Le monde des musicals

Musical (1956)

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Musique: Leonard Bernstein •
Paroles: Richard Wilbur •
Livret: Lillian Hellman •
Production à la création:

Candide est une opérette avec de la musique de Leonard Bernstein, basée sur la nouvelle du même nom de Voltaire. Elle est jouée pour la première fois en 1956 avec un livret de Lillian Hellman mais, depuis 1974, elle est généralement interprétée avec un livret de Hugh Wheeler qui est plus fidèle au roman de Voltaire. Le parolier principal était le poète Richard Wilbur mais John Latouche, Dorothy Parker, Lillian Hellman, Stephen Sondheim, Leonard Bernstein, John Mauceri et John Wells ont également contribué aux paroles. Bien que ce fut un échec à sa création (73 représentations), Candide a aujourd'hui surmonté la réaction peu enthousiaste des premiers publics et premières critiques. Il est devenu très populaire.

Le jeune Candide vit à la cour du baron Thunder-ten-Tronckh sous les préceptes du philosophe Pangloss. Une aventure avec Cunégonde, la fille du baron, le force à l’exil. S’ensuivent alors une série de pérégrinations toutes plus étranges et dangereuses les unes que les autres qui mèneront Candide à changer son point de vue sur le monde. En ressortirat-il indemne?

Version I – Production originale à Broadway - 1956
Acte I
In the country of Westphalia, Candide is about to be married to the lovely Cune-gonde. Dr. Pangloss, Candide's teacher, expounds his famous philosophy, to the effect that all is for the best ("The Best of All Possible Worlds") The happy couple sing their marriage duet ("Oh, Happy We"), and the ceremony is about to take place ("Wedding Chorale") when war breaks out between Westphalia and Hesse. Westphalia is destroyed, and Cunegonde is seemingly killed. Candide takes comfort in the Panglossian doctrine ("It Must Be So") and sets out on his journeys.
In the public square of Lisbon ("Lisbon Fair"), the Infant Casmira, a deranged mystic in the caravan of an Arab conjuror, predicts dire happenings ("The Prediction"), leaving the public in terror ("Pray For Us"). Candide discovers Pangloss, who has contracted syphilis, yet remains optimistic ("Dear Boy"*). The Inquisition appears, in the persons of two ancient Inquisitors and their lawyer, and many citizens are tried and sentenced to hang, including Candide and Dr. Pangloss ("The Inquisition: AutodaFé"*). Suddenly an earthquake occurs, killing Dr. Pangloss, and Candide barely escapes.
Candide, faced with the loss of both Cunegonde and Dr. Pangloss, starts out for Paris. He is unable to reconcile Dr. Pangloss's ideas with the bitter events that have occurred, but concludes that the fault must lie within himself, rather than in the philosophy of optimism ("It Must Be Me").
Cunegonde turns up alive in Paris ("The Paris Waltz"), a demimondaine in a house shared by a Marquis and a Sultan. A party is in progress. Urged by the Old Lady, who serves as her duenna, Cunegonde arrays herself in her jewels ("Glitter and Be Gay"). Candide stumbles into the scene and is amazed to find Cunegonde still alive ("You Were Dead, You Know"). In a duel, he kills both the Marquis and the Sultan, and flees with Cunegonde, accompanied by the Old Lady.
They fall in with a band of devout Pilgrims on their way to the New World and sail with them ("Pilgrims' Procession" / "Alleluia"). Arriving in Buenos Aires, the group is brought to the Governor's Palace (where Maximilian is alive and working for the Governor), where all except Cunegonde and the Old Lady are immediately enslaved. A street cleaner appears in the person of the pessimistic Martin, warning Candide of the future. Candide and Maximilian are joyfully reunited, but when Candide states his intention to marry Cunegonde Maximilian starts to strike him with a glove. Candide starts to strike him back, but before he actually does Maximilian drops, apparently dead. The Governor serenades Cunegonde ("My Love") and she, abetted by the Old Lady, agrees to live in the palace ("I Am Easily Assimilated"). The Old Lady urges Candide to flee, but Candide, fired by reports of Eldorado from Martin, sets off to seek his fortune, planning to return for Cunegonde later ("Quartet Finale").
Acte II
In the heat of Buenos Aires, Cunegonde, the Old Lady and the Governor display their fraying nerves ("Quiet"), and the Governor resolves to get rid of the tiresome ladies. Candide returns from Eldorado ("Eldorado"), his pockets full of gold and searches for Cunegonde. The Governor, however, has had both Cunegonde and the Old Lady tied up in sacks and carried to a boat in the harbor. He tells Candide that the women have sailed for Europe, and Candide eagerly purchases a leaky ship from the Governor and dashes off. As the Governor and his suite watch from his terrace, the ship with Candide and Martin casts off and almost immediately sinks ("Bon Voyage").
Candide and Martin have been rescued from the ship, and are floating about the ocean on a raft. Martin is devoured by a shark, but Dr. Pangloss miraculously reappears. Candide is overjoyed to find his old teacher, and Pangloss sets about repairing the damage done to his philosophy by Candide's experiences.
In a luxurious palazzo of Venice ("Money, Money, Money"), Cunegonde turns up as a scrubwoman and the Old Lady as a woman of fashion (Madame Sofronia) ("What's the Use?"), both working as shills for Ferone, the owner of a gambling hall. Candide and Dr. Pangloss, both wearing masks, appear and are caught up by the merriment, the wine and the gambling. Candide is accosted by a masked Cunegonde and Old Lady, who try to steal his remaining gold ("The Venice Gavotte"), but recognizes Cunegonde when her mask falls off. His last hopes and dreams shattered, he drops his money at her feet and leaves. Cunegonde and the Old Lady are fired by Ferone and Pangloss is now penniless, having been completely swindled out of all his money.
With Candide now completely disillusioned, he and Pangloss return to the ruined Westphalia. Cunegonde, Maximilian (minus his teeth) and the Old Lady appear and within them a spark of optimism still flickers. Candide, however, has had enough of the foolish Panglossian ideal and tells them all that the only way to live is to try to make some sense of life ("Make Our Garden Grow").

