# Op zoek naar Evita

Op zoek naar Evita (Looking for Evita) was a 2007 talent show-themed television series produced by the AVRO in the Netherlands. It documented the search for a new, undiscovered musical theatre performer to play the role of Eva Peron in the 2008 Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Evita.
The show was hosted by Frits Sissing who announced Brigitte Heitzer as the winner of the final public telephone vote on 21 October 2007 and masterminded by Willem Nijholt.
It became the first of a series of the Dutch themed talent contests to be produced by the AVRO in collaboration with Willem Nijholt. Op zoek naar Joseph followed in 2008 to find a new male lead to play Joseph for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, In 2009, it was followed by Op zoek naar Mary Poppins searching for a new lead to play Mary Poppins in a production of the musical Mary Poppins, In 2010, it was followed by Op zoek naar Zorro searching for a new lead to play Zorro in a production of the musical Zorro, Ten years later in 2021, it was followed by Op zoek naar Maria searching for a new lead to play Maria in a production of the musical The Sound of Music. In 2022, it was followed by Op zoek naar Danny & Sandy searching for a new lead to play Danny & Sandy in a production of the musical Grease.

## Format
### Expert panel

To assess and train the potential Evitas and judge them during the live shows, an expert panel was chosen. The panel included:
* Willem Nijholt – actor and singer.
* Peter Van de Velde – Flemish actor from Belgium
* Erwin van Lambaart – (managing director of Joop van den Ende theatre)
* Pia Douwes – (musical theatre actress who is very successful in Europe)

### Live finals

The final ten contestants competed in the live studio finals held on Sunday nights over eight weeks. Each week the contestants sang and performed during the live show, receiving comments from the judges following their performance. The public then got a chance to vote for their favourite Evita, and the two contestants with the fewest votes performed a sing-off in front of Nijholt, who then decided which Evita to keep in the contest. This was repeated with the top ten, the top nine, the top eight, the top seven, the top six, the top five and the top four.
Nijholt had no say in the final casting decision, when in the concluding edition of the series it was left to the public to choose who should play Evita out of the final two contenders, Brigitte Heitzer and Suzan Seegers. After more votes were cast, the winning entrant was revealed as Heitzer, who won a contract to play Evita at the Nieuwe Luxor Theater in Rotterdam.

## Finalists

Ten potential Evitas made it through the auditions process to perform during the live shows.
| Finalist | Age* | Date of birth | Dress colour | Status |
| Tineke Blok | 25 | 21 April 1982 | Light pink | Eliminated 1st in week 1 |
| Sabina Petra | 26 | 23 April 1981 | Light green | Eliminated 2nd in week 2 |
| Sophie Veldhuizen | 24 | 6 March 1983 | Dark pink | Eliminated 3rd in week 3 |
| Babette Holtman | 26 | 27 May 1981 | Orange | Eliminated 4th in week 4 |
| Wieneke Remmers | 28 | 12 August 1978 | Light blue | Eliminated 5th in week 5 |
| Anne Stalman | 25 | 29 November 1981 | Dark green | Eliminated 6th in week 6 |
| Marleen van der Loo | 37 | 2 January 1970 | Dark blue | Eliminated 7th in week 7 |
| Marjolein Teepen | 27 | 6 August 1980 | Yellow | Third place |
| Suzan Seegers | 26 | 13 November 1980 | Purple | Second place |
| Brigitte Heitzer | 28 | 23 August 1979 | Red | Winner |
* at the start of the contest

### Results summary

Results summary :
| Place | Contestant | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Final |
| 1 | Brigitte | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Winner |
| 2 | Suzan | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Second place |
| 3 | Marjolein | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom 2 | Third place |
| 4 | Marleen | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom 2 | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| 5 | Anne | Safe | Bottom 2 | Bottom 2 | Safe | Bottom 2 | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| 6 | Wieneke | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom 2 | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| 7 | Babette | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| 8 | Sophie | Bottom 2 | Safe | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| 9 | Sabina | Safe | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| 10 | Tineke | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |

## Live shows

The live shows saw the finalists eliminated one by one following both individual and group performances. Once eliminated, the leaving contestant ended the programme by receiving a suitcase and leading a performance of "Dag en bedankt nog (Goodnight and Thank You)\Jij blijft bij mij (You Must Love Me)" from Evita with the remaining contestants.

