On Thursday, March 21st, Ms. Lange’s journalism and sophomore honors classes, as well as Ms. Tuli’s AP Literature class, had the opportunity to attend a performance of Master Class at the Temple of Music and Art presented by the Arizona Theatre Company. Set in a classroom at Juilliard, this play follows Maria Callas, an American-Greek soprano, as she leads a series of master classes for aspiring opera singers while reflecting on her own opera journey.
Maria faced multiple struggles throughout her life and career. Some of these struggles include financial hardships during her early years, a tense relationship with her mother, criticism for her vocal style, and her complicated relationship with Aristotle Onassis. Aristotle was one of the wealthiest and most influential of his time; eventually, he ended up having an affair and left Maria for Jackie Kennedy. Later on in Maria’s career, she experienced a decline in her vocal abilities, which led her to withdraw from performing opera.
In the play, Maria is brought to life by Vicki Lewis, who captures her spirit perfectly. Joining her is Kanisha Feliciano as Sharon, Rachel Gold as Sophie, Trent Mills as the stagehand, Victor Robertson as Tony, and Bobby McCoy as Manny. Sharon, Sophie, and Tony were students in the master classes, and Manny was the piano accompanist. The play ran for approximately 2 hours with a 15-minute intermission in between. During the intermission, question cards were passed around to students who wanted to ask certain questions about the play or the actors.
After the play, MJ Okawa, the company manager for the ATC, brought out all the actors to answer questions. Ther
e were no questions answered about the production of the play, however, we learned a lot about the actors and even got some tips from them as well. Rachel Gold’s advice for people trying to pursue a career in professional theatre or acting was, “…to practice. You have to love it because it does require a lot of sacrifice, but if you love it and you do take the time to practice and to study along with having a life, I find that it’s worth it.” She also said, “Doing shows at your school, doing shows outside of school, whatever part of theatre interests you, find out if you love it. Do tech, directing, or take those singing and acting lessons.”
After the Q&A, some fellow students shared their final thoughts on the play. Mia Payette, a fellow Paper Cut editor, said it was, “…really good, I didn’t know what to expect and I don’t know much about her story but it was really fun. The way they reacted with the crowd and just how the actors were very lively, it was nice to watch.” In addition, Kay Gabrick, a senior here at Sahuaro, said, “I’m in the advanced choir at our school so I was excited to learn that the play was going to be about opera. When the woman who played Maria expressed that you have to feel the music, she was correct.” She also added that the “…storytelling in that short amount of time was so amazing and better than some long-running shows I’ve seen.”
In my own opinion, I found the way Master Class was performed was beautiful. The first act was a little slow, with a lot of dialogue and not much teaching or singing, but the second act fully made up for it. The actors played their characters beautifully and the way they interacted with the crowd was great. Even though I’m not into opera or singing, the play kept me very entertained and made me want to watch more. It was an amazing play and I would definitely watch it again. In the end, Master Class left a lasting impression with its amazing performance and insightful advice.