Version II – Chelsea Production - 1973
At the close of the Overture, the aging Dr. Voltaire is roused from sleep in his four-poster to begin his story and to introduce the four young people who happily live in the castle of the Baron Thunder-Ten-Tronck in Westphalia: the bastard cousin Candide, the beautiful daughter Cunegonde, her handsome brother Maximillian, and the luscious serving maid Paquette. [Life is Happiness Indeed]
Through a quick change of wig and coat [Parade], Dr. Voltaire transform himself into Dr. Pangloss, the wise instructor of philosophy, who prances off with Candide, Paquette, Cunegonde and Maximillian to conduct his invaluable lessons in the classroom. [The Best of All Posible Worlds]
Paquette stays after class for her private session in advanced physics with Dr. Pangloss. Overcome by curiosity, Cunegonde returns to observe Paquette's lesson in the relative specific gravity of two bodies, male and female. After Dr. Pangloss graphically demonstrates the experiment, Cunegonde runs off happily to share her discovery with Candide. [Oh, Happy We]
Caught in the middle of their experiment by Maximillian and Cunegonde's furious father, the Baron, the two are yanked apart and Candide is forever banished from Westphalia. A lonely wanderer, Candide sadly contemplates his fate. [It Must Be So]
On the road, Candide is abducted by two men who take him away to join the Bulgarian Army, which is about to invade Westphalia. Cunegonde, Maximillian, the Baron and Baroness pray for safety. [O Miserere] The Bulgarians attack and kill all but Cunegonde, who is spared for the benefit of the Bulgarian regiment. After Cunegonde has fulfilled her function, she is tossed onto a pile of Westphalian corpses and left for dead. She sits and ponders her situation. [Oh, Happy We (reprise)]
All alone in the world Cunegonde survives by moving from brothel to brothel, until one day she ends up in Lisbon, enjoying the amorous attentions of a tremendously rich Jew, and an equally rich Grand Inquisitor, both of whom shower her with expensive jewels. [Glitter and Be Gay]
At the same time, Candide turns up in Lisbon, just after an enormous earthquake, only to find himself reunited with his beloved master Dr. Pangloss. Just as Candide learns of Cunegonde's apparent death, he and Pangloss are arrested as heretics and dragged off to be punished at the Autodafé. Pangloss is hanged and Candide is flogged unconscious, and left to die. An Old Lady appears who comforts the battered Candide. [This World]
The Old Lady nurses Candide and then leads him to none other than Cunegonde, still alive and yearning. [You Were Dead, You Know] The two immediately face a new crisis as the Grand Inquisitor and the tremendously rich Jew angrily confront the two lovers. Seeing no other alternative, Candide kills them both.
With the Old Lady, they quickly take flight and head for Cadiz. As the penniless trio wanders on, the Old Lady decides to repair their fortunes by seducing three Spaniards. [I Am Easily Assimilated]
In the New World-Cartagena, Columbia, to be exact-the hot-blooded Spanish Governor surveys the new prospects at the local slave market, two of whom happen to be Paquette and Maximillian, disguised as a senorita. It is the winsome Maximillian who attracts the Governor's lecherous eye. [My Love] Though Maximillian is exposed before marrying the Governor, he escapes death by joining a brotherhood of Jesuits.
Meanwhile, on a ship at sea [Barcarolle], Candide, Cunegonde, and the Old Lady are attacked by Barbary pirates who kidnap the two women and leave Candide lying on the deck. Heartbroken, he finally arrives alone at the Jesuits' stronghold in Montevideo. [Alleluia] Who should Candide meet there but first, Paquette, and then the long-lost Maximillian. Candide informs them that Cunegonde lives, which unfortunately rekindles his feud with Maximillian over Cunegonde's love life. A wild chase ensues, and Maximillian is crushed by a falling statue of St. Francis. Once again, Candide becomes a fugitive, this time with Paquette as companion.
After many weeks of treacherous journeying, Paquette and Candide stumble into the country of Eldorado, where everything does happen for the best, where the mud is gold and the streets are paved with diamonds. Even the animals are articulate, wise and gentle, including two friendly sheep and a lion. [Sheep's Song] Even in Paradise, though, Candide is not happy and longs to find his Cunegonde once again. He and Paquette decide to load their two friendly sheep with gold and escape from Eldorado.
After much more wandering, they end up back in Cartagena, Columbia, where they miraculously discover the Old Lady, long since abandoned by the Barbary pirates. She informs Candide that the pirates were headed for Constantinople to sell Cunegonde for the highest price. As it happens, the Governor overhears them and offers them passage on his frigate, the Santa Rosalia, which is leaving for Constantinople that very day. Marveling at their good fortune, Candide, Paquette, and the Old Lady board a skiff, as the Governor and the populace see them off. [Bon Voyage]
Unfortunately, the Governor not only swindled them out of their sheep, but also put them in a leaky skiff that sinks before reaching the frigate. Sometime later, the three weather-beaten travellers are washed up on a tiny desert island. But once again, fortune smiles upon them, as their two faithful sheep swim up to the desert island, still bearing the gold. [The Best of All Possible Worlds (reprise)]
They are soon rescued and immediately continue their trek to Constantinople to find Cunegonde. Safely arrived in Constantinople, they enter a Turkish palace where a lavish feast is in progress. A veiled dancing girl is entertaining at the banquet, and who should this girl be but Cunegonde. The lovers are reunited once more. [You Were Dead, You Know (reprise)]
Candide buys Cunegonde's freedom, only to discover that Maximillian is not dead but is a slave at the very same palace. Candide spends the remainder of the fortune to buy Maximillian who joins Candide, Cunegonde, Paquette, and the Old Lady. The destitute group departs. The Old Lady recalls that she knows of a local sage who will doubtless be able to solve their problems. The sage turns out to be ancient Dr. Pangloss, who can't seem to remember his former Westphalian pupils. Nevertheless, Candide begs Pangloss to tell them what the natural function of man is. Pangloss can't find the piece of paper on which the answer is written, but Candide spots it and picks it up himself, as Pangloss rattles on.
The paper reads: "What is the natural function of man? What was it in the Garden of Eden? Dig, spin, work without regret for yesterday or hope for tomorrow. For man, it is only work that makes life endurable."
Candide and Cunegonde resolve to adopt this new philosophy, return to Westphalia, and create their own Garden of Eden. [Make Our Garden Grow]

