The revival, which is now slated for an opening at the Adelphi Theatre in late May of 2006, will boast Donmar Warehouse artistic director Michael Grandage (Don Carlos, Suddenly Last Summer) as its director, Tony Award-winner Rob Ashford (Thoroughly Modern Millie, Doctor Doolittle) as choreographer and Christopher Oram (Passion Play, Merrily We Roll Along)
as the main designer; the three last collaborated on the smash revival of Guys and Dolls that is playing at the Picadilly Theatre. While no other casting has been set, producers are seeking a
star name for the title role of the former Argentinian First Lady who
climbed her way to power. The revival will be produced by Lloyd Webber's Very Useful Group.Quast has starred in productions of musicals and plays in London and in his native Australia. He is a three-time Olivier Award winner for Sunday in the Park with George, The Fix and South Pacific. Other credits include Les Miserables, The Secret Garden, The Seagull, Saint Joan, Troilus and Cressida, Into the Woods, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Love's Labour's Lost, The Merchant of Venice, and more.
Evita,
which began life as a 1975 concept album, takes a cynical but
multifaceted view of Eva Peron's ascent. With music by Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Rice, the show
opened at London's Prince Edward Theatre in 1978 with Elaine Paige as
Eva and David Essex as Che. In New York, it ran 1,567 performances at
the Broadway Theatre, and won the 1980 Tony Award for Best Musical, as
well as six others. The show starred Patti LuPone, Mandy Patinkin (both
of whom won Tonys) and Bob Gunton; Harold Prince also won a Tony for his direction.
