After The Applause

An example of a production thats story is lost under the ego of its director..

This production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s rock opera Evita had so much potential, a wonderful cast, a beautiful theatre and a huge stage to paint the scenery of Buenos Aires on. It also came with a whole lot of hype, Broadway fans couldn’t wait to see Rachel Zegler parade out onto a West End stage for the first time!

However I left the theatre feeling rather confused, why had this got so much praise when, to me, it is a boring, below average West End show?

Firstly I will start with the good, I thought that the cast were all very strong. However, in my opinion Zegler was overshadowed by Diego Andres Rodriguez as the show’s narrator Che, a citizen retelling the story of Evita after her death, and James Olivas as an evil looking Juan Perón. Rodriguez certainly had the best vocals and he fits the role well. He did his best under the chaotic direction to keep the story flowing and had to really fight to evoke any emotion, especially in his final songs when he was weirdly doused with glitter and blood. I am still confused by this directorial choice as it just didn’t really make sense to me.

Zegler is a strong vocalist, there is no doubt about it, but I just felt like the emotion of the story was really lost and she was too focused on being cool and full of swagger, rather than the powerful spokeswomen for the people that Perón was. The only part of this production I thought was great was the balcony scene, projected from the Palladium balcony into the auditorium and it was beautiful to see a large crowd gathered to watch Zegler come out of the doors to sing ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’. I didn’t know whether it would work and I felt it actually did, a risky but clever move.

Now onto why I felt this didn’t succeed, firstly I thought the set was bland. It felt like a copy of the sets we have seen used for shows such as Jesus Christ Superstar and I felt it was a little bit lazy and certainly didn’t work for Evita. I would have preferred a more bold and colourful stage with more props rather than the actors just standing on a set of steps the whole time with a neon sign of ‘Evita’ raising and lowering.

The lighting seemed as though Jamie Lloyd had wanted it to feel like a rock concert, but it actually turned out to look like a toddler had been given free rein to press random buttons and choose random colours, why green and purple? This really did not work.

I also thought that the orchestra was way too loud at times and it drowned out the low tones of Juan Perón and made us miss some of the most poignant moments of the story. This seems like a repeating occurrence, the loss of emotion and story in turn for an artistic choice by Jamie Lloyd.

Most of Jamie Lloyd’s choices for this production just do not pay off and don’t create the effect that he was looking to display. He tries too hard to make it look like a rock concert and it ends up looking bland and boring. He then tries to make it epic and flamboyant with the choice to have Eva Peron in a tight black dress, but it doesn’t feel right and her characteristics are slightly lost and it feels like Rachel Zegler has walked on stage not the powerful political presence of Eva Perón.

I feel awful giving this production such a low rating but it is just how I felt in the theatre that night. If you haven’t seen west end productions of musicals before then this may be a 4 or even 5 star for you, but after seeing “The Great Gatsby” shortly after, this it made me realise how average this production was. The Great Gatsby lives in the era and location it was written and Jamie Lloyd’s Evita lives in London in 2025 rather than Argentina in the 1930’s. You feel it in the theatre, it evokes the feelings of a concert rather than a West End production from the moment you enter the crowded London Palladium.

MY VERDICT:

This show was given a standing ovation and I stood as well (more because I couldn’t see if I didn’t) but if I had the choice I would have stayed seated and just applauded the brilliant vocals and ensemble effort as well as the music which I thought was great! I just wasn’t wowed by Evita, and I really wanted to be, but I felt so disappointed because so much was missing and it could have been so much better if Lloyd hadn’t have sacrificed emotion and storytelling for bold artistic choices. Evita is almost sold out and I personally wouldn’t recommend forking out the expensive premium prices of the West End, go and see The Great Gatsby instead!. At least that production feels fully immersive and passionate, this felt a bit like a money grab with a star slapped in (Zegler) to attract more people! It doesn’t capture atmosphere, it doesn’t capture emotion all it captures is your money and your time!