“There is a remarkable nimbleness of style, a balancing act of tone, in Voltaire, which is hard to bring off on stage. When you speak the words out loud, the effect is very different from when you read them. So one needs to do something new with a stage performance, not simply 'tell the story'.” NeedsDifferentHardStoriesSpeakEffectsStageStylePerformancesLoudToneRemarkableSomething NewBalancing ActStage Performance Author:Mark Ravenhill
“Even within single sentences, there are sudden changes of register. And when the travellers go to Venice, they see a play by Voltaire! This is a novel [Candid] which has narratives within narratives, such as when Cunégonde recounts her story.” PlayStoriesNovelSentencesNarrativeTravellerVeniceRegisterCandidSingle SentenceSudden Change Author:Mark Ravenhill
“I have not chosen to create a linear story, but a series of different narratives: in the end there are five plays that almost, but don't quite, add up to one play... I start with the story of Candide, being performed as a play within a play, to bring the audience up to speed with the story.” DifferentEndsPlayStoriesAudienceFiveAddSeriesSpeedChosenNarrativeLinearCandide Author:Mark Ravenhill
“Translating Candide into tweets has really deepened my appreciation of his writing - it wouldn't work so well with nineteenth-century authors. Every single sentence in Voltaire seems to advance the story, and yet stand alone as a sound-bite.” WritingWellsStoriesSeemsSoundCenturyAppreciationSentencesBitesTranslateTweetNineteenth CenturyStand AloneReally DeepSound BitesCandideSingle Sentence Author:Mark Ravenhill
