Candide - Glitter and Be Gay with Leonard Bernstein

[@francescodonizetti]

I know someone who attended this performance. Allegedly, Bernstein mentioned that she did this role with laryngitis and cannot speak.

[@LaDivinaLover]

It was actually the flu. Influenza had and I quote Bernstein “decimated our ranks but this, this lovely creature (Anderson)” pulled through and made the performance.

[@TJ4King]

Anyone who gave this thumbs down does not deserve to have thumbs.

[@kennethdavies5598]

Vince Reighard - You got that right!

[@mscott3918]

Totally agree with you. The whole production is a treat, with great performances. I love Christa Ludwig particularly.

[@circuspies9715]

guess i shouldn't have thumbs i guess

[@FlowersInHisHair]

I love how Mr Bernstein gives the upbeat at 6:10 - they're all so totally 'in the zone' that all he needs to do it rev them back up! It's a great little moment

[@Liszt31]

It is so full of energy that moment that it always make me cry...

[@salumbre365]

Chenoweth gives a funny comedic performance, and her singing is Broadway standard, but for me this is THE Cunegonde, bar none. To think that June Anderson was sick as a dog when she gave THIS performance is mind-blowing. What a voice, what vigor, what depth of feeling.

[@michellejunelambert9605]

how do you know she was sick? She sounds perfect. You can't sing that well with phlegm on the cords. She's amazing.

[@ciociosan]

Felix Lizarraga I have a lady friend who was there. Bernstein announced that the soprano had laryngitis and could not speak.

[@salumbre365]

Because it's a very famous performance, among other things. It's nothing short of miraculous.

[@salumbre365]

I would give a couple of years of my life for being your friend and having been there, ciociosan.

[@salumbre365]

She sounds like she swallowed a fracking nightingale.

[@derrickharley1989]

She sounds so...... PERFECT!!!!! I'm in tears!!

[@dougcargill6730]

Christa Ludwig was beaning the entire time. I really miss her on the stage. One of my all-time favorite mezzos.

[@deborahtucker3964]

RIP Christa Ludwig

[@anaihilator]

You damn right!

[@tomasdrake]

the amount of control Anderson has over her voice is amazing

[@thevenussociety5017]

The best. I would give much to hear June and Leonard live this evening, Too late, I realize. C'est la vie.

[@photo161]

Just a spectacular performance, both magnificently sung and outrageously funny as well. Lenny must have been very pleased indeed.

[@hervecarbuccia9929]

Il s'est d'ailleurs permis un baiser pas forcément consenti🥴

[@BearAZ]

I totally love that she did this without ever sacrificing that ravishing, beautiful tone quality of hers.

[@MySensualWorld]

June is just fabulous and incredible, and she doesn’t overact, she seems to realize the character is an aristocratic, while it is suppose to be funny, it should also be realistic, and aristocrat like Cunegonde would still be classy and elegant too.

[@feliperojasanchez]

Incredible best version ever!

[@chrislyons1659]

Truly amazing performance!!

[@petersmiling9494]

6:10 Nine months before his death, Leonard gave it all again.

[@davidgarciasanchez1090]

This is my favorite version. She is the meaning of coloratura. A sound out of this world. ❤❤❤

[@mstreepnegron]

Brava! Bravissima la gran June Anderson. Grandiosa técnica y actuación, además dirigida por el propio compositor, que hizo una de las arias más endiabladas y difíciles en su ópera Cándide. Bravo para ambos, para Anderson y Bernstein....!!!!!!!

[@hervecarbuccia9929]

Exactement 🤩

[@papagen00]

According to Barbara Cook, the original 1956 Cunegonde, Lenny wanted the "ha ha ha" sung non-legato like a real laughter.

[@johnslater8998]

Easier said than done.

[@meltzerboy]

Some very strong emotions--both positive and negative--about June Anderson's performance. She acts more in a performance two years later than this one, in which she can move about the stage. I think her singing is very good, and she does act well with her voice. There are a host of other performances as well, all good, I believe, but different, ranging from those of Roberta Peters and Natalie Dessay, to Madeline Kahn and Kristen Chenoweth, and, of course, the creator of the role of Cunegonde, Barbara Cook. I admire them all.

[@claudioalbanese427]

❤

[@maestromuffin1]

so what's the negative????

[@meltzerboy]

@@maestromuffin1 None really, in my opinion. I was referring to the strong reactions, both positive and negative, of others regarding June Anderson's performance.

