Photo Flash: Lauren Kennedy Stars as EVITA in North Carolina

North Carolina Theatre, the region's premier producer of professional Broadway musical revivals is excited to produce the Andrew Lloyd Webber sensation Evita this Fall. The production will open on Saturday, October 22nd and run through Sunday, October 30th in Raleigh Memorial Auditorium at the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Raleigh.

This stellar production will shine the spotlight on performers close to the hearts of North Carolina residents. Raleigh native-turned-Broadway star, Lauren Kennedy will star as ‘Eva Peron' and Broadway veteran, now Raleigh resident, Ray Walker will star as ‘Che'.

Originally from Raleigh, Lauren Kennedy attended Broughton High School and grew up on the NC Theatre stage before making her move to Broadway. Kennedy has starred in several NC Theatre productions, ranging from ‘Wendy' in Peter Pan as a child to most recently as ‘Annie Oakley' in Annie Get Your Gun opposite Larry Gatlin in 2008. She lives in New York City and has performed on Broadway in Monty Python's Spamalot, Sunset Boulevard, Side Show and Les Misérables.

Ray Walker is the Artistic Director of the North Carolina Theatre Conservatory and has deep ties not only to the education department of North Carolina Theatre, but as a performer as well. Walker made his Broadway debut as ‘Marius' in Les Misérables, then went on to perform with stars like Rosie O'Donnell and Brooke Shields in Jesus Christ Superstar, Donny Osmond in Whistle Down the Wind and other New York productions. He has since relocated to Raleigh, NC and his North Carolina Theatre credits include Jesus Christ Superstar, Chess, Grease, Children of Eden, to name a few.

A Familiar Face Takes on a New Role English Bernhardt, a student of Ray Walker's at the NC Theatre Conservatory will share the stage with him and will take on a new, challenging role in Evita as ‘The Mistress'. She wowed audiences in last year's production of Annie in the title role, but will step out of her box as the ingénue and take on a darker role.

"We are so fortunate to have such great talent in the Raleigh area for a classic show like Evita," says CaroLee Baxter, Producer for North Carolina Theatre. "Our mission of blending the very best of Broadway with regional talent will be showcased in this production."

Argentina's controversial First Lady, Eva Peron, is the subject of the dynamic musical masterpiece, Evita. Told through a compelling Andrew Lloyd Webber score that fuses haunting chorales with exuberant Latin, pop and jazz influences, Evita creates an arresting theatrical portrait as complex as the woman herself.

Tickets to Evita are $25-$75 and can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at 800-745-3000 or online at www.ticketmaster.com. For groups of 10 or more, please call 919-831-6941 x6944. For more information on Evita and other North Carolina Theatre news, please visit www.nctheatre.com.

For photos from the production, look below.

Photo Credit: Curtis Brown Photography