### Week 1 (September 2, 2007)

Following the first week of competition, Tineke was the first Evita to be eliminated from the competition. The show performances were:
* Group performances:
** "Dreamgirls" (from Dreamgirls)
** "Rhythm of the Night" (DeBarge)
Contestants' performances on the first live show :
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Marjolein Teepen | Pair 1 | 1 | "Flashdance... What a Feeling" | Safe |
| Anne Stalman | Pair 1 | 2 | "One Moment in Time" | Safe |
| Sabina Petra | Pair 2 | 3 | "Als ze mij zo zouwen zien (If My Friends Could See Me Now)" | Safe |
| Wieneke Remmers | Pair 2 | 4 | "One Day I'll Fly Away" | Safe |
| Tineke Blok | Pair 3 | 5 | "These Boots Are Made for Walking" | Bottom 2 |
| Marleen van der Loo | Pair 3 | 6 | "Inspiratie" | Safe |
| Brigitte Heitzer | Pair 4 | 7 | "It's Oh So Quiet" | Safe |
| Babette Holtman | Pair 4 | 8 | "The Way We Were" | Safe |
| Sophie Veldhuizen | Pair 5 | 9 | "Cabaret" | Bottom 2 |
| Suzan Seegers | Pair 5 | 10 | "Because of You" | Safe |
* Jury's favourite Evita:
** Erwin van Lambaart: Suzan (but revealed that his other favourite was Marjolein, but was positive about Suzan)
** Pia Douwes: Suzan
** Peter Van de Velde: Brigitte
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Tineke Blok | "I Don't Know How to Love Him" from Jesus Christ Superstar | Eliminated |
| Sophie Veldhuizen | "I Don't Know How to Love Him" from Jesus Christ Superstar | Saved by Nijholt |

### Week 2 (September 9, 2007)

Sabina was the second contestant to be eliminated from the series. The show performances were:
* Group performances:
** "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" (from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes)
** "Can't Help Falling in Love" (Elvis Presley)
Contestants' performances on the second live show :
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Anne Stalman | Pair 1 | 1 | "Think" | Bottom 2 |
| Sabina Petra | Pair 1 | 2 | "Geen kind meer" | Bottom 2 |
| Marleen van der Loo | Pair 2 | 3 | "Fever" | Safe |
| Suzan Seegers | Pair 2 | 4 | "Minutenwals" | Safe |
| Sophie Veldhuizen | Solo Performance | 5 | "Send in the Clowns" | Safe |
| Brigitte Heitzer | Pair 3 | 6 | "I Am What I Am" | Safe |
| Marjolein Teepen | Pair 3 | 7 | "Over the Rainbow" | Safe |
| Babette Holtman | Pair 4 | 8 | "I'm Every Woman" | Safe |
| Wieneke Remmers | Pair 4 | 9 | "New York, New York" | Safe |
* Jury's favourite Evita:
** Erwin van Lambaart: Marleen
** Pia Douwes: Wieneke
** Peter Van de Velde: Sabina
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Anne Stalman | "Memory" from Cats | Saved by Nijholt |
| Sabina Petra | "Memory" from Cats | Eliminated |

### Week 3 (September 16, 2007)

The third potential Evita to be eliminated was Sophie. The show performances were:
* Group performances:
** "Get the Party Started" (Pink)
** "Mijn pakkie an (My Strongest Suit)" (from Aida)
Contestants' performances on the third live show :
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Babette Holtman | Pair 1 | 1 | "Misschien dit keer (Maybe This Time)" | Safe |
| Brigitte Heitzer | Pair 1 | 2 | "Margherita" | Safe |
| Sophie Veldhuizen | Pair 2 | 3 | "Waarom zeggen ze nee (Everybody Says Don't)" | Bottom 2 |
| Suzan Seegers | Pair 2 | 4 | "All by Myself" | Safe |
| Anne Stalman | Pair 3 | 5 | "Na die ontmoeting (Now That I've Seen Her)" | Bottom 2 |
| Wieneke Remmers | Pair 3 | 6 | "Telkens weer" | Safe |
| Marjolein Teepen | Pair 4 | 7 | "Geen wolken voor mijn zon (Don't Rain on My Parade)" | Safe |
| Marleen van der Loo | Pair 4 | 8 | "I Will Always Love You" | Safe |
* Jury's favourite Evita:
** Erwin van Lambaart: Suzan
** Pia Douwes: Marleen
** Peter Van de Velde: Wieneke
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Sophie Veldhuizen | "Beauty and the Beast" from Beauty and the Beast | Eliminated |
| Anne Stalman | "Beauty and the Beast" from Beauty and the Beast | Saved by Nijholt |

