Power, passion drive ‘Evita’ revival

She may be getting a bit long in the tooth, but “Evita” -- the Tim

Rice-Andrew Lloyd Webber musical focused on the life of Argentina’s

first lady Eva Peron in the late 1940s and early ‘50s -- has never

looked more robust than in the touring production now ensconced at

the Orange County Performing Arts Center.

Under the aegis of its original director, Harold Prince, this

“Evita” is a visceral experience, a production steeped in power and

passion. The show drips with conflict and confrontation as it traces

the career path of an overtly ambitious young woman, born dirt poor

in the back country, to the summit of power in Buenos Aires’ “Big

Apple” -- which she proceeded to peel, financially, under the guise

of charity.

Prince, whose original direction and choreography is reproduced

here by Larry Fuller, has given us an “Evita” with a steely backbone,

a production amplified by an outstanding choral ensemble and a

full-bodied orchestra under the baton of Elaine Davidson. Fuller’s

choreography is particularly impressive, executing intricate

movements with military precision.

Evita herself, the superlative Kathy Voytko, is a dominant figure

from her humble beginning as a feisty teenager, attaching herself to

a preening club singer (Gabriel Burrafato) for her ticket to the

Argentine capital, through her whirlwind career sleeping her way to

the upper echelons of society, and finally latching on to the

military leader who will become president. She is, quite simply, an

irresistible force.

The immovable object to that force is the character of rebel

leader Che Guevara -- whom Eva probably never actually met, but who

was known as a fervent foe of the Peronistas -- here implemented as a

plot device to create necessary conflict. Keith Byron Kirk takes on

this role with a vengeance, heavily employing power and satire

alternately in his antagonistic assignment.

Philip Hernandez is among the strongest Juan Perons in memory,

turning the role (created in 1979 by UC Irvine graduate Bob Gunton)

into a steely, authoritarian character rather than a “first man”

figure for Evita. Hernandez exudes power and prestige.

Although Webber enjoys the loftier plane as a composer, it is

Rice’s razor-edged lyrics that dominate the musical elements of

“Evita.”

They supply the verbal ammunition for both of the show’s

heavyweights, Evita and Che, to fire unmercifully at one another.

The celebrated “Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina” is a crowning moment

for Voytko, realizing her power and glory at last, but it is the

first act-closer, “A New Argentina,” that rocks the house in much the

same fashion as “One Day More” does in “Les Miserables.”

It is a stunning moment of consolidation of power backed by an

extraordinary chorus of shirt-sleeved peasants waving banners and

wielding torches.

What Evita Peron might have become (she died of cancer at 32) will

never be known. Her unfulfilled ambition of becoming vice president,

ironically, later was realized by Peron’s second wife, Isabel.

But in her short span on this earth, she managed to ignite a

country and inspire an enormously powerful musical.

IF YOU GO

* WHAT: “Evita”

* WHERE: Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center

Drive, Costa Mesa

* WHEN: Tuesdays through Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 2 and 8

p.m., Sundays at 2 and 7:30 p.m. until Oct. 16

* COST: $20 to $65

* INFO: (714) 556-2746