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Left - David Woods, Frank Woodley, Barry Otto & Alison Whyte. Cover - Frank Woodley. Photos - Jeff Busby

There is a refined synergy in Michael Kantor’s production of Optimism, a modern reworking of Voltaire’s classic adventure. Frank Woodley’s Buster Keaton influenced Candide is a clever invention for a modern hero and Barry Otto’s weird old Pangloss is convincing as the mentor from whom Candide has internalized that “everything is for the best in this, the best of all possible worlds”.

Although all the cast are strong, the real star of this show is Anna Tregloan’s wildly inventive and thought provoking set which supports and enhances the production, articulating much that the script cannot convey. There are playful costumes, tacky curtains, velveteen airplane seats and the cold steel fuselage of a jet, in which our hero spends a lot of time crisscrossing the planet in search of his beloved Cunegonde.

Tom Wright’s mash up of Voltaire’s 18th century novella has contemporized some aspects but it is Tregloan’s design that instills angst in the audience and fully elicits a doleful modern resonance. Terrorism, planes falling out of the sky, pandemics, global warming are all nicely run through the ringer of Pangloss’ always-look-on-the-bright-side-of-life philosophy but the real horror is created by the juxtaposition of anemic words with incisive visuals. The result is 18th century irony supersized to 21st century savage satire. By the end even the terminally cheerful Candide is looking nonplussed. A modern Candide, having arrived in 2010 via the 20th century, is subject to psychological interpretations and Woodley’s Candide is probably on anti-depressants. In the face of terrifying nihilism, Candide says “Oh well,” but it is more a depressed capitulation to the force of an alpha personality than a philosophical positioning. Optimism, in the face of modern global culture, has failed him.

Most interesting are old political references to exploitation of the ‘new world’ colonies so that Europeans can enjoy sugar, reminding us that Doha, NAFTA and other free trade agreements have historical roots. A slave (Hamish Michael), sings a tortured version of Altered Images’ I Could Be Happy… if I wasn’t being exploited by the first world, being the inference. Other pop songs such as Devo’s Beautiful World, D:Ream’s Things Can Only Get Better, and Hazi Fantayzee’s Shiny Shiny peppered throughout serve as a sharp reminder of the gap between commercial pap and life’s darker realities.

Director Michael Kantor shows sophistication in allowing his characters to linger in the meaninglessness of their existence, a distinct influence from his recent Beckett production. It’s new and uncomfortable for audiences, this deeper space that he takes us to. The actors respond and produce great emotional torque but the script fails the actors when they arrive at that deeper place. The omission of updated gender roles drags and gnaws at the philosophical conceit of the production; the audience is on board with updated male characters and their new moral vicissitudes but the women characters remain firmly embedded in the 18th century with horrendous sexual violence seemingly unremarkable. There are current 21st century responses to violence against women but for Tom Wright’s Cunegonde, Paquette and Jaqueline, its 18th century business as usual.

Overall, Anna Tregloan’s visuals and Frank Woodley’s sublime characterization of Candide open up spaces for mapping the anxiety provoking terrain of the 21st Century, while Michael Kantor lures his audiences into the new decade of the millennium on the false promise of a fun time.


Sydney Theatre Company, Sydney Festival, Malthouse Melbourne and Edinburgh International Festival present
Optimism
by Tom Wright, after Voltaire

Director: Michael Kantor

Venue: Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House.
Dates: 8 January to 20 February 2010 (SEASON EXTENDED)
Tickets: $30 - $85
Bookings: 02 9250 1777 | sydneytheatre.com.au