Bucharest National Opera presents, on February 24 and 25, from 18:30, the premiere of “Callas – Oana Pellea” by Terrence McNally, an original production, at the intersection of theater and opera, which explores the multiple facets of the personality of soprano Maria Callas.
The famous soprano Maria Callas was nicknamed “La Divina”
Terrence McNally's piece follows a masterclass given by the diva at the Juilliard School of Music in New York in the last years of her life. The translation, adaptation and direction bear the signature of Laurentiu Rusescu, and the musical direction belongs to the conductor Daniel Jinga.
The format of the course becomes the pretext for a surprising discovery. While giving technical pointers to young aspiring bel canto careers, Maria Callas reveals herself and self-analyses. He does it with painful honesty, exploring the ambiguous relationship with celebrity, with the endless expectations of the public, with the compromises he has made throughout his brilliant career.
Each student has a different opportunity for introspection. Through the eyes of naive Sophie, Maria Callas relives her own doubts and fears from her youth. Sharon – the ambitious one – causes her to reevaluate her impossible standards of perfection. And tenor Tony reminds him how he loved music above all else, before fame became a burden.
The interpretation of Oana Pellea – of remarkable dramatic and psychological complexity – captures all the nuances of Maria Callas' personality: rigorous and demanding in her artistic expression, but also romantic, vulnerable and deeply human. The Romanian actress manages to play the Greek diva without imitating her, to bring her legendary aura back to the stage through an original creation.
The audience becomes the witness of an emotional autopsy, which dissects the relationship between art and the artist. An x-ray of success turned into captivity, perfection turned into obsession. Through the confessions of Maria Callas, the play questions how high a talented performer can rise in the name of musical art. And if the price of fame is somehow not too high.
Don't miss the opportunity to discover the unknown facets of the most famous soprano of the last century, in a magnetic one-woman show.
Tickets online and at the Bucharest National Opera box office.
The production is made in collaboration with the independent company WonderTheatre. The founder of WonderTheatre, Andrei Boncea, is on the second meeting with the story of the legendary soprano. In 2001, he participated as an executive producer in the production in Romania of the international production “Callas Forever” directed by Franco Zeffirelli, with Fanny Ardant and Jeremy Irons.
The film's costume designer, Alessandro Lai, also designs Oana Pellea's costume in Masterclass.
