Review: Evita (San Jose Center for the Performing Arts)

I saw the musical Evita at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts today.

Evita had a few memorable songs, like Don't Cry for Me Argentina, but I found it boring.
The show was too long, and I wondered when it would finally end.

The overall story was relatively weak, making it difficult to follow many songs. Maybe it was the San Jose production, but this musical did not endear itself to me.

This had to rank at the bottom compared to some of my favorite musicals, including Grease, Cabaret, Chicago, Phantom of the Opera, and Les Miserables.

My wife really hated the show. When the second act started, she had to step out (as she was not feeling well) and threw up. It was not a musical that she would ever want to watch again.

According to Wikipedia:

Evita is a musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. It concentrates on the life of Argentine political leader Eva Perón, the second wife of Argentine president Juan Perón. The story follows Evita's early life, rise to power, charity work, and eventual death.

The musical began as a rock opera concept album released in 1976. Its success led to productions in London's West End in 1978, winning the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Musical, and on Broadway a year later, where it was the first British musical to receive the Tony Award for Best Musical.

There are several good videos on YouTube showing famous songs from the musical.

Act I "A Cinema in Buenos Aires, 26 July 1952" – Crowd° "Requiem for Evita" – Chorus "Oh, What a Circus" – Che and Crowd "On This Night of a Thousand Stars" – Magaldi "Eva and Magaldi" / "Eva, Beware of the City" – Eva, Magaldi and Evita's Family "Buenos Aires" – Eva and Crowd "Good Night and Thank You" – Che, Eva, Magaldi, and Lovers "The Lady's Got Potential" – Che* "The Art of the Possible" – Perón, Generals and Eva "Charity Concert" – Perón, Che, Magaldi, and Eva "I'd Be Surprisingly Good For You" – Eva and Perón "Hello and Goodbye" – Eva "Another Suitcase in Another Hall" – Perón's Mistress and Men's Chorus "Peron's Latest Flame" – Che, Aristocrats, Soldiers, and Eva "A New Argentina" – Eva, Che, Perón, and Crowd Act II Entr'acte "On The Balcony of the Casa Rosada" – Perón, Che and Crowd "Don't Cry for Me, Argentina" – Eva "High Flying Adored" – Che and Eva "Rainbow High" – Eva and Dressers "Rainbow Tour" – Perón, Advisers, and Che "The Actress Hasn't Learned the Lines (You'd Like to Hear)" – Eva, Aristocrats, and Che "And the Money Kept Rolling In (And Out)" – Che and Crowd "Santa Evita" – Children and Chorus "A Waltz for Eva and Che" – Eva and Che "You Must Love Me" - Eva "Peron's Latest Flame Playoff" - Soldiers** "She is a Diamond" – Perón** "Dice Are Rolling" / "Eva's Sonnet" – Perón and Eva "Eva's Final Broadcast" – Eva "Montage" – Eva, Che, Perón, and Chorus*** "Lament" – Eva, Embalmers, and Che