Version V – Final Revised Version - 1989
Acte I
The operetta begins with an overture. The chorus welcomes everyone to Westphalia ("Westphalia Chorale") and Voltaire begins to narrate his story. Candide, the illegitimate nephew of Baron Thunder-ten-Tronck, lives in the Baron's castle Schloss Thunder-ten-Tronck. He is snubbed by the Baroness and bullied by her son Maximilian. Paquette, a very accommodating serving girl, also lives in the castle. However, Candide is in love with Cunegonde, the Baroness' daughter as Maximilian, Candide, Cunegonde and Paquette find their happiness in life ("Life is Happiness Indeed"). The four discover that Dr. Pangloss, a man thought to be the world's greatest philosopher, has taught them happiness ("The Best of All Possible Worlds"). The philosopher asks his four students to summarize what they have learned ("Universal Good"). When Cunegonde spies Dr. Pangloss being physically intimate with Paquette, he explains it away as being a "physical experiment", and she decides to share the "experiment" with Candide. Professing their love to each other at a park, Candide and Cunegonde dream of what married life would look like ("Oh, Happy We"). The Baron, however, is angered at what Candide has done to Cunegonde, as he is a social inferior. Candide is promptly exiled, wandering alone with his faith and optimism to cling to ("It Must Be So"). He is then shanghaied by and into the Bulgar Army, which plots to "liberate" all of Westphalia. His escape attempt fails, and is recaptured by the Army. The Bulgar Army attacks Schloss Thunder-ten-Tronck and in the castle the Baron's family prays as the chorus joins in ("Westphalia"). However, the Baron, the Baroness, Maximilian, Paquette, Pangloss and (after being repeatedly ravished by the Bulgar Army) Cunegonde are all killed in the attack ("Battle Music"). Candide returns to the castle's ruins and searches for Cunegonde ("Candide's Lament").
Some time later, Candide becomes a beggar. He gives the last of his coins to Pangloss, who reveals that he was revived by an anatomist's scalpel. He then tells Candide of his syphilis condition brought on by Paquette ("Dear Boy"). A merchant offers the two employment before sailing off to Lisbon, Portugal. However, as they arrive, a volcano erupts and the ensuing earthquake results in the death of 30,000 people. Pangloss and Candide are blamed for the disaster, arrested as heretics and publicly tortured by order of the Grand Inquisitor. Pangloss is hanged and Candide is flogged ("AutodaFé"). Candide eventually ends up in Paris, France, where Cunegonde shares her favors (on different mutually-agreed-upon days of the week) with wealthy Jew Don Issachar and the city's Cardinal Archbishop ("The Paris Waltz"). She contemplates what she has done to survive while in Paris ("Glitter and Be Gay"). Candide finds Cunegonde and reunites with her ("You Were Dead, You Know"). However, the Old Lady, Cunegonde's companion, forewarns Cunegonde and Candide of Issachar and the Archbishop's arrival. Candide inadvertently kills both of them by stabbing them with a sword.
The three flee to Cadiz, Spain with Cunegonde's jewels, where the Old Lady tells Candide and Cunegonde about her past. The jewels are stolen and the Old Lady offers to sing for their dinner ("I Am Easily Assimilated"). The French police arrive, intending to arrest Candide for murdering Don Issachar and the Archbishop. Accepting an offer to fight for the Jesuits in South America, Candide decides to take Cunegonde and the Old Lady to the New World, and the three begin their journey on a ship ("Quartet Finale").
Acte II
In Montevideo, Uruguay, Maximilian and Paquette, now revived and disguised as slave girls, reunite. Soon after, Don Fernando d'Ibaraa y Figueroa y Mascarenes y Lampourdos y Souza, the governor of the city, falls in love with Maximilian, but quickly realizes his mistake and sells him to a priest. Meanwhile, Candide, Cunegonde and the Old Lady also arrive in Montevideo, where the Governor falls in love with Cunegonde ("My Love"). The Old Lady convinces Cunegonde that her marriage to the governor will support her financially ("We Are Women"). Candide soon befriends Cacambo and accepts him as his valet. Convinced by the Old Lady that the police are still after Candide for the Archbishop's murder, Candide and Cacambo flee Montevideo and eventually stumble upon a Jesuit camp and are joined by the Father and Mother Superiors ("The Pilgrims' Procession – Alleluia"). Candide soon discovers that the Mother Superior is actually Paquette and the Father Superior is Maximilian. When Candide tells Maximilian that he will marry Cunegonde, however, Maximilian angrily challenges him to a fight. However, Maximilian is once again inadvertently stabbed to death by Candide. Candide is forced to flee into the jungle as a result.
Three years later, Cunegonde and the Old Lady discuss the miseries shared by the upper classes while the Governor doesn't want to hear their complaints ("Quiet"). Meanwhile, Candide and Cacambo are starving and lost in the jungles. Finding a boat in the ocean, they float downriver into a cavern for 24 hours until they finally reach Eldorado, the city of gold ("Introduction to Eldorado"). The two discover that the locals worship one god as opposed to three, palaces of science, rosewater and stones with cinnamon and clove scents. Dissatisfied without Cunegonde, Candide decides to leave. The locals think him foolish, but offer to help, giving him some of the town's golden sheep and constructing a lift that will guide him, Cacambo and the sheep over the mountain ("The Ballad of Eldorado"). One by one, the sheep die until only two remain. Unwilling to go back to Montevideo, Candide gives Cacambo one of the golden sheep to ransom Cunegonde, telling them that they will meet again in Venice, Italy.
Arriving at Suriname, Candide meets Martin, a local pessimist. He shows him a slave with one hand and one foot lost while harvesting sugarcane, which is the result of Europeans eating sugar; Candide is unable to convince Martin otherwise ("Words, Words, Words"). Vanderdendur, a Dutch villain, offers his ship, the Santa Rosalia, in exchange for the golden sheep. Candide is excited when he is told that the Santa Rosalia is to depart for Venice. The locals and Vandendur wish Candide a safe journey to Venice ("Bon Voyage"). However, the ship sinks and Martin drowns as a result. After reuniting with his golden sheep, Candide is picked up by a galley, meeting five deposed kings. The galley is rowed by slaves, including Pangloss, revived once again. The kings say that they will live humbly, serving both god and men, and Pangloss leads their debate ("The Kings' Barcarolle").
The ship arrives in Venice, where the Carnival festival is taking place ("Money, Money, Money"). While the kings play roulette and baccarat, Candide searches for Cunegonde. Maximilian, revived once again, is now the corrupt Prefect of Police and the town's leader. Paquette is now the town's reigning prostitute. Cunegonde and the Old Lady are employed to encourage the gamblers ("What's the Use?"). Pangloss celebrates a victory after winning roulette and spends his money on the other ladies ("The Venice Gavotte"). Candide, however, masked for the Carnival, is accosted by Cunegonde and the Old Lady (both of whom are also masked), who try to swindle him out of his money. During the exchange, all the masks come off and they are horrified to recognize each other. Seeing what Cunegonde has become, Candide's image of and belief in her is shattered ("Nothing More Than This"). Candide does not speak for several days; with what little money they have left, they purchase a small farm outside Venice and the chorus says that life is just life and paradise is nothing ("Universal Good"). Candide finally speaks and resolves to marry Cunegonde ("Make Our Garden Grow").

