Slut, saint or something in between? The national tour of Evita, the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical which made Patti LuPone a star and lent Madonna some credibility, is making a brief appearance at the Warner Theatre in D.C. this week, and it tries to figure out how to categorize the most famous first lady in South America. This production’s verdict on its anti-heroine, however, is rather apparent – Eva Peron was certainly no angel, and her hold on the Argentine people was as chilling as it was magnetic.

Evita is, to be frank, a weird musical. Done entirely in song, the play tells the story of Argentine actress Eva Duarte’s rise to power as she marries military leader Juan Peron, who goes on to assume the country’s presidency. Eva Peron was considered a saint to the working classes she championed, but her husband’s force-driven politics, the regime’s hypocrisy and her own sexually-driven rise to prominence are emphasized in the play’s book as well. Though its subject matter is a strange one, and its lyrics occasionally dated, the rock-opera score is memorable and charged.

Anyone familiar with the Madonna/Banderas version of cinematic fame will remember the titular character as a complicated one, pitiable for her tough childhood, somewhat admirable for her seemingly genuine compassion for her people, but questionable in her methods and her thirst for power. This is partially due to changes from the Broadway book, but also stems from Madonna’s sympathetic interpretation of Evita. But in this production, as Eva, Sarah Litzinger is steely and sultry, brimming with ambition and fire. She’s also borderline shrill and almost entirely unlikable. This is a legitimate take on the character, and makes for a unique viewing experience, as we view Eva’s ascent to power with cynicism and even disgust. It’s an intriguing portrait of the self-interested, fascist politics of Argentina, but also makes one wonder whether investing two and half hours in this woman’s life story is worth the time.