Rousing and classic British musical
Evita, New Theatre, Cardiff
THE all-encompassing cult of celebrity shows no signs of abating and in a way Eva Peron was ahead of her time.
Now the classic Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice musical, about the life of Argentina’s political and cultural icon, returns to Cardiff’s New Theatre.
Evita’s story is the classic Hollywood rags to riches, although with added political and iconic status. Ambitious starlet Eva Duarte leaves the provinces for Buenos Aires; making her way up the social ladder; becoming a model, radio star and actress, before falling in love with future president of Argentina and becoming a beacon of hope for the Argentine working class.
I have to admit, I love Evita – after I saw this musical the first time I bought the original concept album and West End cast recording on vinyl from Ebay.
Although I’ve only seen one live Eva Perón in Louise Dearman (I am familiar with Paige, LuPone and Covington), Emma Hatton is up there with the best. Fresh from her run in Wicked, I was concerned that her voice was a little too Broadway in parts but her performances of the more tender style songs – I’d Be Surprisingly Good For You, You Must Love Me – sat better with me; and any concerns about her performance were banished while she had the audience in the palm of her hand for the show’s most famous number: Don’t Cry For Me, Argentina.
Even though her role is nameless, Sarah O’Connor leaves a lasting impression with her plaintive performance of the show’s other famous song, Another Suitcase In Another Hall. As the cynical spectre at the feast, Gian Marco Schiaretti brings some Latin authenticity and passion to the piece in his role as Che (and the audience’s female contingent certainly enjoyed him too).
As Juan Perón, Kevin Stephen-Jones with his resonant voice brings a certain gravitas to the role of the Argentine President.
Although the show’s original basis (a biography of Eva Peron based on antiPerónist accounts) has been long since refuted, Evita is a still an enjoyable – and at times musically rousing and melodramatic – classic British musical.