Tango Buenos Aires appears at Mayo PAC on Feb. 19
Mention the name of Eva Peron, and the first words that come to mind of many people are “Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina.”
Perhaps understandably, the First Lady of Argentina is inextricably associated with “Evita,” the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical that tried to depict Peron’s meteor-like life and career.
But neither Lloyd Webber nor Rice is Argentinian, and that makes a difference, according to Lucrecia Laurel, scriptwriter for Tango Buenos Aires.
“Eva was a visionary, a good person with high objectives,” writes Laurel in an e-mail. “She became a hero, a saint to us. ... She became our voice.”
To bring that voice to life, Tango Buenos Aires has created an original program called “The Song of Eva Peron.” The company will perform the piece at the Mayo Performing Arts Center on Thursday, Feb. 19.
The program takes its cue from Peron’s short but dramatic life. A former actress, she married Colonel Juan Peron in 1945, who became president of Argentina the following year.
Eva Peron used her position as First Lady to advocate humanitarian causes and to promote the rights of workers. In 1952, she died of cancer at age 33.
Laurel explains that “The Song of Eva Peron” uses dance – primarily the tango – and a few songs to capture the essence of Peron.
“The title refers to the voice of Eva, the power of her speech, and the message she has left to the world of freedom and courage,” writes Laurel.
“The show follows her life, from her arrival to Buenos Aires as a teenager to her becoming the most representative First Lady in our history,” Laurel writes. “Each of our female dancers characterizes Eva in a different period of her life.”
“The Song of Eva Peron,” which premiered this year, is the product of choreographer Hector Falcon and musical director Fernando Marzan.
“We have new tangos created by our musical director to represent each scene,” writes Laurel. “And, of course, we have some classical tangos as well, such as ‘La Cumparsita’ by composer Matos Rodriguez and ‘Adios Nonino’ by Astor Piazzolla.”
“The Song of Eva Peron” is the latest production from a company that had its origins more than 30 years ago. Composer and tango director Osvaldo Requeno started the company for the Michelangelo cabaret in in Buenos Aires.
Within a few years, Tango Buenos Aires was dancing in locations throughout the Americas, as well as Europe and the Far East.
The company is currently headed by artistic director Rosario Bauza, Lucrecia Laurel’s mother.
In the years since its founding, Tango Buenos Aires has sought to educate and entertain audiences.
“Today we can show how tango has evolved,” Laurel writes. “We can show the audiences more colors of our dance and music, because tango in the last 30 to 40 years has been very active and popular in Argentina and in whole world.”
Laurel believes that popularity will only grow. “Tango talks about emotions rooted in our genes, (such as) the sense of loss from being an immigrant, the happiness and sorrow we live every day.”
“Tango talks about union. The dance is done (with two people) embracing all the time,” Laurel concludes. “We put our hearts together when we dance. We become one single being when dancing tango.”
‘THE SONG OF EVA PERON’ BY TANGO BUENOS AIRES
WHAT: The troupe from Argentina, which specializes in both original and classic dances, presents a program that celebrates the life and work of Eva Peron, First Lady of Argentina from 1946 to 1952.
WHEN: 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19
WHERE: Mayo Performing Arts Center, 100 South St., Morristown.
TICKETS: $29 to $59