Angelina Jolie is doing it the hard way. She plays an opera singer in “Maria.” You know I could have faked it. I could have lip synced.

Instead, the Oscar-winning actress overcame her fear of singing with a little help from the legendary opera singer she plays.

Angelina Jolie (as María Callas): (singing)

Angelina Jolie (as María Callas): “An exaltation. “A poisoning.”

Angelina Jolie is ‘Maria’ in a biopic about the world’s best opera singer, María Callas. A role that was challenging for the actress.

Angelina Jolie: “I trained for months, but my first days were very good to me because we started in a more intimate way. With very few crew members.”

Angelina Jolie (as María Callas): (singing)

Angelina Jolie: “And we ended up at La Scala with everyone, so I had a little time to recover my nerves. But this is the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. “I was terrified.”

Terrified or not, she still sang her heart out. But Angie had a wonderful teacher.

Angelina Jolie: “She actually taught classes, so I was very fortunate to have an audio of her explaining what to do to sing. So my best teacher was María.

Pablo Larraín: “At Julliard, right?”

Angelina Jolie: “Yes.”

From a directing point of view, Miss Jolie was perfect for the film.

Pablo Larraín: “Very early in the filming I felt that you knew, being behind the camera, that she had captured that presence. María Callas is someone who captivated not only by singing, but also by hiding things. “I think Angie captured that dance of feelings and sensitivity very quickly.”

Finding a connection with his character was all love.

Angelina Jolie: “When I put on her big glasses and her Greek hair and sat in my little dressing gown like an old lady. I felt a her that felt like the private her that the world didn’t know. And I connected with her first.”

The real-life Mary went through many ups and downs. For Angelina, everything was relatable.

Angelina Jolie: “In reality we are more fragile and when we need to fight, we fight for ourselves, or for those we love, or for our art. But I think that deep down there is a fragility that I identify with and a loneliness.”

Angelina Jolie (as María Callas): “There is no reason in opera.”

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