Evita National Tour - Don't Waste Your Time or Money — Page 6

What merchandise are they selling? Do they only have the highlights CD? Or do they have the complete recording, and if so, how much is it?

I just saw the matinee show here in Huntsville, Alabama and I have to say it was wonderful. I rented the OBC with Patti and Mandy from the library prior to going to see the show. i wanted to hear the score and whatnot. I have to say, I much preferred what I heard in the theater. Sarah Litzsinger was our Eva and she was brillant. I thought she was a great actress and sang beautifully. Keith Byron Kirk was great. I much preferred his stronger voice to Mandy Patinkin's head voice type singing in "Oh what a Circus." I thought the sets and projections were interesting. It def. had an 70-80s feel to it. Although, I thought it sound way more modern in the theater. I recommend going to see it. The only thing I have a problem with is the ending. I know this isn't a trait of the tour,but of the show, but I thought the ending was horrible. I think it would have worked better with Che saying the things about Eva's tomb disappearing and then maybe the entire casting singing the "Don't Cry for me Argentina" but with the lyrics slightly altered or something. I thought the ending just left you cold. My other thoughts were, what was the point of the production? I throughly enjoyed the show, as did the ppl around me, but I didn't understand if they were trying to applaud Eva or say that she was just a pretty face? They had the song about her sleeping her way to the top and whatnot. I just wasn't sure what they message of the show was. My other question is where do they get "evita" from? I guess its a nickname of Eva right? But I just wasn't sure becasue they never really mention it and i just dont see the correlation b/w eva and evita? Anyways, a great show, go see it. its worth it.

Thanks KC, I didn't understand where it came from and was just wondering. I would have never guessed that - ha.

I am confused. First you say it was EH! And then you say overall you LOVED IT. WHICH IS IT?

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I thought it was great. I thought it was a little hard to understand at times, but overall great. I still don't understand the whole "another suitcase in another hall" part where Eva just kinda threw the chick out, but whatever.

And you better believe I marked Aida! And Rent! and DRS and Little Shop & Captain Louie - I may not be a preteen, but I enjoy my captian louie.

bump

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God knows what they will do now. Hopefully this time they will hire a good Eva.

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Wait I'm confuse--the original Hal Prince idea was thatChe was Che Guevera for sure? I thought that ewas the original concept album idea but Hal made him just "Che" more of an everyman (and cut ideas like his pesticide plan) or have I got it backwards

Colm Wilkinson was Che in the original concept album (1976), but David Essex originated the role on stage in London two years later.

Anyway, Che in Hal Prince's original staging is clearly Che Guevara. Not only does he look/dress like him, but he's the same age as Che was when the events in the musical took place ("Or just a man who grew and saw from 17 to 24 his counry bled, crucified?").

Also, according to the play synopsis: "There is no evidence whatsoever that Che Guevara ever met Eva Peron or became in any way involved with her, but the character Che in EVITA is based upon this legendary revolutionary. He was, however, an Argentine born in 1928 and would therefore have been 17 when the Perons came to power and 24 when Eva died. He became strongly opposed to the Peronist regime during Eva's lifetime and it is not unreasonable to suppose that his later activity in Cuba and elsewhere was in part a reaction against the government he had known in his youth."

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Updated On: 1/16/07 at 01:16 PM

They just decided to incorporate Che into the musical because he was another influential person of that time. The closest he ever came to Evita was sending her a letter asking for a Jeep. Not sure if he got it or not.

I saw this tour. One word. Horrendous.

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"Ché" is an interjection used in Argentina to get someone's attention, and it's akin to saying "hey" (e.g. "¡Portate bien, ché!"/"Hey, behave yourself!") It may also be used to mean "buddy." Ernesto Guevara was nicknamed "el ché" by his new Cuban compadres because of his constant use of it. [In the Argentine film EVA PERON: THE TRUE STORY, "ché" is thrown around quite a bit, especially by Esther Goris, who plays Evita.]

I think Rice and Lloyd Webber used Che Guevara for various reasons. For one, he was an Argentine. Two, his family had been critical of Peron's corrupt government, which gave credence to the character's contempt for Eva's cockeyed politics. And three, Che had become an international symbol of rebellion by the time of the musical's inception. Furthermore, in the Spanish libretto, a word ending in or containing "ché" ("Y si ves que me eChé a perder"; "Fuiste luz de farol en el anoChécer") is emphasized, as if to drive the point home.

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Updated On: 1/17/07 at 04:22 AM