ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, June 15, 1996 TAG: 9606180011
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: B-10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SETH WILLIAMSON SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES
The Lisbon earthquake, a Disney baby-boomer cultural icon, and feuds between major American writers: One way or another, they're all part of Opera Roanoke's production of "Candide," which opens a four-night run tonight at Olin Hall Theater on the Roanoke College campus.
Leonard Bernstein's satirical operetta is based on Voltaire's picaresque novella "Candide," which was inspired by the 1755 earthquake that killed 30,000 people in Portugal's capital city. The French philosopher was out to ridicule the notion that "all's for the best in this best of all possible worlds." Bernstein, in turn, wanted to lampoon what he saw as the complacency of American life in the Eisenhower era.
Though Bernstein's catchy tunes and poet Richard Wilbur's witty lyrics have delighted audiences all over the world, playwright Lillian Hellman's adaptation has never been considered quite right. So a dozen major revisions have been produced since 1956, often accompanied by rancorous disagreement between Wilbur, Hellman, Bernstein and other revisers.
And the baby-boomer cultural icon? That's soprano Mary Costa, who was the voice of Sleeping Beauty in Walt Disney's classic 1950s animated film, and who sang the role of Cunegonde in major productions of "Candide" in America and England. Costa, who is a longtime friend of Opera Roanoke General Director Craig Fields, will make a cameo appearance at the beginning of the show.
Costa, who says that even today at age 66 she is sometimes recognized by her voice as Sleeping Beauty, is no stranger to Roanoke. She did two recitals in Roanoke in the 1960s.
"Bill Bowles and James Powers [of the Roanoke interior design firm Bowles Nelson Powers Inc.] just decorated my house in Knoxville," Costa said. The singer also has a cousin and aunt who live in Roanoke.
She moved back to her hometown of Knoxville two years ago after the death of her mother in Florida at 101. "I am so energized by being in the South, and I love the mountains. It's a great base for me," said Costa, who keeps busy tutoring University of Tennessee performance students.
She was 22 in 1952 when she snagged the role of Sleeping Beauty, which, like so many Hollywood stories, came about by a chance meeting at a dinner party. "They had been looking for somebody for the role for three years," Costa said. "They said they were captivated by the youthful sound of my voice. There was almost a naive sensuality to it, which they liked very much."
The animated film, for which she also did some modeling, was slow going and required her presence in the recording studio many times between 1952 and 1958. During this period she became well-known to Americans as the voice of the Chrysler Corp. on the weekly TV show "Climax" and Jack Benny's monthly TV show "Shower of Stars." Costa recalls that she would practice her singing backstage at the same time Benny sawed away on his violin, and it was the comedian who suggested to her that she had a future in opera.
Apparently Benny had a good ear for vocal talent, because Costa went on to a long and successful career on the operatic stage. At one time she and Fields had the same vocal coach, and they sang together in a production of "La Traviata." Costa went on to sing the role of Cunegonde during a long American tour and was the only American chosen for an otherwise all-English cast in a London production supervised by Bernstein.
She also sang in the MGM film "The Great Waltz" and got great reviews as a last-minute replacement for opera legend Elizabeth Schwartzkopf in a series of concerts at the Hollywood Bowl.
Costa says she is still amazed that her very first big role, as Sleeping Beauty, is the one that's done the most for her reputation. ``They re-release that film every 10 years to a new generation of kids, and every week I have to sign photographs. I do so many a week that you just wouldn't believe it."
Does she ever get tired of people asking her to slip into her Sleeping Beauty persona? "No, I'm not sick of it because I expect people to do that. I will admit that it's not very pleasing for a 66-year-old woman to ACT like Sleeping Beauty, but I don't mind doing the voice. I guess there is still that kind of fantasy thinking, even in my own heart."
Opera Roanoke's managing director, Bobbie Slough, says the company's production, directed by Ben Krywosz and conducted by Fields, is based on the last production that Bernstein himself was involved in before his death, the Scottish National Opera version of 1988. ``Bernstein gave his approval to it, he conducted the concert version at the Barbican in London, and it's the closest thing to a definitive stage version that there is," Slough said.
n``Candide'' opens tonight at Roanoke College. Continuing shows are Monday, Wednesday and June 21. Curtain time is 8 each night, and tickets remain for all performances. $20 to $28. 982- 2742.
LENGTH: Medium: 87 linesby CNB