Master Class is a 1995 play by American playwright Terrence McNally , presented as a fictional master class by opera singer Maria Callas near the end of her life, in the 1970s. The play features incidental vocal music by Giuseppe Verdi , Giacomo Puccini , and Vincenzo Bellini . The play opened on Broadway in 1995, with stars Zoe Caldwell and Audra McDonald winning Tony Awards .
19-408: The opera diva Maria Callas , a glamorous, commanding, larger-than-life, caustic, and surprisingly funny pedagogue is holding a singing master class . Alternately dismayed and impressed by the students who parade before her, she retreats into recollections about the glories of her own life and career. Included in her musings are her younger years as an ugly duckling , her fierce hatred of her rivals,
38-514: A new version of the play. An Australian production in 1997 starred Robyn Nevin as Callas. Nevin played the role in Brisbane and Sydney. Amanda Muggleton then played Callas in Adelaide in 1998 and Melbourne in 1999. Muggleton reprised the role in the 2001/02 Australian touring production and won the 2002 Helpmann Award for Best Actress in a Play . Jelisaveta Seka Sablić played Callas in
57-573: Is closely related to that of prima donna . Diva can also refer to a person, especially one in show business , with a reputation for being temperamental or demanding. The word entered the English language in the late 19th century. It is derived from the Italian noun diva , a female deity. The plural of the word in English is "divas"; in Italian, dive [ˈdiːve] . The basic sense of
76-498: Is considered the first cinematic diva, following her breakthrough role in Love Everlasting (1913). An extravagant admiration for divas is a common element of camp culture. Women are often referred to as divas if they are "difficult, temperamental and demanding". Welsh National Opera note that the title emerged in the early 19th century after an increase of female leading sopranos who "almost became goddess-like in
95-454: The Latin word for a goddess. Diva is a name from Roman mythology, and is associated with the nouns divus, diva, which means god, goddess, and the adjective divinius, which means divine or heavenly. It has often been used to refer to a celebrated woman of outstanding talent in the world of opera , theatre , cinema , fashion and popular music . If referring to an actress, the meaning of diva
114-400: The 1996 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding New Play and the 1996 Tony Award for Best Play . Zoe Caldwell won the 1996 Tony Award for Actress in a Play, and Audra McDonald won the 1996 Tony Award for Featured Actress in a Play. The 2011 revival received a 2012 Tony Award nomination, Best Revival of a Play. Diva Diva ( / ˈ d iː v ə / , Italian: [ˈdiːva] ) is
133-582: The 1997 production of the Bitef theater , before touring other Belgrade and Serbian theaters, and Switzerland in 2005. Soprano Radmila Smiljanić was a music supervisor. Sablić was awarded the Miloš Žutić Award for the role. In 2014, Maria Mercedes brought the work to life again in Australia to critical acclaim: "It's an awe-inspiring performance by any measure." She was nominated for a number of awards, winning
152-723: The Green Room Award for Female Performer for Independent Theatre. Her portrayal is the first time in professional theatre that a woman of Greek heritage has played Maria Callas. The production moved to Sydney in August 2015, before returning to Melbourne in September. In 2018 and 2019 a production of Master Class took place in Athens, Greece, at the Dimitris Horn Theatre with Greek actress Maria Nafpliotou in
171-675: The accompanist. Green continued in this role on Broadway until November 1996 and the subsequent US tour. LuPone played the role in the West End production at the Queens Theatre, opening in April 1997 (previews) and Faye Dunaway played the role in the U.S. national tour in 1996. Master Class ran at the Kennedy Center from March 25, 2010 to April 18, 2010, directed by Stephen Wadsworth and starring Tyne Daly as Callas. The play
190-503: The eyes of their adoring public". They also note that the word has been used by the media to name many female politicians and entertainers rather than "just ambitious and assertive like their male counterparts". Many pop stars have been labelled as divas in the media, including Aretha Franklin , Ariana Grande , Beyoncé , Cher , Christina Aguilera , Diana Ross , Tina Turner , and Whitney Houston . Additionally, Madonna and Mariah Carey have been called an "ultimate diva" in
