ANOTHER FAMOUS BALCONY SCENE

Romeo and Juliet isn’t the only play with a famous balcony scene. The London revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s Evita has attracted attention for the decision to stage the signature song “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” on a balcony outside the London Palladium, disappointing many in the ticket-buying audience who see it only on a screen.

Isabella Bria Lopez and Ryan Mardesich

Those who attend the Reagle Music Theater production, directed and choreographed by Rachel Bertone, will suffer no such disappointment—Isabella Bria Lopez sings that song from the balcony on Cameron McEachern’s evocative set with all the power and confidence one would expect of the charismatic wife of a populist authoritarian who has been dubbed a saint by her own people.

Ryan Mardesich, Isabella Bria Lopez and the Cast

Eddie Noel Rodríguez, Isabella Bria Lopez and the Cast

This operatic production (every word of it is sung to lush orchestrations) features a compelling performance by narrator Che (Eddie Noel Rodriguez), who questions the legitimacy of Evita’s rise to fame and her commitment to the people of Argentina, whom she claims to love. But rather than push for policies that would improve the lives of impoverished Argentinians, Evita offers a glamorous image, lottery prizes, and photo ops that appease a population hungry for a celebrity to feed their fantasies. An ensemble of twenty offers impressive, often tango-inflected, dancing as well as crowd scenes.

Ricardo “Ricky” Holguin

Lopez is alluring and magnetic as she transitions from the poverty-stricken but ambitious 15-year-old Eva, determined to claw her way to fame in Buenos Aires, to Evita, a mature woman reveling in her power to command political influence and demanding the vice-presidency. Ricardo “Ricky” Holguin brings a sleazy charm and a gorgeous tenor (“On This Night of a Thousand Stars”) to the role of Magaldi, a tango singer initially reluctant to get involved with young Eva and later regretting his inability to keep her.

Eddie Noel Rodríguez. Isabella Bria Lopez, Ricardo “Ricky” Holguin

Eddie Noel Rodríguez and the Cast

He’s not the only one to wonder what hit him: In “Goodnight and Thank You,” Eva seduces and discards a series of male lovers who facilitate her progress from modeling to radio personality to actress. This is followed by “The Art of the Possible” in which Juan Perón (Ryan Mardesich) reveals his own opportunistic streak as he defeats one rival after another in a series of chess matches. These two are made for each other, and in “I’d Be Surprisingly Good for You,” Eva recognizes this as soon as she sees Perón, then a colonel, winning over an audience during his speech at a charity event.

Ryan Mardesich, Isabella Bria Lopez

Isabella Bria Lopez and the Cast

The music stays with you, as do the lessons of the dangers of populism. Watching the show, I realized for the first time how grateful I am for our current First Lady, who despite her projection of a glamorous image, seems to have no interest whatsoever in winning the affections of the masses nor in propping up her husband’s career.

Evita dies at both the beginning and the end of this musical, and although the wails and sobs of the grieving ensemble are stirring, one comes away with the sense that it wasn’t Evita’s death that was a tragedy so much as her life.

photos by Robert Pascucci

Evita
Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston
Robinson Theater, 617 Lexington St. in Waltham, MA
ends on July 20, 2025
for tickets, call 781.891.5600 or visit Reagle Music Theatre

for more shows, visit Theatre in Boston