Evita charts the young and ambitious Eva Peron’s meteoric rise to sainthood. Set in Argentina between 1934-1952, the Tony-winning musical follows Eva Duarte on her journey from poor illegitimate child to ambitious actress to, as wife of military leader-turned-president Juan Peron, the most powerful woman in Latin America, before her death from cancer at age 33.

Evita’s memorable “Don’t Cry For Me Argentina” was recorded and released in 1976 followed by the complete rock opera concept album, which went gold. The stage production opened on June 21, 1978 at the Prince Edward Theatre in London with Elaine Paige in the title role and Joss Ackland as her formidable Juan Perón.

Following stints in Los Angeles and San Francisco, Evita premiered on Broadway at the Broadway Theatre on 25th September 1979. Evita won an impressive seven 1980 Tony Awards including Best Book, Best Score and Best Musical of the year. In 1981, the Evita cast recording was awarded a Grammy Award.

Productions of Evita have been performed all over the world, including performances in Austria, Spain, Mexico and South Africa. A major 1996 film adaptation starred Madonna in the title role and Antonio Banderas as Che. The film was nominated for five Academy Awards, winning one for Best Original Song (“You Must Love Me”).

A revival of the show opened at London’s Adelphi Theatre in 2006, with Argentinean actress Elena Roger as Eva. The production ran until May 2007 and was nominated for a number of awards, including a nomination for Elena Roger as Best Actress In A Musical at the 2006 Olivier Awards. The production transferred to Broadway at the Marquis Theatre in 2012 with Elena Roger reprising her role and Ricky Martin as Che.

Music By Andrew Lloyd Webber
Lyrics By Tim Rice
Book By Tim Rice
Original Direction By Harold Prince
Original Choreography By Larry Fuller
Opened 21 June 1978 at the Prince Edward Theatre in London
Olivier Awards
2 awards including Best New Musical & Best Performance In a Musical (Elaine Paige)
Tony Awards
8 awards including Best Musical & Best Original Score
Drama Desk Awards
6 awards
Outer Critics’ Circle Awards
1 award

Music Releases

Symphonic Suites

(2021)

Unmasked: The Platinum Collection

Deluxe Edition
(2019)

Evita

London Cast
(2006)

Evita

Music from the Motion Picture
(1996)

TV & Movies

Masterpiece

2002

Royal Albert Hall Celebration

1998

Evita

1996

Licensing Evita

Interested in staging your very own production of Evita with your school or group? We can’t wait to hear about it! Please remember, though, that applications to licence the show are subject to review and availability, and will differ based on various elements.

Find out more and apply below, or via your local licensing agent: