Candide (operetta)

Candide is a comic operetta by Leonard Bernstein, based on the novella of the same name by Voltaire. It has existed in many versions but is now generally performed with a book by Hugh Wheeler. The primary lyricist was Richard Wilbur. Other contributors to the text were John Latouche, Dorothy Parker, Lillian Hellman, Stephen Sondheim, and Leonard Bernstein. Hershy Kay and John Mauceri contributed orchestrations.

Origins

Candide first opened on Broadway as a musical on December 1, 1956. It featured Robert Rounseville as Candide, a young Barbara Cook as Cunegonde, Max Adrian as Dr. Pangloss, and Irra Petina as the Old Lady. It was not a huge success by any stretch of the word; some music historians tend to put that down to the fact that New York at the time didn't want very much to do with an operetta pretending to be a musical. Others blame Hellman's overtly political and topical book, which drew parallels between the Inquisition and McCarthyism. In any case, the music became an almost instant hit in the art music world.

Related Topics:
Broadway - Musical - December 1 - 1956 - Robert Rounseville - Barbara Cook - Max Adrian - Dr. Pangloss - Irra Petina - Inquisition - McCarthyism

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Without Bernstein's involvement, the show underwent a series of Broadway revivals under the direction of Harold Prince, previously known for, among other work, producing the first run of Fiddler on the Roof. Lillian Hellman, the author of the original book, refused to let any of her work be used in the revival, so Prince commissioned a new, one-act book from Hugh Wheeler. Lyrics were worked on by the veritable team of artists listed above.

Related Topics:
Harold Prince - Fiddler on the Roof - Lillian Hellman

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In response to requests from opera companies for a more legitimate version, the show was expanded based on Wheeler's book. The two-act opera house version contains most of Bernstein's music, including some songs that were not orchestrated for the original production. It was first performed by the New York City Opera in 1982 under Prince's direction, and ran for 34 performances. Since, opera companies around the world have performed this version. The production continues to be a staple of the City Opera's repertoire, with performances underway in Spring 2005.

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In 1989, by which point Hellman had died an untimely death, Bernstein undertook a recording project that expressed his final wishes regarding Candide, incorporating what he thought were the best lyrics from all the contributors (including Hellman) and what he thought were the best portions of music. This recording incorporates a great deal of music and is generally thought to be too long to be produced theatrically.

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