Version VI – NT Version - 1999
Acte I
Voltaire sits alone in the center of the stage. Suddenly his face lights up and The Overture begins, as if inspired by his fertile imagination. As the music continues the stage is flooded by all the Characters of his story. By the end of the overture they are assembled all around him and sing the Voltaire Chorale to the audience.
Voltaire starts to tell his story, which begins in the country of Westphalia in the castle of the Baron of Thunder-ten-Tronck, introducing his central character Candide, the illegitimate son of the Baron's sister. Candide reveals his simplicity and innocence in Life is Happiness Indeed. The Baron's children, Maximilian and Cunegonde, take up the same tune to introduce themselves in Life is Happiness Unending, the chambermaid Paquette joining in the final chorus along with Candide. Thus life in the castle is painted as a structured and contented social Eden with everyone knowing their place, all blissful in their ignorance. Voltaire now introduces Pangloss — a part he plays himself — Maximilian's tutor and professor of metaphysico-theologico-cosmologico-panology, more simply described as "Optimism".
He reveals the full glory of his philosophical theory in a lesson [The Best of all Possible Worlds] in which he convinces his four young pupils of the depth and truth of his knowledge. Pangloss then conducts his class in a simple unaccompanied chorale of faithful affirmation. [Universal Good] All seems to be for the best . . . until Candide and Cunegonde fall in love and rashly assume they will spend the rest of their lives together in marital bliss. [Oh Happy We] The Baron is horrified at the thought of his daughter marrying a bastard and promptly kicks Candide out of the castle. [It Must Be So] Candide wanders off into the neighboring country of Bavaria where he is pressed into the army just in time to fight a war against his own country of Westphalia. After a series of appallingly brutal experiences, he deserts from the army and makes for Holland, where he is taken to a hospice for the sick and dying by a kindly Anabaptist called James. Here he meets his tutor Pangloss again, now hideously disfigured with disease. Pangloss tells Candide that the castle of ThundertenTronck was completely destroyed in the war, the Baron and his family wiped out and Cunegonde repeatedly raped and then killed by Bavarian soldiers. Candide is heartbroken. [Candide's Lament] The next day Pangloss tells Candide his own story which includes an affair with the chamber maid, Paquette, which has left him with a fatal dose of the pox. Candide is horrified but Pangloss justifies the disease with his customary optimism. [Dear Boy]
While Candide's story has taken him to the depths of despair in Holland, Cunegonde, contrary to Pangloss's belief, has survived the war despite being raped, and has been sold in sexual slavery to a series of soldiers and aristocrats in Paris and Vienna. [Paris Waltz] She ends up in Portugal, mistress to a wealthy Jewish banker, Don Issacar. While at mass one day she catches the eye of the Cardinal Inquisitor of Lisbon who forces Don Issacar into sharing Cunegonde's favours with him, on pain of a visit from the Inquisition. Thus Cunegonde is trapped, a victim of her own powers of attraction as well as her strong personal taste for luxury. [Glitter and Be Gay]
Pangloss recovers from the pox with the loss of only one ear and one eye. The kindly Anabaptist James has to go to Lisbon on business and decides to take along his new philosopher friends, Pangloss and Candide, but they are shipwrecked in the Bay of Portugal and James is drowned. Surviving the wreck, Pangloss and Candide have no sooner arrived in Lisbon than the city is struck by a devastating earthquake which kills thirty thousand of its citizens. Pangloss's attempt to justify this terrible event as philosophical necessity is overheard by agents of the Inquisition and both friends are arrested, Pangloss for blasphemy and Candide for listening to him. They are dragged before the Inquisition where the usual bunch of foreigners, heretics and Jews are being hanged and burned. After a mockery of a trial, Candide is flogged and Pangloss is hanged. [Autodafé] Witnessing these events is Cunegonde who is there as the guest of the Grand Inquisitor. In great secrecy she sends her servant, the Old Woman, to nurse Candide back to health.
A week later, Candide is taken to see Cunegonde at Don Issacar's palace. At first unable to believe that she is still alive, Candide is overjoyed to see her again and they have an ecstatic reunion. [You Were Dead, You Know] Don Issacar returns unexpectedly and in a rage of jealousy tries to kill Cunegonde. Candide intervenes and runs Don Issacar through with his sword. Enter the Grand Inquisitor, expecting a night of passion with Cunegonde. Overcome with jealousy and fear, and in revenge for Cunegonde's lost honour, Candide runs him through as well.
Candide, Cunegonde and the Old Woman flee into the mountains, heading for the Spanish border. They finally stop in the little town of Avacena in the hills of the Sierra Nevada. As they wait in the noonday sun for the end of the siesta, the Old Woman tells the story of her life to the young lovers — a fantastic tale of noble birth followed by appalling deprivation, poverty and distress. As the suspicious townsfolk awake from their siestas, the Old Woman makes friends with them. [I Am Easily Assimilated] By the end of the evening the newcomers have been joyfully assimilated into the life of the town. Candide is befriended by Cacambo, an honest and practical jack-of-all-trades, who offers himself as Candide's servant. The next day Candide, Cunegonde, Cacambo and the Old Woman ride off to Cadiz, resolved to escape the pursuit of the Inquisition by emigrating to the New World [Quartet Finale] and so Act One comes to a gloriously optimistic conclusion.

