Candide

A COMIC OPERETTA IN TWO ACTS
Music by LEONARD BERNSTEIN
Book by HUGH WHEELER  •  Based on the Satire by VOLTAIRE  •  Lyrics by RICHARD WILBUR

Clarence Brown Theatre in collaboration with The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra 2018

Director: Calvin MacLean
Conducted by KSO Music Director Aram Demirjian
Choreographer: Casey Sams
Set Design: Michael Ganio
Costume Design: Bill Black
Lighting Design: Jennifer Tipton
Sound Design: Curtis Craig
Projection Design: Joe Payne

“Searching throughout the Old and New World for his beloved Cunegonde, Candide’s philosophy of Optimism is challenged by catastrophe after catastrophe. Bernstein’s brilliant and beautiful score deepens Voltaire’s great satire with contributions from the greatest lyricists of the 20th century.”

It’s not every day you get a thirty-eight piece orchestra on stage in regional theatre musical productions.  It definitely turned this production into an epic masterpiece.  The Projections were designed to place our location in this globe trotting adventure. 

Review: Michael Ganio’s intriguing set gave the orchestra a prominent, though upstage, position, with conductor Demirjian on a raised knob of sorts, allowing him to be a dramatic/comic participant on occasion. The acoustic balance of orchestra against mic-ed singers was flawless (sound design by Curtis Craig), at least from my vantage point. Joe Payne’s elaborate projection provided a visual narration of the globe-hopping action, drawing the audience into the geography of the moment. The lighting was rich, yet gorgeously subtle and layered, a product of one of the American theatre’s great lighting designers, Jennifer Tipton. Bill Black’s costumes painted a depth of rich details that were beautifully supportive of the portrayals and comic ironies.
– Alan Sherrod, ArtsKNoxville article link

Review: Michael Ganio’s set of curving platforms and a constellation-filled sky, Joe Payne’s projections, Broadway master Jennifer Tipton’s lighting, Bill Black’s costumes and Curtis Craig’s impeccable sound design (every lyric in this word-dense show was crystal clear), richly enhances the story’s wildly picaresque, continent-and-history-spanning story.
– Hedy Weiss, Chicago Tonight WTTW article link

Candide Projection Design Demo by Joe Payne.  Production stills, combined with video of the actual projection sequences.