Francesca Ling and Joan Almedilla (Photo by Palma Photography)
Reviewed by Isadora Swann
Sierra Madre Playhouse
Through March 9
A mashup of documentary style theatre with Brechtian audience awareness, Terrence McNally’s Master Class, directed by Tim Dang, explores the inner life of opera star Maria Callas. What’s behind the curtain? We find not a wizard but a woman who wields cruel perfectionism as her sword.
The second the pre-show announcement starts, the fourth wall has fallen. Addressing audience members as “Juilliard Students” and welcoming them to their master class is immediately intriguing.
The lights stay half raised in the house as the accompanist (Josh Foy) ambles onstage with an endearing awkwardness and casual air that belies a typical day in the office. But this is no office — it’s a classroom, and not long after this, the teacher, Maria Callas (Joan Almedilla), struts onstage. Her presumptuous confidence and piercing eyes are directed outward. ‘No applause’ she announces.
This isn’t your typical day in the theater.
Soon, her unabashedly harsh mode of critique shifts toward her students whom she is trying to mold into perfect opera singers. As the lessons proceed, she slowly unravels, returning to the moments of her childhood and early career that made her an iconic figure in the operatic world, and revealing to us her insecurities.
Here’s the rub. While an opera enthusiast might be delighted by the many detailed references to performances past, those among us who are not familiar with the genre can feel somewhat left out. Also, as staged in the intimate Sierra Madre Playhouse with a warm wood-paneled set, the loud sound effects feel out of place, and the direct addresses go on a little longer than needed.
The actors portraying the students perform beautifully, and their various operatic performances are the highlights of the show. But I left feeling berated and ordered about by Callas like one of her pupils. The show ends with a lecture about the importance of the arts, a message much needed in today’s world. And yet, leaving the theatre, one wishes this show would practice what it preached.
Sierra Madre Playhouse, 87 W. Sierra Madre Blvd, Sierra Madre, Fri.-Sat., 8 pm, Sun., 4 pm; thru March 9. https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=259983. Running time: 2 hours, with a 15 minute intermission.
