MastersHeadshot3.jpg

Stephana in Umberto Giordano's Siberia

"THE SOPRANO MARIE MASTERS, AS THE BELEAGUERED STEPHANA, WAS ARTICULATE AND FERVENT IN 'QUAL VERGOGNA TU PORTI,' THE ROUGH EQUIVALENT OF 'LA MAMMA MORTA,' MADDALENA'S OUTPOURING FROM ANDREA CHÉNIER."
  - Zachary Woolfe, The New York Times

"ALSO FOUND HERE WERE LYRIC AND SPINTO SOLOS, INCLUDING A PAEAN TO SIBERIA, WHERE SHE HAS LEARNED TO LOVE AND FOUND BEAUTY IN NATURE, RADIANTLY SUNG BY MARIE MASTERS, AS STEPHANA."
Bruce-Michael Gelbert, Q onStage

"STEPHANA WAS GLORIOUSLY SUNG BY SOPRANO MARIE MASTERS WHOSE STAR IS ON THE RISE. THE STRANGE AND UNDEVELOPED CHARACTER OF STEPHANA WAS EFFECTIVELY FILLED IN BY THIS FINE YOUNG ARTIST. ... STEPHANA'S ACT III ARIA 'QUAL VERGOGNA TU PORTI,' DIRECTED AT GLEBY, GAVE HER A CHANCE TO OPEN UP HER GENEROUS INSTRUMENT AND SHINE WITH A VARIETY OF EMOTIONS."
- Voce di Meche

Rosina 2.jpg

Rosina in Hiram Titus's Rosina

"THIS EMANCIPATED ROSINA CAME ACROSS AS IMMENSELY LIKABLE IN MARIE MASTERS'S PORTRAYAL, WHOSE WARM AND FRESH SOPRANO WAS ONE OF THE STRONGER VOICES IN THE CAST. A HIGHLIGHT WAS HER DUET WITH AMPARO ... THE COUNT'S LATEST CONQUEST, WHOSE NASCENT ROMANCE WITH CHERUBINO SHE GENTLY, GENROUSLY CONDONES."
Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim, The New York Times

"THE PERFORMANCES SOLD ME ON THIS PIECE. MARIE MASTER AS ROSINA WAS A LOVELY STANDOUT. TO SAY SHE NEGOTIATED WELL THE VOCAL CHALLENGES OF HER ROLE, FROM WIDE LEAPS TO EXTENSIVE LEGATO SINGING IN EVERY PART OF HER RANGE, WOULD BE AN UNDERSTATEMENT. HER ROSINA HAD THE DIGNITY OF MOZART'S COUNTESS, ALONG WITH A TOUCH OF HUMILITY RELATED TO HER PRESENT, REDUCED CIRCUMSTANCES."
- Taminophile

"EXCELLENT SOPRANO MARIE MASTERS PLAYED THIS MODERN LADY AND CARRIED THE SHOW. WE DISCOVERED THIS SINGER IN DELL'ARTE'S PRODUCTION OF FALSTAFF LAST YEAR WHERE MS. MASTERS WAS A FEISTY FORCE OF NATURE AS MRS. FORD. IT WAS IMPRESSIVE TO SEE HER ACTING RANGE IN SUCH A DIFFERENT AND MORE MATURE CHARACTER IN TITUS'S ROSINA, ALL WHILE CONFIRMING HER VOCAL TALENTS AS A VERY PROMISING BRIGHT SOPRANO."
- Allegri con fuoco

Markheim-2.jpg

Tess in Carlisle Floyd's Markheim

"AS THE MAID TESS, A KEY FULCRUM IN THE PLOT, SOPRANO MARIE MASTERS WAS INNOCENT AND COMPELLING."
- George Grella, New York Classical Review

"APPEARING BRIEFLY BUT DELIGHTFULLY AS CREACH'S MAID TESS, SOPRANO MARIE MASTERS, COSTUMED AS ELEGANTLY AS SHE SANG BY LARA DE BRUIJN, PROVIDED A MEASURE OF SWEETNESS AND LIGHT TO COUNTERBALANCE THE DARKNESS OF THE TALE."
- Jon Sobel, Blogcritics

jeanette_photo.jpg

Jeanette in Chevalier de Saint-Georges's L'amant anonyme

"ANTHONY WEBB'S EXQUISITELY CLEAR TENOR AS COLIN ... MELDED PERFECTLY WITH SOPRANO MARIE MASTERS'S GLORIOUS, RICH VOICE AS A CROWD-PLEASING JEANETTE."
- Jon Sobel, Blogcritics