Acte II
Act Two opens in South America, on the quayside in Montevideo. As Candide and Cacambo go off in search of the Governor to get commissions in the army to fight against the Jesuit rebels, Cunegonde and the Old Woman consider the grim likelihood that they will be living in poverty in a dreary colonial outpost. The Old Woman reminds Cunegonde that they have at least retained their feminine charms — charms they could put to good use if required. [We Are Women] Candide returns with the Governor, a vainglorious womanizer who takes an instant fancy to Cunegonde. As Candide and Cacambo go off to review their new troops, the Governor declares his passion to Cunegonde. [My Love] Cunegonde is unhappy about betraying Candide but the Old Woman convinces her that marriage to the Governor would be financially advantageous to them all, including to Candide. The Governor takes Cunegonde off to his palace. Candide and Cacambo return to the quayside to find the Old Woman alone. She tells them a terrible lie — that a boat has just arrived from Portugal and the town is swarming with Inquisition men looking for the villain who killed the Grand Inquisitor. Candide and Cacambo flee in terror, Candide heartbroken once more to be parted from his precious Cunegonde.
Cacambo persuades Candide that if they can't fight against the Jesuits they should fight for them. They make their way through the jungle and arrive at the Jesuit camp where Candide is amazed to find that the Father Superior is none other than Maximilian, Cunegonde's brother, who was reported to have been killed at the same time as Cunegonde but who has had a similarly miraculous escape. [Alleluia] After a fond reunion, Candide explains that he intends to marry Cunegonde. Maximilian is so enraged at the prospect of his sister marrying a bastard commoner that he draws his sword to kill Candide, but before he can do so Candide runs him through and he and Cacambo are on the run once more. After a narrow escape from a tribe of philosophical cannibals, Candide and Cacambo arrive at an impassable river. A small canoe is moored to the bank. They have no choice but to get into it and drift downstream. The river turns into a raging torrent and speeds the two friends through underground chasms until they are finally spewed out on to the shores of a strange and magical kingdom. [The Ballad of Eldorado]
They stay for a few months in Eldorado, enjoying the pleasures of a Utopian paradise but Candide's longing to see Cunegonde moves them on. They set off from Eldorado with a vast quantity of gold and precious stones loaded onto a hundred sheep, but by the time they arrive in Surinam, all but two of the sheep have been lost in a variety of disastrous accidents. In Surinam they decide to part. It being too dangerous for Candide to return to Montevideo, Cacambo will take half the fortune and go there alone to rescue Cunegonde and the Old Woman while Candide sails to Venice with the rest of the treasure. They will all meet in Venice — a free state where they can live in peace and security. But within minutes of being parted from his friend, Candide is in trouble again. A malicious local merchant and pirate Vanderdendur cheats Candide out of his fortune and sails away leaving him to sink in a leaky little boat. [Bon Voyage]
Candide swims ashore and decides that there must be something wrong with himself as well as the world. [It Must Be Me] He advertises for a companion but insists that he will only employ the unhappiest and most unfortunate person in the whole colony of Surinam. An old road-sweeper called Martin gets the job. [Words, Words, Words] Candide and Martin set sail for Marseilles. On the way they witness the sinking of Vanderdendur's ship and Candide manages to save a large part of his fortune from the wreckage. Martin turns out to be the most pessimistic man Candide has ever met — the perfect antidote to the meaningless optimism of his old master, Pangloss. The two men change boats at Marseilles, boarding a Tunisian galley bound for Venice. And wonder of wonders — who should be rowing in the galley chained side by side but Pangloss and Maximilian. They have both had miraculous escapes from being hanged and stabbed respectively, and both have fallen foul of the Tunisian authorities for sexual misdemeanours and wound up on the same punishment ship. Candide, Martin, Maximilian and Pangloss arrive in Venice. [Money, Money, Money]
Candide rents a small palazzo on the Grand Canal. Pangloss and Maximilian take to the life at once, spending vast quantities of Candide's money in the casinos. Martin and Candide spend their days looking for Cunegonde, who should have arrived from Montevideo by now with Cacambo. Cunegonde is nowhere to be found but they do meet up with Paquette, the chamber-maid from the Baron's castle who tells them her story — a woeful tale of disease, prostitution and degradation. Then one night Candide and Martin find Cacambo. He had been imprisoned by monks on the cemetery island of San Michelle and forced to work as a grave-digger. He has lost all his half of the treasure and has become separated from Cunegonde and the Old Woman after arriving in Venice. But he has remained faithful to Candide, thus proving that honesty exists and that Martin's universal pessimism is not entirely justified.
The next night is the Carnival Ball at the Doge's Palace. Candide, Cacambo and Martin put on masks and go to the ball, sure that they will find Cunegonde there. At the ball, Candide is pursued all evening by a pair of rapacious women, also masked, who try to fleece him out of his money. [The Venice Gavotte] Pangloss arrives from the casino with a whole gaggle of prostitutes and hangers-on just as Candide starts to lose his patience and give up the search for the evening. Suddenly Candide realises who the masked women are. He rips the mask off one of their faces — it is Cunegonde. The other figure unmasks revealing herself to be the Old Woman. Candide is devastated by the terrible change in Cunegonde [Nothing More Than This] while Cunegonde herself is utterly humiliated.
In Candide's palazzo all is misery. Candide himself is silent and distant, refusing to talk to Cunegonde or anyone else. The rest of the 'family'- Cacambo, Paquette, the Old Woman, Maximilian and Pangloss are all stuck in their various miseries, only Martin attempting to cajole them out of their self-centered woe. [What's The Use]
Candide's silence remains unbroken. Then one night he is walking through the dark alleys of Venice when he sees six figures in the mist — all crowned. They get into a gondola and float down the Grand Canal towards the sea. As Candide follows from the shore he hears them discussing the temporary nature of power and their decision to return to a more natural way of life. [The King's Barcarolle] This is the inspiration that Candide was looking for. He returns to the palazzo at dawn and tells his 'family' that he is moving to the mountains. They can go or stay as they please, but the money goes with him. He also informs Maximilian that he intends to marry Cunegonde. Maximilian is still violently opposed to the marriage but is powerless to prevent it.
Of course the whole household agrees to go with Candide. They all walk for days until they arrive at a little valley high in the mountains. Here, Candide tells them, they will live, but they must all work. It is only work which will keep them all sane and healthy. They all agree but Pangloss and Martin start to argue as to whether this is an optimistic or pessimistic outcome. Candide interrupts them with a repeat of the chorale from the first scene [Universal Good] which everyone joins — an agreement to rid their lives of pointless theologies and philosophies.
Candide and Cunegonde pledge themselves to each other and to the growing of their garden. At the end of all their terrible misfortunes and arduous travels — after a lifetime of thinking and wondering and hoping, all that they can say is that they should live in peace, work hard, not hurt anyone else and make their garden grow. Their friends agree. [Make Our Garden Grow]

