Actor Scott Bakula, known for his starring roles in \u201cQuantum Leap,\u201d \u201cStar Trek: Enterprise\u201d and \u201cNCIS: New Orleans,\u201d will make his LA Opera debut in a production of Leonard Bernstein\u2019s \u201cCandide\u201d at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion next month.<\/p>\n
Bakula will portray both the French philosopher and writer Voltaire and Dr. Pangloss, the relentlessly optimistic tutor to the title character, in six performances scheduled from Nov. 21 through Dec. 13.<\/p>\n
He joins a cast that includes three-time Tony Award winner Patti LuPone as the Old Lady, tenor Duke Kim in the title role and soprano Meghan Picerno as Cunegonde.<\/p>\n
\u201cScott Bakula is a consummate performer whose extraordinary career has moved effortlessly between theater, television, film and music,\u201d said Christopher Koelsch, LA Opera\u2019s president and CEO. \u201cHis wit, warmth and musicality make him an ideal fit for Candide, and we\u2019re thrilled to welcome him to LA Opera.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bakula began his career in theater, making his Broadway debut in 1983 as Joe DiMaggio in \u201cMarilyn: An American Fable.\u201d He received a Tony Award nomination in 1988 for his starring role in the musical \u201cRomance\/Romance.\u201d<\/p>\n
He most recently appeared on the New York stage opposite Ariana DeBose in an Off-Broadway production of \u201cThe Baker\u2019s Wife\u201d and has performed in stage productions including \u201cMan of La Mancha,\u201d \u201cGuys and Dolls\u201d and \u201cThree Guys Naked from the Waist Down.\u201d<\/p>\n
On television, Bakula won a Golden Globe Award and received four Emmy nominations for his portrayal of time-traveling physicist Sam Beckett in \u201cQuantum Leap.\u201d<\/p>\n
He later portrayed Capt. Jonathan Archer in \u201cStar Trek: Enterprise,\u201d Special Agent Dwayne Pride in \u201cNCIS: New Orleans\u201d and Terry Elliott in \u201cMen of a Certain Age.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also received an Emmy nomination for the HBO film \u201cBehind the Candelabra\u201d and appeared in films including \u201cAmerican Beauty\u201d and \u201cThe Informant!\u201d<\/p>\n
LuPone, who has previously appeared with LA Opera in \u201cRise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny\u201d and \u201cThe Ghosts of Versailles,\u201d returns to the company as the Old Lady.<\/p>\n
Kim previously performed with LA Opera in \u201cRom\u00e9o et Juliette\u201d and \u201cWest Side Story,\u201d while Picerno, who appeared on Broadway as Christine Daa\u00e9 in \u201cThe Phantom of the Opera,\u201d will make her LA Opera debut.<\/p>\n
Based on Voltaire\u2019s 1759 satirical novel, \u201cCandide\u201d follows a young man whose optimistic worldview is challenged by war, natural disasters and other misfortunes as he travels in search of his beloved Cunegonde.<\/p>\n
The work features music by Bernstein and a book by Hugh Wheeler, adapted from Voltaire\u2019s novel in a new version by John Caird. Its musical numbers include \u201cGlitter and Be Gay\u201d and \u201cMake Our Garden Grow.\u201d<\/p>\n
The production, directed by Francesca Zambello, was first presented by LA Opera in 2018 and will be conducted by resident conductor Lina Gonz\u00e1lez-Granados, leading the company\u2019s orchestra and chorus.<\/p>\n
Performances are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Nov. 21, Dec. 2, Dec. 5 and Dec. 10, and 2 p.m. Nov. 29 and Dec. 13.<\/p>\n
The performances will take place at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 N. Grand Ave., with a running time of approximately two hours and 30 minutes, including one intermission.<\/p>\n
Additional information is available at LAOpera.org\/Candide.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Actor Scott Bakula, known for his starring roles in \u201cQuantum Leap,\u201d \u201cStar Trek: Enterprise\u201d and \u201cNCIS: New Orleans,\u201d…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":498207,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[193395,48,52,51,193396,47,50,49,10239,193397,45662,18571],"class_list":["post-498206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-bakula","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-leap","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news","tag-opera","tag-quantum","tag-scott","tag-takes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498206","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=498206"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498206\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/498207"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=498206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=498206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=498206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}