Review: The Manatee Players Present EVITA by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice

I thought everyone had heard of Evita, a show that I consider Andrew Lloyd Webber’s finest work.  But in the lobby of the Manatee Performing Arts Center, just before the Saturday night performance of Evita began, a middle-aged couple walked up to me. Maybe they saw the writing pad in my hand and thought I was an authority or something. “What’s this show about?” they asked me out of the blue.

I was taken aback.  “Have you never heard of EVITA?”

“No, never.”

“Have you heard of the real-life Eva Peron, and her husband, Juan Peron, who presided over Argentina with an iron fist back in the 1940s?”

“No.”

“Well, the musical is based on Eva Peron’s life.  How she started out modestly in a small town, then headed to the big city—Buenos Aires—where she was a chorus girl and an actress, and pretty much slept her way to the top.  And then as a glamorous First Lady, she became revered by the working classes and booed by the rich and the higher-ups.  Imagine our current First Lady, and if she was the one holding the rallies and getting the people up in a lather, while her husband takes a back seat in public because his wife has become so popular.  That’s what it’s like.”

“Is it in another language?” the man asked, still obviously confused.  “Will I understand it?”

“Yes, you’ll understand it.  But don’t be confused when it starts at a funeral.  The original producer, Hal Prince, loved that idea—starting a musical off with a big showy funeral.  But that’s Eva Peron who died, and then we walk through the story of her life. And the narrator is based on Che Guevara, the famous Marxist revolutionary who helped with Castro in Cuba and became much-loved by the counterculture; you see, he had actually grown up in Argentina under the Peron regime and keeps interrupting the story and singing sarcastically against Peron’s hypocrisy and shallowness. But the show is about Eva Peron and how her style and dazzle helped her husband become a political force to be reckoned with.”

The couple seemed thankful but still confused.  I was confused as well because I thought everyone had heard of EVITA, which had won seven Tony Awards forty-five years ago and made Patti LuPone a Broadway legend.  But maybe it, like so many other great musicals, has slipped through the fingers of time and can now be regarded as a Forgotten Musical.  “Surely you’ve both heard the song ‘Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina,’” I said.

“Of course!”

I took a sigh of relief.  “Well, that’s the signature song from Evita!”

“Ohhh!”

I wasn’t able to find the couple after the show to see what they thought of the Manatee Players production.  But I would have told them my thoughts: That this is a community theatre that does things right, and this is one well-cast, beautiful looking, and terrifically directed musical which tells the story in unique—and at times questionable—ways.  The production also happened to be zipline fast, leaving the audience very few instances to actually catch their collective breath.  Which is not a bad thing.

This Evita (music by Andrew Lloyd Webber; lyrics by Tim Rice) is one gorgeously mounted production, with the ensemble always in character and moving about like purposeful parts that make up a finely-crafted watch. There’s not one B.O.S. (Bodies on Stage) to be found here; Rick Kerby has directed and choreographed quite a formidable production.    

Leading the way performance-wise is Sarah Yonko as Eva Peron.  It took me awhile to get used to her as Evita, especially early on when I never quite bought into her being that driven smalltown girl destined to become a political force.  I miss some of Eva’s targeted sultriness, that overt sexuality.  But then something happened.  Act 2 rolled around and lo and behold there she is… Evita.  It’s as if Ms. Yonko was holding off a bit, not diving in all the way until she could wear those gorgeous gowns (care of the MPAC’s mightily impressive costumer, Caren Brady).  Her vocals here are tops and she embodies the dazzling but flawed spirit of Eva.  And when Eva becomes sick, our hearts actually break (especially in the songs “You Must Love Me” and “Lament”).  I have seen Evita numerous times and never has my heart broken as it had been while watching this production. And much of that goes to the indomitable Sarah Yonko.

As her husband, Juan Peron, Stephen Day looks so much like Ronald Reagan that I thought at times this could be called Nancy and Ron: The Musical.  But he is marvelous as the tough-as-nails commander who truly loves his wife—maybe because she increases his political fortune, but also because real love has seeped through his cynical lust for power.

At the top of the heap, in the performance that I saw, stands Chris Cordero as our narrator, Che.  He starts by slinking through the audience, puffing a cigarette, before jumping onto the stage and electrifying the show to life. He sings marvelously, and songs like “High Flying, Adored” and “And the Money Kept Rolling in (and Out)” become some of the best of the night.  Although he looked too clean-cut for Che (I miss the scraggly beard), no one does a smarmy double-take or sarcastic nod to the audience better than Mr. Cordero.

Seth Bracewell plays Eva’s first lover, Magaldi, just right.  He gives off a Pedro Pascal vibe and croons like Bill Murray’s obnoxious Nick the Lounge Singer, which works perfectly for the character.    