Candide est sans doute l’une des oeuvres les plus ambitieuses de Leonard Bernstein. Créée un an avant West Side Story (), cette adaptation du conte initiatique de Voltaire hésite entre le musical et la grande tradition lyrique. Boudé par le public new-yorkais lors de sa création, l’opéra fut maintes fois remanié du vivant de son auteur.

1 Candide est une adaption à la scène d'une oeuvre littéraire: "Candide" Voltaire.

Version I - 1956
Les origines du musical
Candide a été conçu à l’origine par Lillian Hellman comme une pièce de théâtre avec de la musique de scène. Bernstein, cependant, était si excité par cette idée qu’il a convaincu Hellman< d'en faire une «opérette comique»; elle a ensuite écrit le livret original pour l’opérette. Elle l'a voulu comme une «une critique politique dans l’après-maccarthysme » De nombreux paroliers y ont travaillé: d’abord James Agee (dont le travail n’a finalement pas été utilisé), puis Dorothy Parker, John Latouche et Richard Wilbur. En outre, les paroles de I Am Easily Assimilated ont été écrites par Leonard et Felicia Bernstein, et Hellman a écrit les paroles d'Eldorado. Hershy Kay a tout orchestré sauf l’ouverture, ce que Bernstein a fait lui-même.

Création à Broadway (1956) – Flop
Candide a ouvert à Broadway le 1^er décembre 1956. La mise en scène était de Tyrone Guthrie et la direction musicale de Samuel Krachmalnick. Les décors et les costumes ont été conçus par Oliver Smith et Irene Sharaff, respectivement. Il a été chorégraphié par Anna Sokolow. Le cast de la création était constitué de Robert Rounseville (Candide), Barbara Cook (Cunégonde), Max Adrian (Dr. Pangloss) et Irra Petina (Old Lady).
Cette production a été un désastre au box-office, avec seulement deux mois pour un total de 73 représentations. Le livret de Hellman a été critiqué dans le New York Times comme étant trop sérieux: «When Voltaire is ironic and bland, [Hellman] is explicit and vigorous. When he makes lightning, rapier thrusts, she provides body blows. Where he is diabolical, [she] is humanitarian ... the libretto ... seems too serious for the verve and mocking lyricism of Leonard Bernstein's score which, without being strictly 18th century, maintains, with its gay pastiche of past styles and forms, a period quality».

Création à Londres (1959) – Échec
La création londonienne a eu lieu au Saville Theatre sur Shaftesbury Avenue le 30 avril 1959 (après avoir été joué brièvement au New Theatre, à Oxford et à l’opéra de Manchester). Cette production a utilisé le livret de Lillian Hellman avec un crédit supplémentaire «assisté par Michael Stewart», et il a été mis en scène par Robert Lewis avec des chorégraphies de Jack Cole. La distribution comprenait Denis Quilley (Candide), Mary Costa (Cunegonde), Laurence Naismith (Dr. Pangloss) et Edith Coates (Old Lady). Il a tenu l'affiche 60 représentations...

Revival à Broadway (1971) – Arrêté durant les Try-Out
Le Candide de 1956 a brisé de nombreux cœurs au cours de son existence. La brillante partition de Leonard Bernstein est l’une des plus grandes jamais écrites, le livret de Lillian Hellman est plein d’esprit et incisif, et, de toute évidence, la mise en scène était très réussie. Mais ce fut un flop et c’est le disque qui a maintenu le spectacle vivant.
Le revival de 1971 fut la première production américaine majeure de l’œuvre depuis la fermeture de l’original. Des Try-Out se sont déroulés durant quatre mois à San Francisco, Los Angeles et Washington D.C., mais le transfert à Broadway a été annulé. C'est ce que les américain appellent «closed on the road». Et encore une fois les cœurs étaient brisés.
La version suivante, celle de 1974 a renversé le destin du musical, se jouant à Broadway pendant plus de deux ans et a remporté le New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Musical de la saison 1973-1974.
Mais les puristes consternés auraient encore le cœur brisé car il s'agirait d'un tout nouveau livret.

