νιώσει με κάποιο τρόπο παρόντες σε εκείνο το σεμινάριο. Εμένα μου άρεσε πάρα πολύ! Αξίζει να το αναζητήσετε.
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July 4, 2021مسرحية رائعة استمدت من الدروس الموسيقية لمغنية الاوبرا الشهيرة ماريا كالاس في معهد جوليارد في نيويورك بين عامي ٧١-٧٢. هذه الدروس الموسيقية في فن الغناء الاوبرالي تكشف عن شخصية كالاس المعقدة وانهمامها بالتعبير الموسيقي وتقمص الشخصيات بشكل نفسي وعاطفي في الاعمال التي اشتهرت بادائها مثل فيردي، بوشيني، وبيلليني. كالاس كانت تتعامل مع تلاميذها بصرامة تقترن بالتعاطف والتشجيع. المسرحية تبدأ في احد هذه الدروس، تتجلى شخصية كالاس الهوائية والنزقة من المشهد الاول وتبدو للوهلة الاولى وكأنها تعيش في برج عاجي من امجاد الماضي ولكنها رويدا تتحول الى وسيط روحي وفني عندما تلتقي بتلاميذها وتحاول تحفيزهم ليقدموا افضل ما عندهم. تستطرد المسرحية في تيار الوعي الباطن لكالاس بين الحين والحين وهي تتذكر ايام مجدها والمعاناة التي مرت بها لبلوغ القمة: ايام الفقر في اثينا، تحولها من مغنية اوبرا بدينة الى امرأة رشيقة مما ادى الى تدهور صوتها، علاقتها مع اوناسيس ومعاملته المجحفة لها. عندما ينتهي الدرس تخاطب كالاس الجمهور بان لا شيء اهم من الفن وهو الغاية الاسمى من عمل الفنان، ليس الشهرة ولا المجد ولكن التعبير عن المعاني السامية التي ينشدها المؤلف في عمله. المسرحية رسالة حب لكالاس ولفن الاوبرا عموما ولا اظن ان غير المهتمين بالاوبرا سيجدون فيها الكثير من المتعة.
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September 24, 2021What is it like to read this book as though it is an actual master class and you as the reader are trying to take away info for your craft? Well, here are a few quotes that I’d take notes on:
“Just listen. Everything is in the music.”
“Maria: So, let me get this straight. You don’t know where you are, you are about to paint a portrait but you don’t know of whom, and yet you are about to sing an aria. No wonder people don’t like opera.
…
Maria: it’s 10 AM on a beautiful spring morning. You made love all night to Floria Tosca, the most beautiful woman in Rome. And now you’re painting another woman, and observe, as she prays to the Blessed mother. They’re both beautiful, but it’s Tasker‘s body against yours you feel. Now sing.
Tenor: it doesn’t say anything about 10 AM or spring or Tosca‘s body in the score.
Maria: It should say it in your imagination. Otherwise you have notes, nothing but notes. Sing!”
And this one:
“An entrance is everything. It’s how we present ourselves to an audience. It’s how we present ourselves in life.”
“Just listen. Everything is in the music.”
“Maria: So, let me get this straight. You don’t know where you are, you are about to paint a portrait but you don’t know of whom, and yet you are about to sing an aria. No wonder people don’t like opera.
…
Maria: it’s 10 AM on a beautiful spring morning. You made love all night to Floria Tosca, the most beautiful woman in Rome. And now you’re painting another woman, and observe, as she prays to the Blessed mother. They’re both beautiful, but it’s Tasker‘s body against yours you feel. Now sing.
Tenor: it doesn’t say anything about 10 AM or spring or Tosca‘s body in the score.
Maria: It should say it in your imagination. Otherwise you have notes, nothing but notes. Sing!”
And this one:
“An entrance is everything. It’s how we present ourselves to an audience. It’s how we present ourselves in life.”
July 18, 2021
I had a great opportunity to see this show a long time ago in London.
I have to admit that I still carry it with me in my memory, and that in addition to great acting, I noticed that the text is phenomenal. This is a story primarily about the loss, the greatest love, voice, youth - something we all face in our lives. It is a painful fact to accept that everything has its end, no matter how successful you are, that the closest people can turn their back on us.
This is also a story of discipline, passionate love, and absolute commitment to what we love most, but that it all comes at a great price in this imperfect world.
Drama is touching, enchanting and sincere - like Callas herself.
I have to admit that I still carry it with me in my memory, and that in addition to great acting, I noticed that the text is phenomenal. This is a story primarily about the loss, the greatest love, voice, youth - something we all face in our lives. It is a painful fact to accept that everything has its end, no matter how successful you are, that the closest people can turn their back on us.
This is also a story of discipline, passionate love, and absolute commitment to what we love most, but that it all comes at a great price in this imperfect world.
Drama is touching, enchanting and sincere - like Callas herself.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews