Friday, July 22, 2011
I love Tyne Daly. I've said it. Accept it. Move on.
Terrence McNally is often brilliant (I'd say always, but, you know, Catch Me if You Can is so unfortunate...), and Master Class is not exception. More brilliant than the script is Tyne Daly's performance. I don't know anything of Maria Callas the woman (see Three Hotels review where I felt I needed more context), but McNally provides us with all the information we need to know - and when interpreted by such a strong, gifted and skillful performer as Ms. Daly, there really is no escaping the who, when, how, or why of this piece. Ms. Daly is witty, charming, cunning, and contemptuous. Her words move us, but not nearly as much as a look or a pursing of the lips. Such subtlety can easily be lost in the houses of Broadway, but her face is so expressive and her presence so much larger than life, there is no mistaking the minutia of her performance. I was entralled. I was charmed. I remembered everything I despise about acting classes. And I was giddy with the thrill of being in the habitation of such a high degree of theatrical skill.
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