Revival of Evita

[+ Lucky]

NY Times critic Ben Brantley does not like the new production of Evita, essentially calling it lifeless. He calls Ricky Martin "forgettable." Horrors!! I spent big bucks on a ticket for this next month, and gosh darn it, I am going to like it!

[edjames]

Ben Brantely? really?

 

NY Times critic Ben Brantley does not like the new production of Evita, essentially calling it lifeless. He calls Ricky Martin "forgettable." Horrors!! I spent big bucks on a ticket for this next month, and gosh darn it, I am going to like it!

 

With all due respect to Mr. Brantley, I wouldn't take his critique on any show as the final and most authoritative word. He generally hates everything. Many other reviewers found many wonderful and terrific things to say about this latest revivial of Evita While Ms. Rogers may have failed to ignite the same adulation she received from the UK critics, some found her portrayl worthy but he singing lacking. Still, from what I can gather this revivial has its merits and it looks like it will be in for a run on Broadway for a while. Ricky's fans are flying in from all over to see his performance. I'll be seeing it in a few weeks.

 

http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/theater/living_evita_loca_mMBZQRC7HtF2yUBUQH778O

 

Here is a sampling of other major reviews, quotes which will surely be used to promote the show in coming weeks.

 

NYPOST: A BIG, FAT JUICY BLOCKBUSTER OF A SHOW...

Last night, “Evita” returned after a 30-year absence from Broadway. The wait was worth it: This is a big, fat, juicy blockbuster of a show.

Naturally, everybody’s flipping out over the hot new bombshell in town. Usually we mean the actress in the title role, but this time it’s the guy who plays the narrator: Ricky Martin — you may have heard of him?

And does he deliver! Despite being vocally underpowered at times, Martin is a supernova of charisma in the key part of Che, a Zelig-like Everyman always hovering on the side of the action. (A country where every man looks like Ricky Martin must get a lot of tourists.)

With her beaky nose and red slash of a mouth, Roger is an outstanding actress; it’s no wonder she was nominated for a 2007 Olivier Award when this revival originated in London.

Far from a saint, her Evita can be sexy, prickly, demanding, capricious. You easily understand why men fall for her, notably tango singer Agustín Magaldi (Max von Essen) and Col. Juan Perón (Michael Cerveris, in glorious voice).

Roger isn’t quite as convincing as a singer — we’re far from early Evitas such as Elaine Paige and Patti LuPone. Her upper range can get shrill and unsteady in “A New Argentina” and “Rainbow High.” And she worms rather than barrels her way through “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina,” which seems here like an intimate plea with her countrymen rather than a self-centered lament.

Roger moves well, and at barely 5 feet tall, she stands out in a large ensemble — even when Martin’s nearby, which is saying a lot.

Overall, the show has lost the subversive edge of Harold Prince’s original staging, trading a stylized, minimalistic black box for Christopher Oram’s outsize, realistic sets.

But there’s no denying the nearly physical impact “Evita” has on an audience. The woman and the show are back for good. Don’t keep your distance.

 

USA TODAY:

Though Rogers' voice isn't strong, her singing has a raw ache and folky authenticity. She also moves like a gazelle, reinforcing Eva's beguiling sensuality and adding further sparkle to Ashford's earthy, vibrant dance numbers. The narrator, Che, isn't presented as the flamboyant revolutionary (based on Che Guevera) he became under Harold Prince's original direction. A charming Ricky Martin plays the character more as an amused, sometimes sympathetic spectator; though critical of Eva, as Rice's lyrics demand, he also conveys a certain tenderness.

 

VILLAGE VOICE

So while Broadway's original Evita was more spectacular, innovative, and starry, this one has a bracing intimacy and vigor that makes you feel the truth is, she never left you.

 

WALL ST JOURNAL

Never having seen Harold Prince's much-admired original production of "Evita," I'm not in a position to compare it to this one, and in a way I'm glad. Despite the inadequacies of its nominal star, Mr. Grandage's "Evita" is an impressive achievement that should be judged on its own merits, which are legion. Even if you don't like Andrew Lloyd Webber's music, it will hold your eye from curtain to curtain.

 

BLOOMBERG

Eschewing the character’s familiar military fatigues and stogy, Martin plays Che (who never had anything to do with Argentina) as a populist observer. He’s more the jaunty, glinty- eyed critic than the embodiment of dashed hopes. In an open shirt and suspendered slacks, his eyes crinkled and mustache a bushy wonder, Martin exudes bonhomie. That’s not enough to offset the comically shameless Perons, especially given Rice’s compressed libretto. We’re left to connect a lot of dots. In her Broadway debut, Roger has plenty of the star quality Evita sings about. I worry how long her voice, a little brittle at the top, will hold up, even on a limited performance schedule.

 

NEWSDAY

This time we have a fierce dynamo of a Broadway debut by Elena Roger as Eva, the ambitious street girl with a contradictory fondness for finery, Mussolini and the poor, and who slept her way to superstar first lady before dying of cancer at 33. Roger, despite a few frayed top notes at Tuesday's preview, is a justly celebrated Argentine native whose sprite of a dancer's body belies a massive theatrical presence and the steely heft of her tangy voice. (Christina DeCicco plays the strenuous role on Wednesday nights and Saturday matinees.)