209-469: The original cast featured Zoe Caldwell (as Callas), Audra McDonald (as Sharon), Karen Kay Cody, David Loud , Jay Hunter Morris , and Michael Friel. Patti LuPone (from July 1996) and Dixie Carter (from January 1997) subsequently replaced Caldwell as Callas, Matthew Walley replaced Morris and Alaine Rodin replaced McDonald later in the run. Beginning with LuPone in July 1996, Gary Green starred as Manny,
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#1732787410837228-608: The play, starred Stephanie Beacham as Callas A production in Paris, Master Class – La leçon de chant (the singing lesson) in 1997 starred Fanny Ardant as Callas and was directed by Roman Polanski . It was revived twice starring Marie Laforêt in 2000 and 2008. In 1997, Norma Aleandro played the role of Maria Callas at the Teatro Maipo in Buenos Aires directed by Agustín Alezzo . In 2012, Aleandro and Alezzo did
247-495: The press and have often embraced the title as their media persona. Carey herself noted on a podcast with Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex that today's media "mean you're a successful woman" but also a " bitch " and that "it's not okay for you to be a boss". Musicologist Lily E. Hirsch argues that the phrase may be used in a sexist and racist manner when discussing a woman of color . Multiple female artists and bands have also released albums and songs either titled or containing
266-434: The starring role. The production has also received critical acclaim and by February 2019 counted 125 consecutive sold out performances. Ben Brantley , in his review of the 2011 Broadway revival for The New York Times wrote that, although Master Class is not "a very good play", he felt that Tyne Daly "transforms that script into one of the most haunting portraits I've seen of life after stardom." Master Class won both
285-709: The term "diva" to refer to their female performers. In 2016 they discontinued this term becoming Women in WWE . Milo%C5%A1 %C5%BDuti%C4%87 Award The Miloš Žutić Award is an eminent Serbian award given by the Serbian Union of Dramatists, to actors with notable theatre roles. Presented since 1994, it is named after successful theatre actor Miloš Žutić . The recipients of this accolade include critically and commercially acclaimed performers, including Goran Jevtić , Branislav Lečić , Bojan Žirović , Boris Milivojević , Vojin Ćetković and Nebojša Glogovac , who won
304-622: The term is goddess , the feminine of the Latin word divus (Italian divo ), someone deified after death, or Latin deus , a god. The male form divo exists in Italian and is usually reserved for the most prominent leading tenors, like Enrico Caruso and Beniamino Gigli . The Italian term divismo describes the star-making system in the film industry. In contemporary Italian, diva and divo simply denote much-admired celebrities, especially film actresses and actors, and can be translated as "(film) star". The Italian actress Lyda Borelli
323-859: The unforgiving press that savaged her early performances, her triumphs at La Scala , and her relationship with Aristotle Onassis . It culminates in a monologue about sacrifice taken in the name of art. The play originally was staged by the Philadelphia Theatre Company in March 1995, the Mark Taper Forum and the Kennedy Center . The play premiered on Broadway at the John Golden Theatre on November 15, 1995 and closed on June 29, 1997 after 598 performances and twelve previews. Directed by Leonard Foglia ,
342-645: The word "diva". These include Annie Lennox , En Vogue , Beyoncé and Sarah Brightman . English media personality and businesswoman Gemma Collins is well known for her "diva persona". In 2018, she released a book titled The GC: How to Be a Diva and began starring in her own reality television series Gemma Collins: Diva . In 1998, VH1 debuted its first annual VH1 Divas concert with Mariah Carey, Aretha Franklin, Celine Dion , Gloria Estefan and Shania Twain . Some other artists who performed at later concerts are Whitney Houston, Cher, Tina Turner, Diana Ross and Destiny's Child . From April 1999, WWE used
361-712: Was then revived on Broadway in a Manhattan Theatre Club production at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre , running from June 14, 2011 (previews) to September 4, 2011 for 70 regular performances and 26 previews. Directed by Stephen Wadsworth, the cast featured Tyne Daly as Callas, with Sierra Boggess as Sharon and Alexandra Silber as Sophie. This production transferred to the West End at the Vaudeville Theatre from January to April 2012, with Daly as Callas and Naomi O'Connell as Sharon. A 2010/11 UK touring production of
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