Version II - «Chelsea» - 1973 (Sans intervention de Bernstein)
Un revival ou une recréation?
Sans la participation de Bernstein, le spectacle a vécu une série de revivals à Broadway grâce à Harold Prince. Lillian Hellman, l’autrice du livret original, a refusé que son travail soit modifié ou utilisé en partie dans le revival, et Harold Prince a commandé un nouveau livret en un acte à Hugh Wheeler. Le seul élément du livret de Hellman qui a été conservé est le nom inventé pour le frère de Cunegonde: «Maximilien». Le personnage n’a pas de prénom dans la nouvelle de Voltaire. Les paroles ont été travaillées par l’équipe d’artistes originaux. Cette version de 105 minutes, omettant plus de la moitié des numéros musicaux, était connue sous le nom de Version Chelsea, et a ouvert en 1973 au Chelsea Theater Center de la Brooklyn Academy of Music avant de déménager à Broadway au Broadway Theatre le 10 mars 1974. Il tiendra l'affiche 740 représentations, ne fermant que le 4 janvier 1976. Le cast était constitué de Mark Baker (Candide), Maureen Brennan (Cunegonde), Sam Freed (Maximilian), Lewis J. Stadlen (Dr. Pangloss) et June Gable (Old Lady).
En mars 1974, le musical a donc débarqué au pauvre Broadway Theatre qui venait de subir l’indignité de la pseudo «mise en scène totale» de Dude, The Highway Life () pour laquelle le théâtre avait subi une refonte physique drastique pour répondre aux exigences du scénario et de la mise en scène de cette comédie musicale rock. Tant de travail, tant de menuiserie, et tout s’était arrêté après 16 représentations.
La Version Chelsea a été marquée par un style de production unique. Un orchestre de 13 musiciens a joué dans quatre zones. Le chef d’orchestre, qui portait un costume d’époque et une tresse d’or, pouvait être vu par le public et les musiciens sur les écrans de télévision.
Avec Candide, le Broadway Theatre se retrouve avec un autre musical nécessitant une «mise en scène totale». Et le théâtre fut à nouveau remodelé passant de 1.700 sièges à 850 répartis en gradins qui étaient éparpillés dans divers coins et recoins, supprimant toute délimitation entre la salle et la scène. Eugene Lee a conçu sa scénographie pour aider le metteur en scène Harold Prince à permettre que son spectacle enchaînant des scènes dans des lieux différents ne s’enlise dans des changements de décors répétés et chronophages. Il a créé une dizaine d'aires de jeu organisées en plateformes situées à des niveaux multiples permettant aux scènes de s’enchainer en recentrant l’attention au lieu de changer de décor. Les acteurs se jouaient sur ces estrades et parfois au milieu des spectateurs. Au fur et à mesure que l’histoire se déroulait, certaines plateformes s’effondraient, s’écartaient ou se réunissaient. Les didascalies de l'adaptation indiquaient clairement que toutes ces zones étaient reliées par des rampes, des pont-levis, des trappes et des «passages cachés». Il y avait aussi quatre sections distinctes entre lesquelles les 13 musiciens de l’orchestre étaient répartis. Le chef d’orchestre, en costume d’époque, pouvait être vu par le public et les musiciens via des écrans de télévision. En quoi tout cela avait un lien avec Candide est discutable. Mais si cette scénographie radicale faisait grincer des dents, la production elle-même était très claire. Le livret, les chansons, et la mise en scène ont fait du show quelque chose de mignon, une suite insupportable – si on le compare à l'original – de numéros édulcorés et timides. L’esprit fragile de la brillante partition de Bernstein a été assujettie par des pitreries clownesques et le livre sardonique et acerbe de Lillian Hellman fut remplacée par l’humour, niveau maternelle, de la nouvelle adaptation de Hugh Wheeler.
Et la plupart des critiques vont adorer: «I love Candide» (Richard Watts in the New York Post); «This is a doll of a show» (Clive Barnes in the New York Times); «If there is a lovelier Candide than this, it is difficult to imagine» (Lance Morrow in Time); «Candide is unquestionably the season’s most brilliant musical to date» (John Beaufort in the Christian Science Monitor); et Candide eqt «a splendid new musical on Broadway» (Leonard Harris on WCBSTV2).
Le spectacle va recevoir 7 nominations aux Tony Award et en gagnera 4 don Best Book of Musical pour Hugh Wheeler et Best Direction of a musical pour Harold Prince. Il gagnera aussi 5 Drama Desk Awards.
Même si le spectacle s'est joué 740 fois, il a perdu de l’argent. Le côté positif de ce revival est qu’il a sorti l'œuvre de sa confidentialité et l'a fait découvrir par un large public. Candide n’était plus un musical culte connu des seuls spécialistes. Mais l’inconvénient est que la plupart des nouvelles productions de l’œuvre vont vouloir recréer l’ambiance de carnaval et l’atmosphère de ce revival. Donc ce qui était une comédie musicale sardonique et amère pour adultes en 1956 est maintenant assimilable à un plaisir de cirque. Les paroles satiriques et la musique ont été émoussées, et l’histoire amère est adoucie par la bêtise des personnages. Il doit sûrement exister un compromis où Candide peut être à la fois être humoristique et satirique. Dernière remarque, cette version était présentée sans entracte, durant un peu plus de deux heures.

Versions III - «Version Opéra» - 1982 (Sous la «supervision» de Bernstein)
New York City Opera au Lincoln Center – 1982
De nombreuses compagnies d’opéra ont souhaité mettre à leur répertoire le Candide de Bernstein. Mais la Version II sur base du livret de Wheeler était trop courte et semblait incomplète. Pour offrir une version plus «légitime», le spectacle a été élargi toujours sur la base du livret de Wheeler (Version II et donc pas sur le livret original de Lillian Hellman). La Version Opéra en deux actes contient la majeure partie de la musique de Bernstein, y compris certaines chansons qui n’avaient pas été orchestrées dans la production originale et d’autres coupées dans la version de 1973. Cette Version III a été créée par le New York City Opera le 13 octobre 1982, à nouveau dans une mise en scène d’Harold Prince. Le spectacle sera joué à 34 représentations dans les répertoires des trois saisons qui suivirent…
Le 18 novembre 1982, Lilian Hellman, autrice du livret original, a écrit une lettre un peu cinglante à Bernstein contenant: «Vous êtes trop insensible pour savoir que je n’aurais jamais voulu qu’un pirate comme Hugh Wheeler s’amuse avec mon travail, et je n’ai jamais aimé le travail de Hal Prince [...]». Elle mourra deux ans plus tard, le 30 juin 1984.

Versions IV - «Version Scottish Opera» - 1988 (Sous la «supervision» de Bernstein)
Scottish Opera – 1988
En 1988, Bernstein a commencé à travailler aux côtés de John Mauceri, alors directeur du Scottish Opera, pour produire une version exprimant ses dernières volontés à l’égard de Candide. Wheeler est mort le 26 juillet 1987 avant de pouvoir retravailler le texte, et John Wells fut engagé à cet effet. Le nouveau spectacle a d’abord été produit par le Scottish Opera avec le crédit «Adapté pour le Scottish Opera par John Wells et John Mauceri».
Le spectacle incluait un nouvel Entracte et un chœur récurrent Universal Good créé par Bernstein à partir d'un air abandonné depuis longtemps.
Il a été créé le 19 mai 1988 au Theatre Royale de Galsgow. La représentation est diffusée à la BBC (TV). Cette version est transférée à Londres où elle se joue 34 fois à l’Old Vic à partir du 1er décembre 1988.