 

AP

Much of the buzz coming from the new revival "Evita" has been about the spitfire Argentine playing the title role. But all of the heat actually comes from the guy shaking his bon-bon. Ricky Martin is easily the best thing about this revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber's bio of Eva Peron, which opened Thursday at the Marquis Theatre. He sings beautifully, dances gracefully, athletically climbs ladders, plays his role with a knowing sneer and elicits drools in his suspenders and tight white shirt. He even makes a mustache work. In fact, maybe it's time for Broadway to have a new rule: Put Ricky Martin in everything. He would fit in happily at "Newsies." He would definitely enliven "Death of a Salesman." Heck, put him in "Mary Poppins" and watch the roof really lift off.

 

Read more: http://broadwayworld.com/reviews/Evita##ixzz1rHGUtDru

[+ Lucky]

Ed, thanks for doing the research on that. With the IPod, it is more work. And I hoped it is true, because I have every expectation of liking that show.

[foxy]

While I'm not a major fan of of Patti LuPone or Mandy Potemkin they both blew Elena Roger and Ricky Martin away with their NY performance years ago. Ricky is cute and adequate but Elena Roger is just awful. I really don't know how she ever got to Broadway or anywhere else. The woman has no talent at all. I just can't figure out this casting. So many talented people out there. Why her?

[jjkrkwood]

NY Times critic Ben Brantley does not like the new production of Evita, essentially calling it lifeless. He calls Ricky Martin "forgettable." Horrors!! I spent big bucks on a ticket for this next month, and gosh darn it, I am going to like it!

 

Well Ricky is still HOT, so just sit there and Fantasize....

[jjkrkwood]

While I'm not a major fan of of Patti LuPone or Mandy Potemkin they both blew Elena Roger and Ricky Martin away with their NY performance years ago. Ricky is cute and adequate but Elena Roger is just awful. I really don't know how she ever got to Broadway or anywhere else. The woman has no talent at all. I just can't figure out this casting. So many talented people out there. Why her?

 

Because she got raves in the UK production maybe ?

[Cooper]

And I hoped it is true, because I have every expectation of liking that show.

 

I think all of us who have shared our thoughts on Evita went with the same expectations of liking it. I know I did... However, you can't minimize the importance of a lead in a musical. There certainly is a lot to like about the production of Evita, it's just that Elena Roger is not one of them... Once Lucky and Ed James see this revival, I hope by then someone else will be playing the role of Eva Peron. If so, I definitely will see it again.

 

What I like about this Forum is that many of us do enjoy attending Broadway shows and our comments seem to be right in line with those of the critics.

[foxy]

I have no idea how Elena Roger got raves in the UK. Ricky will keep this production going for a while but not because he's a major Broadway star. He is what he is and I was happy to have seen him.

[+ purplekow]

Perhaps Ricky could play Evita Now I would pay to see that.

[hornytwells]

Elena Roger was actually better in London when she played the role, although inconsistent, but I admit I was surprised they thought her good enough vocally to bring to Broadway. I saw it 3 times during the London run and she veered from exciting and promising to vocally threadbare, when I saw the show here last week I thought she was awful, and would really like to see the understudy. I didn't agree with critics about Cerveris who I thought was bland and boring, without the requisite stature or charisma to play Peron, and a weird accent that sounded something between Scottish and German!! Maybe he has tempered that by now?!

[edjames]

Alas, I'll agree with everyone that this production suffers and mostly from a lack of star. Elena Roger is simply awful and her vocal range is dreadful. There are times when in her higher registers she sounds like she is on helium. It was torturous. I think she lacks the star presence and power the roles requires. What the hell were the UK critics thinking of, not to mention the US producers that thought she'd take Broadway by storm? Ricky is just, well, too easy on the eyes for words, although one wonders why he didn't "latino" it up a bit to match his role as Che. He sounds too American. I thought he was taller, too. He's actually shorter than I imagined. But, from what I observed, he is the glue that is holding this show together. Michael Cerveris also looks dreadful with that "shoe polish" black wig! The show has an impressive score, good sets, costumes and some good choreography. I went with a bunch of theater friends, folks from the industry, and they all hated it.

 

ED

 

ED

[+ Lucky]

I just loved Evita. I had a seat in the second row center, which means I could feast my eyes on Ricky Martin for two hours and he could do nothing about it! His singing and acting was quite good, and his charm was endless.

 

Now I must respectfully disagree with those who thought that Elena Rogers was not up to the task. I went with low expectations having read the comments here, but I thought she was very good and her voice quite up to the task. When she made her grand entrance in the second act, she certainly looked the part. It helped that the lighting was excellent. But she belted out Don't Cry For Me, Argentina with gusto. I thought it was a wonderful performance of the song. Of all the cast, she was the one to get a standing ovation at curtain call. So, either she has improved or 1300 people got it wrong tonight.