EVITA • The Muny

Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 1979 rock opera begins with a death. 33 year-old Evita Perón’s (Katerina McCrimmon), coffin rests high on a mound of flowers above Argentine mourners who revered her as a saint. But the lamentations are interrupted by Che (Omar Lopez-Cepero), who sees Evita as a master manipulator.

Che (Omar Lopez-Cepero) and the cast of Evita
Phot credit: Phillip Hamer

Given the nickname "Evita" as a term of endearment, the conflicting narratives of Eva Perón’s legacy continue to persist because her rise from the slums of Argentina to the country’s first lady remain iconically universal. The events of Eva’s life are primarily told and not shown, with Rice and Lloyd Webber laying out the opposing accounts before us -- the hero of the working classes vs. the social-climbing tart despised by the elite, letting us walk away to come to our own conclusions.

Evita (Katerina McCrimmon)
Photo credit: Phillip Hamer

Lloyd Webber’s music is sweeping with unusual harmonies, tempo and style changes, and a skillful series of leitmotifs -- recurring musical themes that represent characters or situations. The most prominent of these is the melody of “Don't Cry for Me Argentina” -- a melody that we hear long before the famous balcony scene in Che’s disdainful "Oh What a Circus”. The score is also rangy as hell. Patti LuPone, who originated the role of Eva Perón in the 1979 Broadway production, famously said she thought Andrew Lloyd Webber hated women because “the score's written in a soprano's passaggio. If you think of a rubber band and you pull a rubber band, the weakest spot is in the middle. That's a passaggio. You have a chest voice and a head voice, and then right in the middle is where you have to negotiate changing gears and all of the high notes are written in that break.”

Evita (Katerina McCrimmon)
Photo credit: Phillip Hamer

Good thing we have Katerina McCrimmon in the title role. She’s got a potent vibrato that reminds me of Judy Garland, and a well-placed belt that shines (and sustains) in songs like “Buenos Aires” and “Rainbow High” -- each spanning two octaves. McCrimmon likewise handles the emotional demands of the character well, with the nuance in songs like, "I'd Be Surprisingly Good for You" and "The Actress Hasn't Learned the Lines” coming through even on the Muny’s enormous stage.

Evita’s antagonist, Che, serves as our narrator, and is a similarly demanding role. Lopez-Cepero has a strong, dynamic tenor and the vocal prowess to maintain a portrayal that’s charming and passionate. His "And the Money Kept Rolling In" and "Rainbow Tour” thrum with magnetic sarcasm.

The opening scene that’s typically set in a cinema is switched to a street scene, with slightly less impactful results. While the cinema would have been a great place to take advantage of the LED screens, it would have probably been harder to read on the Muny stage. A better exchange is the musical chairs number of “The Art of the Possible” that’s swapped out for rolling spotlights that are extinguished one by one as members of the military jockey for power. The man left standing is Colonel, and then President Juan Perón, played with ambitious gravitas by Paulo Szot. Szot’s delicious baritone stirs with confidence, and softens with warmth in the scenes with his wife, Eva.

Che (Omar Lopez-Cepero)
Photo credit: Phillip Hamer

Director and choreographer Josh Rhodes keeps the action moving along, as Rice and Lloyd Webber left hardly any room for breaks or applause, with the choreography of "And the Money Kept Rolling In" being a standout. Adam Koch’s scenic design incorporates impressive set pieces and Paige Seber’s lights set everything off beautifully and dramatically. Wonderful costumes courtesy of Brian C. Hemesath inform the players and tie everything together.

The Muny hasn’t staged Evita since 2001, and if you’ve never seen it, now’s the time. Even if you have seen it, with an amazing cast and an incredible score, this is a production well worth checking out. It’s at the Muny until the 24th.

EVITA

Lyrics by Tim Rice

Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber

Directed by Josh Rhodes

The Muny, 1 Theatre Drive, Forest Park

through July 24 | tickets: $21 - $145

Performances Monday to Sunday at 8:15pm

Juan Perón (Paulo Szot)
Photo credit: Phillip Hamer

Cast

Katerina McCrimmon: Eva

Paulo Szot: Juan Perón

Omar Lopez-Cepero: Che

Daniel Torres: Agustín Magaldi & Others

Sabrina Santana: Perón’s Mistress, Ensemble

Ensemble

Andrés Acosta

Leyla Ali

Marissa Barragán

Leah Berry

Patrick Blindauer

Jordan Casanova

Marilyn Caserta

Junior Cervila

Devin Cortez

Nicholas Cunha

Kyle de la Cruz Laing

Daniel Alan DiPinto

Kylie Edwards

Noelia Guerrero

Natalia Nieves-Melchor

Zibby Nolting

Arnie Rodriguez

Leann Schuering

Trevor Michael Schmidt

Noah Van Ess

Sharrod Williams

Evita (Katerina McCrimmon)
and Che (Omar Lopez-Cepero)
Photo credit: Phillip Hamer

Teen Ensemble

Laila Fantroy

Owen Hanford

Kameron Henry

Caroline Joyce

Adaeze Loynd

Jack Mullen

Gavin Nobbe

Leia Yogi

Youth Ensemble

Jaron Bentley

Kylie Egnatz

Bella Enriquez

Olivia Kniffen

Brynn Meyer

Eli Oster

Arden Powell

Cooper Scheessele

Gia Smith

Johann Uhl

Juan Perón (Paulo Szot, second from right)
and the cast of Evita
Photo credit: Phillip Hamer

Offstage Singers

Sarah Brown

Julia Gerling

Mark Hill

Drew Mathers

Sherrod Murff

Jackson Schertzer

Norah Ward

Julia Worley

Creative

Josh Rhodes: Director/Choreographer

Lee Wilkins: Associate Director/Choreographer

Ben Whiteley: Music Director/Conductor

Junior Cervila: Tango Choreographer

Adam Koch: Scenic Designer

Brian C. Hemesath: Costume Designer

Paige Seber: Lighting Designer

John Shivers: Sound Designer

David Patridge: Sound Designer

Steven Royal: Video Designer

Kelley Jordan: Wig Designer

Che (Omar Lopez-Cepero) and the ensemble of Evita
Photo credit: Phillip Hamer

Musicians

Violin

Tova Braitberg, Concertmaster

Beth Hoffman

Isabel Tannenbaum

Nathan Banks

Viola/Violin

Carolina Neves, Principal

Wendy Lea, Orchestra Manager

Cello

Nathan Hsu, Principal

Shannon Merciel

Bass

Tim Weddle, Principal

Woodwinds

Michael Buerk, Principal

Robert Hughes

Evita (Katerina McCrimmon),
Che (Omar Lopez-Cepero) and the cast of Evita
Photo credit: Phillip Hamer

Trumpet

Andy Tichenor, Principal

French Horn

Corbin Castro, Principal

Stephen Hanrahan

Trombone

Tom Vincent, Principal

Tyler Vahldick

Harp

Megan Stout

Guitar

Steve Schenkel

Percussion

Erin Elstner, Principal

Drums

Matthew Henry

Additional Musicians

Keyboard

Zach Neumann

Jason Eschhofen

Katie Kopffl

Trumpet

Jason Harris