Theatre Preview
Eleanor Pearson 18 April 2015 Bringing a little star quality to ChatswoodActor Virginia Natoli loves a challenge, so it’s probably not surprising she relishes the physical and emotional demands of her latest stage role.
Natoli described her title role in Willoughby Theatre Company’s Evita as “a dream come true”. “(Eva Peron) was so iconic, and (playing Evita) you never leave the stage. It’s challenging vocally, with acting, and dancing. It’s the whole triple threat. It’s wonderful.” Demonstrating true dedication to her art, the Cronulla resident travels an hour each way to rehearsals on Sydney’s North Shore three times a week. “I don’t sit still,’’ Natoli explained, during a half hour interview with me, squeezed in between an Evita photo shoot on the Chatswood Concourse steps, and returning to her three children at the end of a busy Thursday. Natoli said her husband, Damian, and mother, Adele, also supported her in her musical theatre career. An accountant by day, Natoli has always loved performing. Natoli said Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical, Evita, based on Argentine former First Lady, Eva “Evita” Peron, was the “original rags to riches story’’. In preparation for her role, Natoli read as much as she could about Evita and observed her through documentary footage. “She was so fascinating…and so divisive-people either loved her or hated her. “The rich hated her because she gave rights to workers, and then there was this snobbery because she was (born) illegitimate. Today it doesn’t matter, but back then you would have no future. She was really quite extraordinary.” Fashion plays a role in Willoughby Theatre Company’s Evita, with an impressive 20-plus costume changes for Natoli alone. Natoli said audiences could expect a lavish operetta-style production. “(Director) Declan Moore has taken it to the next level. The attention to detail is unbelievable.” View the Evita Review
Playing until May 31, 2015 |
Evita
Season Starting: Friday May 22 (click on "Upcoming Events" for exact dates and times.) Address: The Concourse Theatre - 409 Victoria Avenue, Chatswood Cast and Crew:
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