Falstaff4.jpg

Alice Ford in Antonio Salieri's Falstaff

"EVEN THOUGH FLASTAFF IS THE TITLE CHARACTER, THE SHOW BELONGED TO THE MERRY WIVES, IN PARTICULAR MRS. FORD ... SUITABLY, DELL'ARTE CAST THIS PART ON A THURSDAY EVENING WITH BY FAR THE STRONGEST SINGER IN THE CAST, THE DELIGHTFUL SOPRANO MARIE MASTERS. HER LYRIC VOICE EASILY SOARED AND DIPPED THROUGH MRS. FORD'S PLAYFUL MUSIC, AND SHE MADE A PARTICULAR HIGHLIGHT OF THE FIRST ACT SCENE IN WHICH SHE DISGUISES HERSELF AS A GERMAN AU PAIR TO FLIRT WITH FASTAFF. ADEPT AT THE PHYSICAL COMEDY OF SEDUCTION ... SHE LATER SPUN OUT THE ELEGANT LINES OF HER 'FAIRY' ARIA GRACEFULLY."
- James Jordan, New York Observer

"THE VOCAL STAR OF THE NIGHT WAS MS. MASTERS, WHOSE BARN-BURNING PERFORMANCE AS ALICE FORD MADE THE SHOW FLY. WHETHER WRAPPING HER HUSBAND AROUND HER LITTLE FINGER OR USHERING FLASTAFF DOWN THE PRIMROSE PATH TO SOAKINGS, BEATINGS, AND BURNINGS ... THIS WAS A MAGNIFICENT PERFORMANCE, DELIVERED WITH A FULL, RICH SOPRANO THAT BLASTED ITS WAY HIGH ABOVE THE STAVE."
- Superconductor

"MASTERS, WITH AN AGILE, DELICIOUS SOPRANO, WAS THE STAR OF THE SHOW, EVERY GESTURE, EVERY EXPRESSION, EVERY PHRASE PART OF HER HILARIOUS CHARACTERIZATION AS PUT-UPON WIFE, MISCHIEVOUS CONSPIRATOR, FEIGNING LOVER AND (DISGUISED) SEXY GERMAN AU PAIR ... WHILE HER HIGH NOTES WERE FEARLESS AND BEAUTIFUL, MASTERS' LOWER REGISTER WAS IRRESISTIBLE AND SEXY, AND THE TRANSITION FROM ONE RANGE TO ANOTHER SEAMLESS AND SMOOTH. A FIRST-RATE SINGER AND COMEDIENNE, SHE WOULD BE ADORABLE IN ANY ROSSINI, MOZART, OR DONIZETTI COMEDY, AND HER DICTION, IN BOTH ITALIAN AND GERMAN, IS IMPECCABLE."

- John Yohalem, Parterre Box

"ALTHOUGH FALSTAFF WAS THE MAIN CHARACTER, THE REAL STAR OF THE SHOW TURNED OUT TO BE MARIE MASTERS' MRS. FORD, A PETITE BUT UNSTOPPABLE FIREBALL WHOSE LUXURIOUSLY RICH, ENDLESSLY PLIABLE SOPRANO VOICE KEPT EVERYONE ENTHRALLED. BY TURNS CHARMING AND SHREWD, SHE NEVER MISSED A SINGLE BEAT."
- Classical Music Rocks

Frasquita in Carmen

"AS PROOF THAT EVEN 'SMALLER' PARTS CAN GENERATE TONS OF STAR POWER, SOPRANOS RACHEL COPELAND AS MERCEDES AND MARIE MASTERS AS FRASQUITA NEARLY BROUGHT THE HOUSE DOWN WHENEVER THEY UNLEASHED THEIR POWERFUL VOICES. WELL-MATCHED IN BEAUTY, THE TWO VOICES WERE EASILY DISTINGUISHABLE ONE FROM THE OTHER. IN SHORT, THEY WERE TRULY MAGNIFICENT AS CARMEN'S FLIRTATIOUS FRIENDS."
- Cool Cleveland