Ryan Winkles and Tara Franklin Photo by Kate Drew Miller

The theatre company works with playwrights, so it is not surprising that this project began two years back when Undeland, inspired by Gerald Elias' short story, "Lacrymosa," first composed a solo piece. Artistic Director Jim Frangione recommended that Undeland expand it to include other characters.

It is 1791 in Vienna and Mozart, 35, has just died (Constanze yells "No!" as she literally drags the deceased musician's hidden body all over the stage). His sudden departure leaves his wife and children bereft. Further, he has not completed the Requiem in D Minor. Constanze has gargantuan responsibilities, she discovers, before her. She expresses her reaction to music through response to varied hues of lighting. Lighting designer Matthew E. Adelson's lovely contributions are both lyrical and essential.

Men (all played by Winkles, who swiftly changes outfits designed by George W. Veale VI) attempt to control Madame Mozart. The Count von Walsegg (who says he wrote the Requiem) demands money, and Herr Süssmayr physically forces his way with Constanze. All the while, Madame Mozart moves forward while listening to Orfe, at the keyboard, playing her beloved husband's notes.

The creative team has chosen to transform the McConnell Theater by seating the audience on three sides of the stage; the close proximity is favorable. Set designer Juliana von Haubrich furnishes a staircase with an upper door and landing as well as various period piece furnishings on stage. George W. Veale VI's wardrobe selections perfectly suit the era.

This play, drawn from fiction, no doubt retains some, yet not all, historical truth. Anne Undeland, in her playbill notes, writes, "In this play, I set out to conjure what it feels like in the immediate wake of a beloved person's death. It's a strangely magical time: agonizing, absurd, intensely physical–but it's beautiful too. The molecules seem to shift and sometimes, you see the person, hear them, feel them. It's dreamlike, operatic in its scope and power. No. Not operatic. Requiemic."

Each of the two actors must call upon and stretch skills. Tara Franklin, in addition to many appearances outside of New England, succeeded with multiple roles at both the Berkshire Theatre Group and Chester Theatre Company. She trained, decades ago, through Tadashi Suzuki methodology, which is exceptionally demanding. Franklin, coming to GBPT for the first time, musters tremendous attention to detail as she personifies Constanze Mozart, a desperate woman. She does well with this tension-ridden character who is able to relax, at last, at the final curtain.

Ryan Winkles has been with Shakespeare & Company since 2006 and in August will appear there in The Taming of the Shrew. He has appeared at the Great Barrington twice previously and now takes on a role which appears to be simultaneously challenging and fun. The actor, on many occasions, disappears behind a door and a second later comes out wearing a hat or a different color vest and so forth. Winkles shifts his vocal register or accent to highlight unique qualities of characters. Successful staging of this script relies upon and receives two adept, specific performances.

Judy Braha's versatile and impressive background includes helming the M.F.A. Directing Program at Boston University College of Fine Arts and a continuing attention to arts activism. She is a collaborative force since getting together with Anne Undeland in December, 2022, in bringing Madame Mozart, the Lacrimosa to reality. Making this form of theatre accessible and viable is contingent upon finding and mixing together individuals' singular skills, and Braha's imaginative direction is catalytic in that process.

Madame Mozart, the Lacrimosa runs through July 27, 2025, at Great Barrington Public Theater, McConnell Theater, 84 Alford Rd., Great Barrington MA. For tickets and information, please call 413-372-1980 or visit www.greatbarringtonpublictheater.org.