Master Class pushes back schedule by 3 weeks

Manhattan Theatre Club's (MTC) upcoming Broadway revival of Terrence McNally's Master Class, directed by Stephen Wadsworth, has pushed back its schedule by three weeks and will now run from 14 Jun - 14 Aug 2011, with opening night set for 7 Jul 2011.

Master Class was originally scheduled to open at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on 21 Jun 2011, following previews from 24 May, and play a limited enagement through to 24 Jul 2011.

The three week delay is due to the second extension of MTC's World premiere of David Lindsay-Abaire's new play Good People which was originally scheduled to close at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on 24 Apr 2011, but is now performing through to 29 May 2011.

Terrence McNally's award-winning play about Maria Callas takes us to one of her famous Master Class where, late in her own career, she challenges the next generation to make the same sacrifices and dare to rise to the same heights she did, making her the most celebrated, the most reviled and the most controversial singer of her times.

Directed by Stephen Wadsworth, the play will star Tony and Emmy Award winner Tyne Daly as 'Maria Callas' and Olivier Award-nominee Sierra Boggess (Love Never Dies) as 'Sharon,' a singer in one of Maria Callas' Master Class.

Additional casting afor the Broadway production is still to be announced.

The creative team for Master Class includes Thomas Lynch (scenic design), Martin Pakledinaz (costume design), David Lander (lighting design), and Jon Gottlieb (sound design).

The Broadway premiere of Master Class played at the John Golden Theatre from 26 Oct 1995 - 29 Jun 1997, and starred Zoe Caldwell as 'Maria Callas' in a Tony Award winning performance. Like its upcoming revival, the Broadway premiere also played at the Kennedy Center before arriving on Broadway.

Manhattan Theatre Club's previous productions of McNally's work include 'Frankie and Johnnie in the Clair de Lune' (1987), 'The Lisbon Traviata '(1989), 'Lips Together, Teeth Apart' (1991), which became one of the longest-running hits in MTC's history, and 'Love, Valour, Compassion!' (1994), which transferred to Broadway and received the Tony Award for Best Play.