[@maestromuffin1]

@@meltzerboygottcha! It was a concert performance, and June is a singer - not actress. I'll never forget how pure her voice was when she was young!

[@claudioalbanese427]

Simly the best ever performance of this aria🎉

[@davidcassaday6076]

brilliant...

[@sergiootellorossinipesarod5135]

E come l'ammirava il tenore mentre cantava....magnifica

[@odionsmailbox]

I love when she does the staccatos... She killed this aria.

[@ElphabaEmerald182]

My God, she's amazing.

[@anaihilator]

I attended many an opera performance at the MET in the mid 80s/early 90s. June was a mainstay in that time and I'm so happy she is getting her well deserved flowers 🌼 🌸

[@jamesmiller6244]

Fabulous

[@geraldsachs1325]

fabulous

[@williamclifford4441]

At the end of the Performance, Leonard Bernstein told the audience the many of the cast were suffering from Influenza - including himself!

[@photo161]

...just a spectacularly well sung and riotously funny and finely acted Glitter and Be Gay...!

[@anaihilator]

I attended MET performances regularly in the late 80s and early 90s. June was a staple and great in comedic Mozart operas. I am a stan!

[@charmeueueur]

June rocks! But to very honest, my attention caught Jerry Hadley next to her...it breaks my heart to see him after his lose. Both great artists.

[@fernandamouga3543]

Very said.

[@jglass54]

A wonderful performance by June Anderson. It makes me sad to see the late Jerry Hadley, a great Candide among other tenor roles, seated next to her. Hadley committed suicide in 2007.

[@angelaknebel4156]

Yes I was thinking the same thing .... :(

[@murderoustendencies]

Wow... it looks as though she is speaking... incredible o_O

[@erpollock]

June Anderson is a real opera singer. Compared to Madeline Kahn, who is greatly missed, Anderson nails this piece in true operatic style. Her diction is intelligible - Kahn's is not. She acts the song so effectively that Jerry Hadley (greatly missed) can hardly contain his laughter - though not his admiration. If Bernstein engages you to sing Glitter & Be Gay, you can be sure this is how he wanted his piece performed.

[@VideoDanielful]

I love her voice :3

[@thevenussociety5017]

One of the best.

[@ronh5757]

Fabulous.

[@cyclonekid97]

There's something to be said about the caliber (a spectacularly high one) of the singer when the composer asks for them to perform, as is the case here.

[@williampelto6095]

It may not be well known but Jerry Hadley wrote s translation for Das Land des Lachens by Fran Lehar for a production a number of years ago.

[@hayerwhophtow6700]

Merveilleux, spectaculaire ET SOBRE . Quand on voit LE CIRQUE que font dernièrement les chanteuses dans cet air...comme quoi il faut être un peu clownesque par le temps qui courent.

[@hervecarbuccia9929]

Tout à fait d'accord...et la plupart n'ont que la moitié des moyens de l'immense June!

[@BellaFirenze]

Jerry Hadley (June 16, 1952 - July 18, 2007)

[@ioanacristinastefananestor4176]

Wonderful song.

[@Shahrdad]

Of opera singers who've sung this, she's my favorite. Almost everyone else "does" too much in the aria and it becomes way too over the top. Anderson doesn't manage to get all the H's out in the hahahaHaHahaha, but overall, she's great. Still, nobody has sung this as beautifully and perfectly as Barbara Cook. And she did it eight times a week.

[@guiradobrasil]

Are people really comparing June Anderson with Kristin Chenoweth?

[@ciociosan]

Marcos Guirado sadly.

[@salumbre365]

Oh, it's everywhere. And I wouldn't say sadly. Chenoweth is excellent Broadway, Anderson is operatic heaven. They ARE apples and oranges.

[@Ursaminor31]

What if we threw in Madeleine Kahn as the perfect bridge!

[@highbaritone]

Ursa Minor that would have been wonderful.

[@maslowgiselle]

Adoro esto 😍

[@maslowgiselle]

La sigo adorando jajaja 🥺

[@grgr3074]

look at Leonard how happy he is.......

[@edebrigard]

Nice!

[@FlowersInHisHair]

This is in concert; it's supposed to be presentational. I think painful it a bit strong, and in any case, it hardly matters if she doesn't quite get the characterisation right when she has that voice.

[@annabellethedoll4032]

And she was sick too! Amazing! (It was announced before she performed that she had laryngitis.)

