Lisa Anne Bailey as Maria Callas in the Reston Community Players’ production of Master Class. Photo by Traci J. Brooks Photography/Courtesy of Reston Community Players
Where and When
“Master Class” presented by Reston Community Players at Reston Community Center, CenterStage, 2310 Colts Neck Road, Reston.
Performances Jan. 15-30. Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 24, at 2 p.m. Tickets: $18-$21.
Call 703-476-4500 or visit http://www.restonco…">www.restoncommunity…
Who could resist a play with the main character described as “the Kardashian of her time,” asked Kate Keifer, co-producer of “Master Class,” the upcoming Reston Community Players production. “Audiences will be blown away” in this Tony Award winning play written by Terrence McNally about diva Maria Callas.
In her time, Maria Calls had a huge personality and led a fascinating life with intense relationships that brought her heartbreak. In one relationship Aristotle Onassis left her for Jacqueline Kennedy, the widow of President John F. Kennedy.
The production is based upon actual classes that Callas taught in the early 1970s. The show combines a theatrical performance and includes three individual musical offerings from local opera singers “with beautiful voices along with area favorite David Rodhe providing musical accompaniment on a grand piano on stage,” said Keifer. The three local opera singers making their debut with the Reston Community Players are Christopher Cosgrove, Rosemarie S. Greger and Molly Pinson Simoneau.
“Master Class” takes place as students enter a music studio at the Juilliard School to appear before Callas seeking her guidance and encouragement. What transpires is far from easy for the students as she is both funny, biting and commanding. The Callas character also withdraws into her private recollections and blistering monologues she shares with the audience about a merciless unforgiving world.
For director Rosemary Hartman, “Terrence McNally has given us some real insight into the life of Callas. Her reputation in the 1950s and ‘60s was that of a real ‘Diva’ who was a troublemaker and someone with whom it was difficult to work. Maria had that need and expected the people with whom she worked to live up to her standards.”
“Maria Callas single-handedly changed the face of opera. She took it from a strictly presentational art form, and was the first opera singer to create an honest dramatic presentation in every role she played,” added Hartman.
Lisa Anne Bailey plays the singular Maria Callas character. “Maria Callas really changed the way opera singers approached their performance - with honest feelings - the true sign of an excellent performance.”
“Master Class” is not just about Maria Callas, but about anyone who aspires to greatness in the performing arts and the sacrifices they make. As the Callas characters says, "The theatre isn't about trying. People don't leave their homes to watch us try. They come to see us do!”