Who is Candide? What makes him tick? Geoff Packard stars as the eternal optimist in the production now playing at the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Sidney Harman Hall.
Unlike earlier concepts of Voltaire’s novel, the story is more closely adapted to the original by Tony Award-winning director Mary Zimmerman. The result is a fresh take on the character who has come across in the past as slightly silly.
“In this production, Candide has blood and guts,” Packard said. “He’s not cartoonish, but a philosopher whose name means honesty. Mary’s process of rehearsing is to work with no script. We were all familiar with the novel, so we chose what aspects of the story were important to include and developed it as we went, adding more at each rehearsal.
| IF YOU GO |
| ‘Candide’ |
| » Where: Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F St. NW |
| » When: Through Jan. 9 |
| » Info: Tickets from $48, discounts for students, seniors and military; 202-537-1122; shakespearetheatre.org |
“I’d played another character in a college production and I’d seen a concert staging with Kristin Chenoweth in which Candide comes across as daffy and dumb, a person who believes everything he hears. Now I see him as a philosopher and someone who is very bright.
“He is enchantingly naive in this show and in the novel, but he finally comes of age. In past versions, he and Cunegonde, who remains as beautiful as ever, find each other and go back to Westphalia.
“In this show, however, Cunegonde has turned old and ugly by the time they reconnect. Still, they decide to start a new life together. This time, however, they go to Constantinople and I get the feeling that we’re at the end of the world.”
This role is about as far as Packard could get from “Rock of Ages,” the Broadway rock musical in which he cavorted in leather jackets, a wig and black eye liner.
Ironically, his co-star in that show was Lauren Molina, who plays Cunegonde in “Candide.” They both auditioned at the same time and were overjoyed to be chosen for the Chicago debut of Zimmerman’s creative staging. Like Molina, Packard dusted off his classical voice to sing the challenging Bernstein songs.
Before “ROA,” Packard had appeared on Broadway in “Phantom of the Opera” following a national tour of that show. His other credits include a national tour of “Wicked” and regional productions at Ford’s Theatre, the Kennedy Center rep and Connecticut’s Goodspeed Opera House. He even did a turn on TV’s “Guiding Light,” but his heart is devoted to the stage.
Growing up in Brockport, N.Y., he tried everything in high school: three sports, band, chorus and student government. After deciding that he was best suited to musical theater, he headed to the intensive course offered at Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. His primary goal was to avoid being kicked out.
At the end of the first year, he survived the cut of 10 class members from the original 29, subsequently earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts, and has been thriving ever since in roles that emphasize his versatility.
“It was a great honor to be chosen as Candide and to work with Mary Zimmerman and the amazing people at Shakespeare Theatre,” Packard said. “This show is beautifully staged and the story Mary has developed will stay with the audience. I want them to walk away pondering the philosophical issues and questions they present.”