### Week 4 (September 23, 2007)

Babette became the fourth contestant to hear she was not Evita. The show performances were:
* Group performances:
** "We Go Together" (from Grease)
** "Take a Chance on Me" (from Mamma Mia)
Contestants' performances on the fourth live show :
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Suzan Seegers | Pair 1 | 1 | "Ik geloof (I Have Confidence)" | Safe |
| Marleen van der Loo | Pair 1 | 2 | "Stuff Like That There" | Safe |
| Marjolein Teepen | Pair 2 | 3 | "Ik hou van jou" | Safe |
| Babette Holtman | Pair 2 | 4 | "Als ik jou niet krijg (If I Can't Have You)" | Bottom 2 |
| Anne Stalman | Solo Performance | 5 | "Raise the Roof" | Safe |
| Wieneke Remmers | Pair 3 | 6 | "Take That Look Off Your Face" | Bottom 2 |
| Brigitte Heitzer | Pair 3 | 7 | "Hij kan niet zonder mij (As Long As He Needs Me)" | Safe |
* Jury's favourite Evita:
** Erwin van Lambaart: Babette
** Pia Douwes: Babette
** Peter Van de Velde: Babette
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Babette Holtman | "Heel alleen (On My Own)" from Les Misérables | Eliminated |
| Wieneke Remmers | "Heel alleen (On My Own)" from Les Misérables | Saved by Nijholt |

### Week 5 (September 30, 2007)

Wieneke became the fifth contestant to hear she would not be Evita. The show performances were:
* Group performances:
** "Don't Stop Me Now" (from We Will Rock You)
** "Rainbow High" (from Evita)
** "It's the Hard Knock Life" (from Annie)
Contestants' performances on the fifth live show :
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Wieneke Remmers | Pair 1 | 1 | "Dat zegt het hart (A Change in Me)" | Bottom 2 |
| Anne Stalman | Pair 1 | 2 | "Jij woont in mijn hart (You'll Be in My Heart)" | Bottom 2 |
| Brigitte Heitzer | Pair 2 | 3 | "A Piece of Sky" | Safe |
| Marjolein Teepen | Pair 2 | 4 | "De man van La Mancha (Man of La Mancha)" | Safe |
| Marleen van der Loo | Pair 3 | 5 | "Het Dorp" | Safe |
| Suzan Seegers | Pair 3 | 6 | "Big Spender" | Safe |
* Jury's favourite Evita:
** Erwin van Lambaart: Marjolein (but also very positive about Suzan being his favourite)
** Pia Douwes: Marjolein
** Peter Van de Velde: Marjolein
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Wieneke Remmers | "Thuis (Home)" from The Wiz | Eliminated |
| Anne Stalman | "Thuis (Home)" from The Wiz | Saved by Nijholt |

### Week 6 (October 7, 2007)

In the quarter-final, the sixth Evita to be eliminated was Anne. The show performances were:
* Group performances:
** "Shout" (Lulu)
** "Foxtrot (Dutch version)" (from Foxtrot)
Contestants' performances on the sixth live show :
| Contestant | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Brigitte Heitzer | 1 | "Al die jazz (All That Jazz)" | 6 | "Somebody to Love" | Safe |
| Marleen van der Loo | 2 | "Tegen alle verwachtingen in" | 7 | "Whatever Lola Wants" | Bottom 2 |
| Suzan Seegers | 3 | "Ik ben een brassband (I'm a Brass Band)" | 8 | "Somewhere" | Safe |
| Marjolein Teepen | 4 | "Ik weet het nu (I Know the Truth)" | 9 | "Let Me Dance for You" | Safe |
| Anne Stalman | 5 | "Mannen (Men)" | 10 | "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" | Bottom 2 |
* Jury's favourite Evita:
** Erwin van Lambaart: Marjolein
** Pia Douwes: Marleen
** Peter Van de Velde: Brigitte
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Marleen van der Loo | "De winnaar krijgt de macht (The Winner Takes It All)" from Mamma Mia | Saved by Nijholt |
| Anne Stalman | "De winnaar krijgt de macht (The Winner Takes It All)" from Mamma Mia | Eliminated |