[@wotan10950]

E She wasn’t just under the weather - the entire cast, orchestra, and chorus had a virulent flu. At the end of the full performance, Bernstein stops the ovations to talk about the situation; Hadley never missed a rehearsal, and Anderson was in such bad shape she nearly canceled. Her extraordinary bel canto technique got her through the performance.

[@jondavwal13]

If you ever heard her when. she wasn't sick, there isn't much difference.

[@stvp68]

Lenny doing his own comic acting

[@paules3437]

Just once I'd like to see HIM singing this.

[@ИринаАрманова-ш7й]

Браво

[@masteroftheeouse]

Wow, the audience went bonkers! Great singing and acting, June! It looks like you had fun with it. Lenny seemed pleased by your singing and acting, too! The poor guy sitting next to you on stage doesn't seem to have a clue, though.

[@Highinsight7]

this whole show... REALLY (in my mind...) is all about Cunégonde... LOVE HER! I really could care less about the rest of them... including that $ucking idiot (who keeps managing to escape deaths traps, everywhere he turns) Candide, himself...

[@mariashouse5492]

Who is this soprano? She's amazing!

[@rrgallo967]

June Anderson

[@matiasbattaglia5092]

This performance brilliantly captures the horrifying insanity (PTSD, denial, escapism) of Cunegonde as is implicit in the novel. She's gone from luxury and an education privileging sexual purity to being gang raped, mutilated, and turned into a sex slave. No, it's NOT funny. In my classes, teaching the novel, Anderson's performance is the one I will show.

[@lindsay_may]

You made exactly the same comment on the BBC Proms video of Scarlett Strallen singing this piece...

[@MrsSurrealista]

The purpose of bringing each character in Candide to complete misery is to make a point about how absurd it is to believe we "live in the best of worlds." (aka Leibnizian optimism.) It is a big big scheme of black comedy on Voltaire's part. Of course getting raped and mutilated isn't funny (at all). What's supposed to be funny is still keeping the same optimistic mindset even after life has showed you...well, the opposite.

[@garfreed]

The lyrics are by Richard Wilbur, former poet laureate of the United States.

[@kyrie0033]

@mariohollerspg That is to compare the Mona Lisa with a sticker of Barby...

[@RandyInCandidCamera]

does that hairstyle have a name?

[@brianletter3545]

Wonderful! But a good example why the orchestra is better in the pit. Also the guy waiting for his entry!

[@termsofusepolice]

LSO Trivia: The gentleman to June's left played Gopher on the Love Boat TV series.

[@SymphonyBrahms]

That's Jerry Hadley, an operatic tenor who was famous all over the world. And he did not play Gopher on the Love Boat (ugh).

[@termsofusepolice]

@@SymphonyBrahms lol

[@TheKPsoftware]

R.I.P Speaker's, the pitch broke them

[@ИринаАрманова-ш7й]

Дирижер великолепен

[@rachelbarlow9382]

Try Natalie Dessay - brilliant!

[@roderickfemm8799]

This piece is not grand opera, it takes a very light touch, and clear enunciation, which (sadly) Ms Anderson does not display here. Folks should listen to Barbara Cook's version from the original cast recording for the way it should sound.

[@obiwan88]

Are you freaking kidding me?!! It's Leonard Bernstein conducting his own music at the helm. Such arrogance and disrespect. Unbelievable!!

[@roderickfemm8799]

@@obiwan88 Leonard Bernstein hired and coached Barbara Cook for the original production of Candide (the work that includes this piece). He knew what he wanted. My guess is he didn't have any choice over who the singer was here, so he did the best he could. Again, go and listen to the Barbara Cook recording, it's available here on KZbin. Here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o3eWl6qmlLulmrM

[@Muttonchop_USA]

@@roderickfemm8799 He chose and coached Anderson, too. And of course she was the most in-demand bel canto soprano at the time.

[@loggats]

shame that Kirstin's voice doesn't come close to Anderson - but I do agree that her performance is funnier!

[@tippypc]

Dawn Upsahw's version is perfection! Comedy and the glissando's are exquiste!

[@latinfreestylesoulvinyl7151]

lol she sounds like she is becoming tired towards the runs around 5:00

[@francescodonizetti]

She had laryngitis during the performance.

[@jdanielwilder]

Seriously?! Wow! I am stunned she could get through it. This is a demanding aria if ever there was one.

