Janet Ulrich Brooks/Photo: Laura Goetsch
RECOMMENDED
Terrence McNally’s 1995 “Master Class” has seen many revivals, often a showcase for a formidable actor in the role of Maria Callas, played by the likes of Tyne Daly, Zoe Caldwell and Patti LuPone. A piece that is revived expressly for the purpose of providing an actor with a vehicle warrants concern about relevance: Is this a story that we need to continue to tell?
With Janet Ulrich Brooks in the role, under Nick Bowling’s heartfelt and purposeful direction, the answer is a resounding yes.
Brooks as Callas is not gratuitous or overblown, less an inflated diva than a woman with standards, who continues to earn, command and own the audience’s respect and undivided attention. Though not a one-woman show, “Master Class” has similar demands. In a transcendent performance without a false moment, Brooks clears every hurdle, with sharp wit and total honesty. From the moment she makes her entrance onto the breathtaking set designed by Arnel Sancianco, Brooks’ Callas dominates the stage with enviable ease, all at once with so much and nothing to prove.
As Manny, Callas’ accompanist, Stephen Boyer is all charm, and his banter with Callas makes a delightful contribution to the evening. All three singers (Molly Hernandez, Keirsten Hodgens, and Eric Anthony Lopez) perform with truth and technique, and each is deeply affecting in their own way. Bowling and his team keep the production simple and smart, with a keen attention to detail that would meet even Callas’ demands. It is far too easy to say that TimeLine’s production is a master class in making art, but it is also true.
Callas is a bold and imperfect teacher, and McNally asks us to question whether the projection of her own experiences onto her wide-eyed students is really to their benefit. Regardless of our answer, Callas’ experiences are very real and very present, a lifetime of navigating “the people who are everywhere in our lives, but don’t wish us well.” In Brooks’ hands, we are swept up, not in the personalities and rivalries, but in Callas’ profound love affair with her “fire” and excellence.
If we really listen, we have much to learn from her. (Erin Shea Brady)
TimeLine Theatre at Stage 773, 1225 West Belmont, (773)327-5252, timelinetheatre.com, $27.50-$56.50. Through December 9.
Related Stories
A Woman's World: A Review of The Audience at TimeLine Theatre Company “The Audience” is a play centered around a series of weekly conversations between Queen Elizabeth II (Janet Ulrich Brooks) and her twelve prime ministers at Buckingham Palace- The Journey to Sisterhood : A Review of A Shayna Maidel at TimeLine Theatre Company While the script sometimes gets in its own way, this TimeLine Theatre production is affecting and engaging thanks in large part to Vanessa Stalling's direction.
- It Takes Time To Be A Man: A Review of Boy at TimeLine Theatre Company TimeLine Theatre Company's poignant drama addresses the limitations and repercussions of our culture's limited perception of gender.
- Broken Keys: A Review of Cardboard Piano at TimeLine Theatre Company What is broken and what can be fixed are essential and uneasy questions in this local premiere from playwright Hansol Jung.
- How Far to Hope: A Review of Oslo at TimeLine Theatre Company and Broadway In Chicago J.T. Rogers’ Tony-Award winning play about the back-channel negotiations of the Oslo Accords in 1993 isn’t naive about its subject but nevertheless contains a glimmer of hope.
- Weight in Soul: A Review of Too Heavy For Your Pocket at TimeLine Theatre Company A new play from Jiréh Breon Holder moves the needle forward on what theater is capable of.