### Week 7 (October 14, 2007)

In the semi-final, the seventh and final Evita to be eliminated was Marleen. The show performances were:
* Group performances:
** "Dance: Ten; Looks: Three" (from A Chorus Line)
** "Ik ben uitzonderlijk goed voor u (I'd Be Surprisingly Good For You)" featuring Roberto de Groot, who will play as Juan Perón in the upcoming Dutch revival of Evita
Contestants' performances on the seventh live show :
| Contestant | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Marleen van der Loo | 1 | "Met één blik (With One Look)" | 6 | "Woman in the Moon" | Bottom 2 |
| Suzan Seegers | 2 | "This Is My Life" | 5 | "Jij speelt een spel (Maybe I Like It This Way)" | Safe |
| Brigitte Heitzer | 3 | "Waar bleef die zomer? (Where Did That Summer Go?)" | 8 | "Proud Mary" | Safe |
| Marjolein Teepen | 4 | "Mein Herr" | 7 | "Astonishing" | Bottom 2 |
* Jury's favourite Evita:
** Erwin van Lambaart: Suzan
** Pia Douwes: Suzan
** Peter Van de Velde: Brigitte
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Marleen van der Loo | "Één van ons (One of Us)" from Mamma Mia | Eliminated |
| Marjolein Teepen | "Één van ons (One of Us)" from Mamma Mia | Saved by Nijholt |

### Week 8 (October 21, 2007)

The grand finale saw Brigitte win the competition, with Suzan coming second and Marjolein third. The show performances were:
* Group performance:
** Finalists and former Evitas: "There's No Business Like Show Business" (from Annie Get Your Gun)
** Finalists: "One Night Only" (from Dreamgirls)
** Brigitte and Suzan: "Buenos Aires (Dutch version)" (from Evita)
** Brigitte and Suzan: "Huil niet om mij, Argentina (Don't Cry For Me, Argentina)" (from Evita)
Contestants' performances on the first live show :
| Contestant | Order | Song | Result |
| Marjolein Teepen | 1 | "Mijn leven is van mij (I Belong to Me)" | Eliminated |
| Brigitte Heitzer | 2 | "Het is over" | Winner |
| Suzan Seegers | 3 | "Een nieuw leven (A New Life)" | Runner-up |
* Jury's verdict on who is Evita:
** Erwin van Lambaart: could not choose between Suzan and Brigitte
** Pia Douwes: could not choose between Suzan and Brigitte
** Peter Van de Velde: Brigitte
** Willem Nijholt: Suzan
* After being announced as the series winner, Brigitte concluded the series with a performance of "Huil niet om mij, Argentina (Don't Cry For Me, Argentina)".

## After the series

Brigitte Heitzer and several other finalists appeared in a special programme on 25 December 2008 with the winner and finalists from Op zoek naar Joseph titled Kerst met Joseph en Evita (Christmas with Joseph and Evita).

## Reception
### Awards

On 1 October 2008, it was announced that Op zoek naar Evita was nominated for the Gouden Televizier-Ring 2008, for the best television from the season 2007–2008. On 24 October 2008 showed that this nomination was not silver, the Golden Televizier-Ring was won by Mooi! Weer De Leeuw.

## Follow-up

The success of the series lead to it becoming the first of a series of the Dutch themed talent contests produced by the AVRO in collaboration with Nijholt. 2008 saw Op zoek naar Joseph search for a new male lead to play Joseph for a production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's and Tim Rice's Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. This was followed in 2009 by Op zoek naar Mary Poppins, which searched for a new lead to play Mary Poppins in a production of the musical Mary Poppins. 2010 saw Op zoek naar Zorro cast Zorro in the forthcoming stage production of Zorro. Ten years later in 2021 saw Op zoek naar Maria cast Maria in the stage production of The Sound of Music. This was followed in 2022 by Op zoek naar Danny & Sandy, which searched for 2 new leads to play Danny & Sandy in a production of the musical Grease.