MARTIN essays Che with a wry grin and a twinkle in his eye. He carries himself with abundant charm and stage presence. Photo by evitaonbroadway.com)
Thursday last week I headed to the Marquis Theatre on Broadway to see the Tony-nominated revival production of “Evita.” I was with one of the producers, Adam Blanshay, who I previously met when he was working on the Broadway production of “Billy Elliot.” He had so graciously asked me to come see his newest show, and I said yes.
I was excited for three good reasons. First, it was one of the first musicals I ever saw in London’s West End. I was only 10; it was life-changing. I wanted to be that girl on center stage swathed in gossamer fabric and dripping in diamonds. I kind of got my wish, except that I wore a Vietnamese native dress and was housed in a different theater.
Second, I would be seeing Ricky Martin as Che onstage. It had been so long since I last watched him sing—in a Manila concert that was part of a promotional trip.
Third, I had another friend in the show, Max von Essen. We were both in the cast of “Les Miserables” (I played Fantine, he portrayed Enjolras), and invested together in another Broadway show, “Rock of Ages.” We had gone in for the same reason: We knew it would be fun.
2006 hit
This “Evita” was the same production that took the West End by storm in 2006, directed by Michael Grandage and choreographed by Rob Ashford. It won an Olivier Award for its star, Elena Roger, who reprises the role of Eva Peron here, making her Broadway debut.
The sets were really beautiful, very different from the West End set that I saw. The choreography, much of which presented different takes on the Argentine tango, was wonderful. (I particularly loved “The Art of the Possible” and “Dangerous Game” numbers.)
As for the performances, I purposely ignored all the reviews in the papers so I could enjoy the show.
Ricky was charming! He essayed Che with a wry grin and a twinkle in his eye—a very different portrayal from the original production (where Che seemed to have been based on the real-life Guevara).
Abundant charm
Ricky’s Che is an everyman, making observations and commentary on the goings-on dramatized by the show. He weaves in and out of the action, and carries himself with abundant charm and stage presence.
I first saw Elena Roger in London two years ago as Fosca at the Donmar Warehouse production of Stephen Sondheim’s “Passion.” I fell in love with her portrayal, so I waited with much anticipation for her to play Evita.
She did not disappoint. Although her singing voice is very different from Elaine Paige’s and Patti Lupone’s (the original West End and Broadway Evitas, respectively), Elena infused her Eva with authentic fire (Elena is Argentine herself). Her acting, particularly in the final scenes, was heartbreaking to watch. It was most certainly an auspicious Broadway debut.
Michael Cerveris as Juan Peron has been nominated at the 2012 Tony Awards for his performance, and it’s easy to see why. Although he portrays Peron as a tough political and military figure, it’s him watching his wife suffer and eventually die from ovarian cancer that’s most moving.
His reprise of “You Must Love Me,” although brief, has a slight desperation of a man knowing how lost he will now become, without his wife.
After the show we headed backstage to meet and greet the cast. I first met Elena, and I gushed over her performance. I then headed to Ricky’s room (my purpose was to retrieve my purse which I thought was in there; he stopped me from behaving like a headless chicken, asked to say hello, and gave me a huge hug).
Once there, I found Michael and geeked out over his “Tommy,” the first show of his that I saw; Max, whose normally applause-less solo was greeted by my single yelp; and Ricky’s longtime assistant Jose Vega, who was the Menudo’s choreographer and wardrobe stylist back in the day.
The thing that struck me most on this night was the moment when Ricky and I looked at one another. We are both now in our 40s, we have children of our own, and we found ourselves flashing back to early adolescence when he was a member of the boy band Menudo, and I was its opening act.
I saw a man now fulfilled and happy with his life, a man who glowed now that the walls that obscured his light had finally come down. I saw a man who is positively happy. I don’t think anyone could’ve wished for anything better for this man who is deserving of all the good this universe has to offer.
It was a magical “night of a thousand stars”… and this one shone brighter than all the others.