ACCENTS

A few days have gone by and yet I have been very busy. Once again a few filmed operas. One of great interest for me was CANDIDE (Leonard Bernstein) - After «Westside Story» Bernstein had always wanted to write a serious opera. «Candide» (but hardly a serious opera) was presented without much success on Broadway in 1956. Bernstein died in 1990. A stage production was produced in France in 2006 with an overwhelming success. Why I didn’t see it I don’t know. Lambert Wilson played the role of Dr. Pangloss/Voltaire. I am sure if high school adolescents had seen that, they would have found their literary preparation of Candide for the Baccalaureate very much easier. A reasonably modern day production which sticks closely to the original and so called philosophical adventure of Candide. However, highly controversial and many scenes, political, may not have appealed to an American audience.

Lambert Wilson is remarkable. I have only seen him in films but he sings well and of course this change from French (Voltaire) to Dr. Panlgoss in English and both without accent makes me very jealous.

Even after 40 years in France my accent is still strong and I am infuriated when someone says «oh you’re American». «No,»I snarl - «oh English then» - but Australia is so off the beaten track for a European that when I do announce that my roots were Australian, there is a hush! I wonder what Lambert Wilson says when he switches from one language to another without an accent...?

Commentaires

Lo a dit…
But what would be Maggie Keane without her delightful Australian accent?
26/2/12 11:15
Maggie a dit…
Probably a boring citizen
26/2/12 11:43
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