Review Roundup: EVITA at A.R.T.; What Did the Critics Think?

The reviews are in for Evita, now playing at A.R.T. through Sunday, July 30, before beginning performances at Shakespeare Theatre Company on Tuesday, September 5, 2023.

Shereen Pimentel (she/her) leads the cast in the role of Eva Perón and is joined by Gabriel Burrafato (he/him) as Magaldi, Omar Lopez-Cepero (he/him) as Che, Caesar Samayoa as Perón (he/him), and Naomi Serrano (she/her) as Mistress. 

Read the reviews below!

Don Aucoin, Boston Globe: Pimentel, who starred as Maria in Ivo van Hove’s 2020 Broadway revival of “West Side Story,” seizes the role of Eva with impressive confidence and brio, projecting the requisite magnetism and demonstrating the vocal chops needed to handle the more difficult passages of Lloyd Webber’s score. When she raised her arms in the famous V formation on Tuesday night, the audience at the Loeb Drama Center burst into applause.

Terry Byrne, wbur: Oddly enough, as my companion noted, Evita only comes alive when she begins to die. While we get glimpses of Evita’s ego inflating as her political power grows, “You Must Love Me” (added to the 1996 film version) and “Eva’s Final Broadcast” finally dive deeper into emotional depths that provide a little complexity for this two-dimensional icon. But it’s too little, too late. When even the creators seem ambivalent about their heroine — the abrupt ending has Che noting that money was raised to build a monument for Evita, but "only the pedestal was completed, and Evita's body disappeared for 17 years” — perhaps it’s better to simply enjoy the music and not attempt to fill that empty gown.