Versions V - «Final Revised Version» - 1989 (Bernstein)
Barbican Center – Concert – 1989
Après avoir assisté aux dernières répétitions et à l’ouverture à Glasgow, Bernstein décida que le temps était venu pour que le compositeur lui-même réexamine Candide. Prenant la Version Scottisch Opéra (Version IV) comme base de travail, il fit des changements dans l’orchestration, remania l’ordre des scènes et des chansons dans l’acte II, et modifia la fin de plusieurs morceaux.
Après ce travail de fond, Bernstein a dirigé les 12 et 13 décembre 1989 le London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus dans deux concerts au Barbican Center de Londres de ce qu’il a intitulé la Final Revised Version.
Le cast et l’orchestre ont enregistré cette version aux Abbey Road Studios du 15 au 18 décembre 1989 et enregistré ce qu’il a appelé sa Final Revised Version avec Jerry Hadley (Candide), June Anderson (Cunegonde), Christa Ludwig (Old Lady) et Adolph Green (Dr. Pangloss). Deutsche Grammophon a sorti un DVD (2006, 147 min.) en son surround 5.0, de l’enregistrement du 13 décembre 1989 au London Barbican Center, avec un prologue et un épilogue en bonus video mais aussi un petit livret imprimé, «Bernstein et Voltaire» où John Wells expliquait ce que Bernstein voulait dans cette la Final Revised Version.
Bernstein meurt moins d’un an plus tard, le 14 octobre 1990.

Et après…
Opera Theatre of St Louis – mai 1994 – Création sur scène de la “Final Revised Version” (Version V)
Cette dernière version voulue par Bernstein a été crée le 2 mai 1994 au Loretto-Hilton Theater de St. Louis, pour 10 représentations, fermant le 25 juin. La mise en scène était de Colin Graham.
Lyric Opera of Chicago – nov 1994 – Harold Prince remet en scène sa Version III
Harold Prince allait une fois de plus s’attaquer à Candide. Mais pas avec la Final Revised Version. Non, il reprend sa version du New York City Opera de 1982 (Version III). Le cast comprenait Jason Danieley (Candide), Harolyn Blackwell (Cunegonde), Jim Dale (Dr. Pangloss), Andrea Martin (Old Lady) et Brent Barrett (Maximilian). Le spectacle s’est joué à 11 reprises du 26 novembre au 22 décembre 1994.
Gershwin Theatre – 1997 – Harold Prince – Version III
Après plus de vingt ans d’absence à Broadway (la version contestée mais populaire de 1973 au Broadway Theatre), Candide revient à Broadway toujours dans une mise en scène d’Harold Prince. Il présente cette fois une version plus sage, celle du New York City Opera de 1982 (Version III). Le musical se joue du 29 avril au 27 juillet 1997 au Gershwin Theatre pour 11 previews et 103 représentations. Le cast comprenait Jason Danieley (Candide), Harolyn Blackwell (Cunegonde), Jim Dale (Dr. Pangloss), Andrea Martin (Old Lady) et Brent Barrett (Maximilian). Le musical a reçu 4 nominations aux Tony Awards, dont Best Musical Revival.

Versions VI - «NT Version» - 1999 (Sans Bernstein)
National Theatre de Londres – 1999
En 1999, le Royal National Theatre de Londres a décidé de produire une nouvelle version de Candide. Le livret de Wheeler a été réécrit par John Caird. Ce nouveau livret est beaucoup plus proche du texte original de Voltaire que toutes les versions précédentes. Les chansons sont restées en grande partie comme Bernstein l’avait prévu, à part quelques retouches de Sondheim et Wilbur. Cette version, la NT Version, a été un grand succès et a par la suite été reprise à plusieurs reprises.
Au National Theatre, elle s’est jouée en alternance (comme toujours au NT) à l’Olivier Theatre du 13 avril 1999 au 25 janvier 2000 pour 101 représentations. Un succès sans être un triomphe: la salle est remplie à 70%, ce qui est peu au National Theatre. La mise en scène était de John Caird.

Et après…
Théâtre du Chatelet à Paris – 2006 – “Final Revised Version”
En 2006, à l’occasion du 50^ème anniversaire de la création de Candide, le Théâtre du Châtelet à Paris a programmé l’œuvre dans une mise en scène de Robert Carsen. La version jouée est la Final Revised Version. La production transforme le proscenium en un gigantesque téléviseur des années 1950, et fait apparaître Voltaire comme narrateur, changeant de chaîne entre certaines scènes. Robert Carsen resitue l’action dans le monde des années 1950-1960, avec une perspective américaine commentant la politique mondiale contemporaine. Rappelons que c’est un retour aux sources puisque l’on est très proche des intentions originales de la Version I et du livret original de Lillian Hellman. Cette production a été terriblement contestée… L’article du journal Le Monde en est un bel exemple: « Après avoir enduré (contrairement à une partie de la salle, hilare) les quelque trois heures d'un spectacle sinistre à force de se vouloir drôle et intéressant, désert à force de vouloir "meubler", on se dit que Carsen aurait dû aller voir ce que d'autres ont fait de Candide. (…) La scène où sont caricaturés les cinq présidents de l'"entente cordiale", dont Jacques Chirac, bouteille à la main, n'a rien de bouffon ou de sarcastique: c'est, comme si souvent avec Carsen, le degré le plus bête de la relecture. (…) Robert Carsen dit : "S'il était en vie, j'espère que (Leonard Bernstein) approuverait nos choix." Ne faisons pas parler les morts, mais une petite voix nous dit qu'il serait horrifié.»
La production devait être transférée au Teatro alla Scala de Milan en 2007. Mais ce transfert a été annulé après que Stéphane Lissner, directeur artistique et général de La Scala, ait vu la production à Paris. Mais plus tard la décision a été inversée et la production, retravaillée, y a bien joué comme prévu. Il fut ensuite transféré pour des représentations de l’ENO au Coliseum Theatre (23 juin au 12 juillet 2008). L’accueil y fut aussi houleux qu’à Paris !
La production du Châtelet a été filmée et diffusée sur Arte.