Tina Arena to star in EVITA

Tina Arena to Play Iconic Eva Peron in EVITA Revival

Tickets on Sale from August 31

Opera Australia Artistic Director Lyndon Terracini, Australian theatre producer John Frost and leading UK theatre producer David Ian have announced that Australian icon, singer, songwriter and musical theatre star Tina Arena will play the role of Eva Peron in Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s EVITA.  One of the most celebrated classical musicals of all time, EVITA will return to Australia next year, playing at the Sydney Opera House’s Joan Sutherland Theatre.

Throughout a stellar 40-year music career, theatre has been a constant presence for Tina, having starred in productions in Australia and internationally. Her theatrical work includes Cabaret, Nine, Dynamite and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat. Now, ten years after Tina wowed critics on the West End as Roxie Hart in Chicago, she is back with her most challenging theatrical project to date, Evita. 

Andrew Lloyd Webber said, “I am absolutely thrilled that my wish that Hal Prince’s wonderful production of Evita should be seen again is to be fulfilled, and to renew my association with Tina Arena.” 

“We are thrilled that Tina Arena has agreed to return to the Australian musical theatre stage to play this pivotal role in this renowned production of EVITA,” said Lyndon Terracini and John Frost. “Tina is an extraordinary artist with a commanding stage presence. She will leave an indelible impression with this demanding role, which has been played by Elaine Paige, Patti LuPone, Stephanie Lawrence, Elena Roger and, in the original Australian production, Jennifer Murphy.”

This is the first time a Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber musical will play at the Sydney Opera House.

After sell-out productions including South Pacific, The King and I and most recently the 60th anniversary production of My Fair Lady, John Frost and Opera Australia will again re-create one of the greatest works of music theatre, the original West End and Broadway production of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s EVITA, directed by Hal Prince. Legendary Broadway director Hal Prince has won 21 Tony Awards, more than any person in history. Hal Prince will be joined by fellow original West End creative team members including choreographer Larry Fuller and designer Timothy O’Brien.

Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s EVITA is iconic, with more than 20 major awards to its credit including the Olivier and Tony Awards for Best Musical, a Golden Globe and an Oscar for the film version starring Madonna and Antonio Banderas. Featuring some of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s best loved songs including ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’, ‘On This Night of a Thousand Stars’, ‘You Must Love Me’ and ‘Another Suitcase in Another Hall’, EVITA charts the story of Eva Peron, wife of former Argentine dictator Juan Peron, from her humble beginnings through to the extraordinary wealth, power and status which ultimately led her to be heralded as the ‘spiritual leader of the nation’.

This musical captured the attention of the public when it was first staged in 1978 and in its 40th year and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 70th year, Opera Australia and John Frost are thrilled to bring this “modern masterpiece” (New York Post) to Australia in all its original glory.

Produced by special arrangement with The Really Useful Group.

evitathemusical.com.au

#EVITAinAUS

EVITA

Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House

From 13 September 2018

Tues–Sat 7.30pm, Matinees Wed & Sat 1pm, Sun 3pm 

Bookings: evitathemusical.com.au or 9318 8200 or 02 9250 7777

TICKETS ON SALE FROM 31 AUGUST

BIO | TINA ARENA

Tina Arena’s journey is the stuff of Australian music folklore, dating back to the mid-1970s when all of Australia knew her simply as “Tiny Tina”, arguably the most popular singer in the country … by age nine! Tina’s debut studio recording, 1977’s Tiny Tina & Little John (co-starring John Bowles, her 12-year-old cohort from the legendary variety TV show Young Talent Time) had Tina belting out pitch-perfect covers of chart hits of the time such as ABBA’s Ring Ring and When I Kissed The Teacher.

Needless to say, generations of Australians have grown up with Tina Arena and her music ever since. The child star matured into one of our most successful singer/songwriters, the possessor of a voice for the ages, and she’s now a veteran (even though she’s still only in her 40s!) with total album sales topping ten million.

Tina’s phenomenal recording career has produced hit after hit, from her earliest breakthrough singles, 1990’s I Need Your Body and The Machine’s Breaking Down, through to the iconic songs that generations of Australians know off by heart – Chains, Sorrento Moon, Wasn’t It Good, Burn, If I Didn’t Love You, Symphony Of Life, Heaven Help My Heart – as well as more recent classics, including 2013’s Only Lonely and You Set Fire To My Life. 

Tina recently celebrated her 40-year anniversary as a recording career, an extraordinary milestone by any measure. But consider this: Tina Arena is the only Australian artist to earn a gold or platinum certification for original album releases, in every decade since the 1970s right through to today. In fact, every album in her career has gone gold, platinum or multi-platinum. Her 1994 album Don’t Ask remains one of the highest selling Australian albums of all time, currently certified 14 times platinum; and add to this her unprecedented success in France where she has sold five million units there alone.

While Tina has always been forward-focused with her music and career, the 40-year milestone – alongside other recent awards and accolades such as 2015’s induction into the ARIA Hall of Fame and 2016’s Order of Australia medal – has forced Tina to pause and reflect. And looking back, Tina couldn’t be prouder of everything she’s survived and achieved thus far.

To celebrate the 40-year anniversary, Tina recently released a new musical collection titled Greatest Hits and Interpretations. Divided into two parts, the first, titled Retrospective, is all about the greatest hits, while on the second, titled Reimagine, Tina herself barely appears. Instead, she invited an eclectic collective of peers including Jimmy Barnes, Dannii Minogue, Jessica Mauboy and the Veronicas, and some of her favourite newcomers to reinterpret a selection of highlights from her career.