In Terrence McNally’s MASTER CLASS, Maria Callas travels between her present and past, from her Juilliard master classes to the vital worlds of the operas she loved and gave voice to. In this blog, we hope to offer a sort of Baedeker travel guide of opera, to introduce you to the operas and arias with which Maria was so familiar and which are referenced in McNally's MASTER CLASS. We've also included video and photo links to Callas’ own performances.
- DON CARLOS ~ Guiseppe Verde
Maria Callas, DON CARLOS: O don fatale, March 16, 1962, Hamburg.
Eboli's aria, O don fatale, is from Don Carlos by Giuseppe Verdi. Eboli has been condemned to exile or the nunnery for her betrayal of Elizabeth, her Queen and friend, for her advances toward Carlos, Elizabeth's beloved. Eboli curses her beauty, which she blames for all of her troubles, and swears to save Carlos from the imprisonment that has resulted from her betrayal.
- CARMEN ~ Georges Bizet
Georges Bizet's CARMEN is one of the best loved and most frequently performed operas in the repertory today. The gypsy girl Frasquita entertains some officers at a country inn with her dancing and singing. Micaela is a young girl from Don Jose's village in CARMEN.
Maria Callas, CARMEN: Habanera in Covent Garden, 1962.
Maria Callas, CARMEN: Seguedille in Hamburg, 1962.
Callas & Di Stefano, CARMEN: final scene in the Royal Festival Hall, London, 1973.
Marias Callas, CARMEN: Habanera in Tokyo, 1974.
- GOTTERDAMMERUNG ~ Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner's GOTTERDAMMERUNG is one of the most famous tragic operas; in it we witness both the curse which lies on gold and the sacredness of true love. During a prelude three Norns, the goddesses of destiny, are seen weaving the threads of the world's fate.
- LA SONNAMBULA ~ Vincenzo Bellini
Maria Callas, LA SONNAMBULA: Ah, non credea mirarti in 1965. (A video from the DVD, THE CALLAS CONVERSATIONS.)
Vincenzo Bellini's LA SONNAMBULA is a simple village story of a rich farmer named Elvino who has taken a poor orphan, Amina, as his wife. In the aria, Ah non credea mirati, Amina is sleepwalking while praying for Elvino, who has taken his engagement ring from her because he believed her to be unfaithful.
- LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR ~ Gaetano Donizetti
In Gaetano Donizetti’s LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR, Lucia has been persuaded by her brother to marry a man who will save the family from financial ruin. After a series of tragic events, Lucia is at last brought to madness and death.
La Callas nella "Lucia di Lammermoor" alla Scala nel 1954 (photo)
- NORMA ~ Vincenzo Bellini
NORMA is the eighth of Vincenzo Bellini's ten operas. Time: the Roman Occupation, about 50 B.C. Place: Gaul. NORMA dramatizes the clash between Druids and Romans in the first century B.C. Gaul, centering on the story of a secret and forbidden love between a Druid priestess and a Roman general.
Maria Callas NORMA, Paris, 1958. (video)
Maria Callas: NORMA, 1964. (video)
7 Dicembre 1955 - "Norma" alla Scalla (photo)
La Callas in Norma a Parigi nel 1965 (photo)
- SUOR ANGELICA ~ Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini’s SUOR ANGELICA tells the story of a nun lamenting the news of the death of her illegitimate child and her prayer to be reunited with him in heaven.
- MACBETH ~ Guiseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi’s MACBETH was the first of his Shakespeare operas, known for its bold and imaginative instrumental music. In the aria Vieni! t'affretta, Lady Macbeth has just read Macbeth’s letter informing her of the witches’ prophesies.
Maria Callas, MACBETH: Nel di della vittoria in Hamburg. May 15, 1959. Nicola Rescigno conductor
- FANCIULLA DEL WEST ~ Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini's FANCIULLA DEL WEST is set in California during the gold rush. Billy Jackrabbit is a "Red Indian."
- GIANNI SCHICCHI ~ Giacomo Puccini
GIANNI SCHICCHI is a comic Puccini opera, which paints a lively picture of medieval Florence. Rinuccio is a young man in love with Gianni Schicchi's daughter.
- TOSCA ~ Giacomo Puccini
TOSCA is another Puccini opera, set in Rome 1800 against the background of oppressive Austrian rule. In his aria Recondita armonia (Concealed Harmony), Cavaradossi is painting a Madonna for the church which he has based on a woman who prays often at the church. Cavaradossi sings of the differences between the fair Madonna of his painting and the darker beauty of his love, Tosca.
Maria Callas, TOSCA: Act Two, part 6 (Vissi d´arte)
- FIDELIO ~ Ludwig van Beethoven
FIDELIO is Ludwig van Beethoven's only complete opera and is a noted example of his ability to match the high moral tone of the libretto with the music of great nobility. The character of Fidelio is actually a disguised woman named Leonore.
- IL PIRATA ~ Vincenzo Bellini
Vincenzo Bellini's IL PIRATA is set in Sicily in the mid-13th century. In the opera, Ernesto has forced Imogene into marriage by threatening her father’s life. Despite her enforced marriage and the presumed loss of Gualtiero in a shipwreck, her love for Gualtiero endures.
- LA BOHEME ~ Giacomo Puccini
The character of Mimi is a seamstress in Giacomo Puccini’s LA BOHEME; she has been re-imagined in the Tony award-winning musical, RENT.
- LA TRAVIATA ~ Guiseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi's LA TRAVIATA is one of his most popular operas and an intimate work, dealing with the conflict between the 'real' world of human emotion and the 'false' world of society life.
Maria Callas, LA TRAVIATA (audio link)
Additional Photo Galleries:
LIFE: The Diva’s Diva, Onstage
We hope you enjoyed the tour!