As Peron’s young mistress, Olivia Turpening gets one of the show’s best songs, “Another Suitcase in Another Hall,” even though structurally it drives me crazy. Here is a character that we’ve never met before and who we will never see later in the show who gets this big spotlighted number.  It’s like Tulsa’s song in Gypsy, “All I Need Is the Girl,” but even more haphazard and jarring.  But Ms. Turpening sings well and plays the part of the jilted lover just right.  The song will always remain one of Lloyd Webber’s greatest efforts even though it makes no sense in the context of the musical.

Norah Ruark gets her moment to shine as a child who sings the first part of “Santa Evita” solo; she’s a natural, always in character, and has quite a bright future ahead of her.  

As previously mentioned, the ensemble—the generals, soldiers, fashionistas, embalmers, heavies, nurses, and descamisados--do most of the heavy lifting in this production; they are all over the place, moving the scenery and props, all beautifully coordinated and directed.  They include: Merdoc Augsburger, Isabella Henry, Brittney Klepper, Brendon Kroposky, Peter O’Malley, Jim Wolfe, Dan Yonko, Seth Bracewell, Neal Addison, Noah Henry, Juliana Mattes, Addison Yonko, Craig Engle, Joseph Smith, Jack Watts, Suzanne Marschner Mattes, Alexia Mattes, Kathleen Ahearn Prucher, Frank Solinko, Sharon Bartley, Celerina “Sherri” Chopie, Carol Ciancia, Jessica Garza, Isabella Onken, Linda Roeming, Sara Sweetnich, and Eleanor Gassenhofer. 

In one of my favorite songs from the show, “Peron’s Latest Flame” (originally called “Dangerous Jade” in the concept album of the 1970s), I am so happy that this company has gone back to the dancing generals and leering aristocratic mob.  In the last few versions I’ve seen, this song became just a throwaway with the military brass and Richie-riches just sort of standing around complaining rather than realizing the song's potential as the showstopper that it ought be.  Mr. Kerby understands this and brought it back to its marvelously theatrical origins.  And nothing beats the generals’ reactions after they call Eva a “bitch” and a  “slut,” then joyfully bop their heads in a sort of wicked glee of calling out Peron’s latest flame.  

Aaron Cassette’s music direction is tops, and nothing beats a live orchestra bringing the memorable score to life, with Mr. Cassette and Megan Zeitler on keyboards, Adrian Adover on guitar, Christoper Leiper on trumpet and John Januszewski on drums.  The music is outstanding and makes the driving score accelerate even faster, if that’s possible.

Jay Poppe’s production design and Nick Jones' lighting are breathtaking, and the projections add so much to the production.  Only a few of them were a bit obvious and forced for my tastes: Rolling dollar bills in “And the Money Kept Rolling In (And Out)” and diamonds raining in, you guessed it, “She Is a Diamond”; both of these songs would have succeeded without these heavy-handed projections.  But otherwise they work sensationally well. 

I love it when I see a show that has been directed and choreographed by someone who knows what the hell they’re doing.  And Rick Kerby is that man.  His work here is exemplary, a true visionary at work,  with an ending that left me in open-jawed awe.   

Only one aspect of his direction didn’t work for me at all…Throughout the show and for head-scratching reasons, Mr. Kerby has a couple onstage attempting to Tango; it happens at various times, most noticeably at first in “I’d Be Surprisingly Good For You” (I have seen Tango dancers in this number before, usually as part of the onstage act as Juan and Eva meet for the first time).  But here these two dancers keep intruding into the story in the most bizarre instances and for some symbolic reason (the Tango of death that follows Eva around, perhaps?).  But why?  Knowing that the Tango originated in the Rio de la Plata, the border between Argentina and Uruguay, maybe Mr. Kerby thought it would be a good idea to add even more pizzazz and put the iconic dance in various moments peppered throughout Eva's life (and death).  Unfortunately, it doesn’t achieve the effect that he wanted.  The onstage dancers didn’t have the necessary theatrical flourish to at least make these Tango moments interesting, and the concept doesn’t add anything to the story that isn’t already there (it actually detracts).  The idea should have been shelved at the planning stage because, to me, it’s like one too many cherries on top of an otherwise delicious ice cream sundae. 

But this Evita was enthralling from start to finish, one of the tightest, best-directed shows I’ve seen of late. 

I was just surprised that there wasn’t a packed house on the night I attended.  Here is a musical and a stellar cast that does almost everything right, that brings one of the most difficult shows of the past fifty years to life, and yet there were so many empty seats in the audience. Why?  Are there so many people who, like that couple that asked me questions before the show, have no idea who or what EVITA is and just don’t care?  Does the musical hit too close to home in these troubled times?  Is it the economy, or is it something else?  Whatever the reasons, this production deserved better support.  The wonderful cast, crew and musicians warrant a packed house every night for the excellence that I thrillingly witnessed on that stage!

Evita at the Manatee Players closes on Mother's Day: Sunday, May 11th. 

Photo Credit: Diane Broda