Candide

Comedy, High School / Characters: 12m, 16f, 20+ non-gender / The story of Voltaire's Candide, as adapted in 2 hilarious hours by a quirky amateur theatre group. Candide, the unlucky innocent, is lead through a series of outlandish, side-splitting misadventures that span nine countries, in order to be reunited with his childhood love. Along his journey he encounters shipwrecks and pirates, war, passion, riches beyond the comprehension of mortal man, death by fire, hanging and impalement, Inquisitions, earthquakes, volcanoes, revolution, slave traders, brothels, and sheep... lots of sheep. Throughout his Job-like escapades, he is forced to question his optimistic outlook: is life a cruel or kind expedition? In the end, optimism and good prevail. Candide discovers that the best of all possible worlds is a simple life along-side his true love, and the best example of optimism is a farmer who plants his garden and trusts that it will grow. The play is narrated by Pangloss, the philosopher of Optimism, Paquette, the generous chambermaid, and the Old Woman with No Name and Only One Buttock, who has only one buttock. Each lends their unique perspective to the activities. Candide is a play for directors who like big casts and small budgets. A unit set with simplified, cartoon-like designs best suits the fast paced action. Of the many parts, all but seven can be doubled, and nearly all the parts are gender neutral, thanks to a convenient disclaimer in the prologue.