[@arcmaptw]

有些走音😢

[@51ira50]

Too much, the words get lost and the punchline is ruined if you moosh out the words. (Definition of "moosh"--to squeeze out, over-sing painfully). Barbara Cook did it best. Anybody got that version?

[@vivemafille]

True, the acting leaves something to be desired--sort of in the Joan Sutherland school--but what a voice!

[@ioanacristinastefananestor4176]

A

[@ActorsWithIssuespodcast]

her high notes are incredible but her lower chest voice notes are all over the place. I prefer Kristin or Madeline Kahn

[@mugrad25]

shes an high operatic dramatic coloratura soprano...other than Maria Callas, they dont really sing in the lower part of the range

[@ScoreAnimation]

@@mugrad25 That's not true. June has even performed some mezzo roles, specially in Rossini. In this performance she was very sick, even Bernstein said it to the audience.

[@oliviero.m750]

“All over the place” ? I wish more sopranos had such “all over the place” notes, as June Anderson’s performance is extraordinary, and without a doubt one of the best since that role was created.

[@jondavwal13]

The best performances are Cook and Madeline Kahn (who sang this at the request of Bernstein in 1968). I dare say Kahn could have been a way better opera singer had she focused on it than June Anderson. How this woman was ever compared to Sutherland is beyond me. They both just have big heads.

[@wotan10950]

Jonathan Wallach Surely you jest. I saw Anderson at the NYCO and Met many times. In certain roles, Semiramide for one, she actually surpassed Sutherland. She was more appreciated in Europe where bel canto was performed with regularity. You may not like her, but many great conductors wanted to work with her.

[@jondavwal13]

Until recently I lived on 72nd and Columbus in Manhattan (5 blocks from Lincoln Center). I now live in Europe where I grew up. I've seen Anderson many times unfortunately. She has one of the ugliest voices I've ever heard. Her voice sounds like it has hair on it. There is no beauty there whatsoever. And no, she never surpassed Sutherland in anything, least of all Semiramide. That was funny. Opera singing is a dead art. Of course they want to work with her. There is nobody left who can sing. Have you ever heard Sutherland in the house? The voice was one of the wonders of the world in its prime and even slightly beyond that point. At her best Anderson wasn't as good as Sutherland when she was 65. The ridiculousness of your comment defies description.

[@wotan10950]

Yes, I heard Sutherland in many operas, as well as recitals in places from Brooklyn to Buffalo. But I’m not going to argue the point. You sound like a stereotypical gay malcontent with no friends, and a contempt for everything that’s good and enjoyable in life. Up your bum!

[@wotan10950]

Jonathan Wallach And who the fuck cares if you lived near the Met?! I grew up a few blocks from Yankee Stadium. Does that make me a great pitcher? Do you want my autograph? You, sir, are a genuine asshole! Which I’m sure many people have visited!

[@jondavwal13]

Dave Glo Lol. Insecure much? Deaf obviously.

[@alainabartkowiak2100]

her facial expressions i could do without. her voice though, mmmmm.

[@judasjules]

Alaina Bartkowiak how would you feel is she just stood there with no emotion?

[@julieperri]

I think it is impossible to do this song well without the comedy and acting. TBH I find that even Kristin Chenoweth did this better than her. Her technicality isnt that spectacular either so its not like that makes up for it.

[@thomastmwc]

he voice is damaging, sighs

[@OpenGL4ever]

I prefer the version with Kristin Chenoweth. Her acting is a lot better and more funny.

[@SymphonyBrahms]

Sort of like burlesque comedy.

[@MySensualWorld]

June’s acting was almost perfect, because she is suppose to be an aristocrat, kristen’s acting was not right for this role, Kristen came across as a silly faced and bubbly, her acting seemed more fit for an episode of the Jeff Foxworthy show or the Reba Mcantire show, or a performance on a televangelists show.

[@dchswroboe7569]

@@MySensualWorld thank god someone said what I thought

[@SteveL2012]

She hits all the notes, but it sure ain’t pretty. And her overacting and strange body twitching makes it worse. More like Lucia’s mad scene.

[@MySensualWorld]

June’s movements are actually very reserved compared to most singers that perform this so over the top it is often cringe worthy. The composer himself who is conducting this, chose June and rightfully so to sing Cunegonde!

[@oliviero.m750]

It seems you don’t know this aria and what it supposed to say. On the contrary she is much more reserved compared to most sopranos singing that role. It is an aria where the singer is supposed to laugh, cry etc.