This year’s PrideFEST is filled with theatrical offerings, including a production of the musical Evita!

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Primadonna Productions is excited to be bringing ‘Evita’, the third collaboration by the  legendary Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, to the Mandurah Performing Arts Centre this weekend.

This musical is based upon the life of Eva Peron, and it chronicles her rise from provincial obscurity through the corridors of power, until she becomes first lady of the nation as the wife of the Argentinian president, Juan Peron.

Beloved by the masses, hated by the army and the aristocracy, Evita Peron remains to this day a controversial heroine………was she an activist/philanthropist or simply an actress with a lust for power and riches, and whose untimely death cemented the legend?

This musical employs an eclectic range of musical styles, including the hit single ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’, and presents an enthralling look at Eva, (christened Evita by the masses) from her teens to the end of her short life.

The musical was first performed in 1978 and after taking the West End by storm, it won the Laurence Olivier Award Best Musical, and  a year later, it became the first British musical to receive the Tony Award  for Best Musical.

A film version of the musical was talked about for many years and it finally made it to cinema screens in 1996 with Madonna in the lead role alongside Antonio Banderas.  The film version was huge box office success and Madonna won a Golden Globe for her performance.

This production has a vibrant local cast of more than forty is led by Sian Dhu in the title role, Laurence Williams as Che and Peter Knol in the role of Juan Peron.

Director Carole Dhu first tried to obtain the rights in 1998, and found the show was not available for licensing. After almost two decades of waiting Dhu says she is very excited to finally have the opportunity to bring this challenging dramatic piece to life, and is thrilled to be working with Bruce Angus as Musical Director, and a strong ensemble of local talent.

Evita runs for a short season with four shows on the Boardwalk stage from Nov 12^th to 14^th.  Show times and ticketing details are available from manpac.com.au or 95503900.