David Mirvish & Global Creatures / Moulin Rouge! The Musical, book by John Logan, choreographed by Sonya Tayeh, musical supervision by Justin Levine, directed by Alex Timbers, CAA Ed Mirvish Theatre, closes Jan. 12. Tickets here.
The touring production of Moulin Rouge! The Musical has arrived in town on a wave of glory.
The show opened on Broadway in 2019 and is still going strong on the Great White Way. Not surprisingly, Moulin Rouge was nominated for 14 Tony Awards, and won 10, including Best Musical.
And does the show deserve all the hype? You bet it does.
The Story
Moulin Rouge! The Musical is based on Baz Luhrmann’s Oscar-winning 2001 film and shares the same storyline. It’s set in Paris in 1899, and kudos to book writer John Logan for dialogue that never loses its crispness.
Satine (Arianna Rosario) is the star attraction at the famous nightclub. She becomes part of a love triangle that includes a penniless composer Christian (Christian Douglas), whom she really loves, and a wealthy patron, the Duke of Monroth (Andrew Brewer).
Christian’s Bohemian friends, Toulouse-Lautrec (Nick Rashad Burroughs) and Santiago (Danny Burgos), want him to get Satine interested in his songs so the Moulin Rouge will put on their musical play. Meanwhile, the club’s owner Harold Zidler (Robert Petkoff) wants Satine to form a liaison with the duke for his money in order to save the Moulin Rouge from bankruptcy.
Poor Satine gets caught between the two forces of love and loyalty.
The Production
Moulin Rouge has staggeringly beautiful theatrical values. Three of the Tonys the show won were for sets (Derek McLane), costumes (Catherine Zuber) and lighting (Justin Townsend) and one can see why.
In fact, I would go so far as to say that this production is one of the most impressive I’ve seen in a long while. Every scene is a visual delight, and becomes almost a force of nature because the stage picture smacks you in the face with its design elements. Often sets, costumes and lighting act as a backdrop, but not in this stunningly gorgeous production.
Choreographer Sonya Tayeh won her Tony for her imaginative dances which erupt across the stage, coupled by more quiet movement. You could almost say the show is over-choreographed because someone is always in motion. In particular, Tayeh has come up with lascivious bump and grind for the cancan girls and the audience loved it. In all, the choreography is vigorous and very, very showy.
Director Alex Timbers won a well-deserved Tony for his staging, which is superb. The large cast is manipulated with finesse, because Timbers knows how to make both large ensembles and intimate moments work.
The Actors
There is, alas, one fly in the ointment amid some very talented people.
Satine is the central focus, but Rosario is miscast. She can sing and dance well enough but lacks the sexual allure which is so necessary for Satine. In fact, her whole stage presence lacks charisma. It doesn’t help that she is very mannered in her singing, elongating her vowels so you lose track of the lyrics. She also drops her words at the end of lines, so the audience loses them. I’m sure Rosario would be fine in other roles, just not in this one.
The men, however, are wonderful, with two being superb.
As Christian, Douglas is a blazing talent who can act, sing and dance up a storm. His performance is absolutely captivating, and he beautifully portrays both Christian’s tentative nature as well as his explosive frustration. He is a relative newcomer who is bound for a brilliant Broadway career.
Petkoff is dazzling as Zidler, the manipulative owner of the Moulin Rouge. His commanding voice is a clarion call, while his sparkling personality jumps off the stage. As master of ceremonies, he is front and centre, but more importantly, he is also very good in his offstage moments, particularly pleading with Satine to take on the duke, and then grovelling to the duke himself. Petkoff presents Zidler as a man of many faces.
Burroughs’ Toulouse-Lautrec is a very sympathetic character, full of charm and wit, while Burgos’ Santiago, while a bit too loud at times, is a good foil for Burroughs with his energetic performance. Both men sing divinely. Brewer’s duke is a bit mannered in his speech but exudes the right amount of entitlement.
There are also four Moulin Rouge dancers — Nini (Ak Naderer), Arabia (Rayven Bailey), La Chocolat (Renee Marie Titus) and Baby Doll (Max Heitmann), the latter being in drag. This foursome performs some serious kick ass routines that almost steal the show.
The Music
Like the movie, Moulin Rouge uses found music for its score. It incorporates the songs from the movie but adds in a lot more from the contemporary pop repertoire. Thus, Moulin Rouge is a jukebox musical, but one that uses many songwriters, rather than just one.
The score covers a wide sweep, with classics like Minnie the Moocher (1931), Nature Boy (1948), and Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend (1949), as well as an Edith Piaf tribute. Contemporary hits include Burning Down the House, Every Breath You Take, and Sympathy for the Devil. The Sound of Music and Habanera from the opera Carmen, even make an appearance.
Whereas the movie contained whole songs (if I’m not mistaken), this score more often than not links lines from several songs to form a new unit. For example, Diamonds Are Forever from the James Bond movie, segues into Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend from the musical Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, which segues into Madonna’s Material Girl, followed by five other songs.
As a result, Moulin Rouge has a jammed-packed, tuneful score that is very clever in the way songs are used. Music supervisor Justin Levine won a Tony for Best Orchestrations along with three others. He also is responsible for some clever additional lyrics.
Final Thoughts
Moulin Rouge! The Musical is a vastly entertaining show on many levels and is certainly worth a visit.
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