Review: EVITA, King's Theatre, Glasgow

First staged in 1978, Evita is Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's musical based on the life and death of political figure Eva Peron. The story follows Eva from her beginnings as a radio star and actress to becoming the much adored First Lady Of Argentina.

In the name of full disclosure, I think its only fair to say that I have a bit of a 'thing' for Evita. In 2013 I saw this production at the same theatre- and promptly moved into the venue for the rest of the run. After the UK tour, Evita enjoyed a short run at the Dominion Theatre in the West End.

So does the same production still feel fresh five years later? Simply put- yes. What I loved so much about this production was Madalena Alberto's sensational performance as Eva and she was even better this time around. From Eva's beginnings as a young, carefree actress to the elegance of The First Lady of Argentina- she captures the character beautifully.

The musical is sung through, and unfortunately, this results in some clunky lyrics for Che (Gian Marco Schiaretti) as he is tasked with moving the plot along. For the most part, Andrew Lloyd Webber's score is absolutely wonderful and I challenge anybody not to get chills at the opening bars of "Don't Cry For Me Argentina". Schiaretti's growling vocals are well suited to "Oh What A Circus" and the whole company come together for a rousing and chill-inducing "A New Argentina" to close Act One.

The set for Evita isn't overly lavish, essentially just some moving staircases and for me, this was the only element that identified it as a touring production. However, I felt that the story, music and performances were so strong that the production didn't need any over-the-top sets.

Evita is a very moving story that offers so many 'goosebump' moments and captivates the audience. This production has been wonderfully cast and I thoroughly recommend it.

Evita runs at the King's Theatre, Glasgow until Saturday 19th May.

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