Review: MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL, Kimmel Cultural Campus - US National tour
Photo credit: Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade
Moulin Rouge! The Musical has finally arrived in Philadelphia, so pop the champagne and get ready to enter a world of splendour and romance! This Broadway musical is based on the extraordinary movie by Baz Luhrmann, but brought to life with current music mashed-up with the classics.
Moulin Rouge! The Musical is directed by Tony Award winner Alex Timbers with a book by Tony Award winner John Logan, music supervision, orchestrations and arrangements by Tony Award winner Justin Levine, and choreography by Tony Award winner Sonya Tayeh. With all of these talented creatives in one musical, it is truly an eye-popping extravaganza that cannot be missed!
Every aspect of this show blew me away. As soon as you step into the Academy of Music, you are greeted with a champagne bar to get you in the mood. The inside of the theatre is probably as beautiful as the actual Moulin Rouge in Paris, with a lavish, golden interior and 5,000lb crystal chandelier. The stage set is one of the most beautiful that we have seen recently, reportedly almost as stunning as the Broadway stage, with dazzling lights and a beautiful red and gold palette to represent the passion and rich underbelly of Bohemian Paris. It’s a stark façade to the greys used to represent the other parts of Paris, which shows the fascinating dichotomy between fantasy and reality.
The impeccable casting by Jim Carnahan and Stephen Kopelled provides us with some stand out performances. Our notable favourites, who are absolutely mesmerising to watch, are Courtney Reed as Satine and John Cardoza as Christian, and then Tamryn Goldberg as Nini and Gabe Martinez as Santiago. The women are so sensual as they flirt with “their men” and the audience. The men play their roles with romance and masculinity but without machismo. Austin Durant brings Harold Zidler to life with charm but is also fun and mischievious. Nick Rashad Burroughs is a strong Toulouse- Lautrec, almost the narrator of the show but in first person. Andrew Brewer as The Duke of Monroth is more handsome than necessary for an evil character but delightful to watch. It isn’t his fault he was raised to think it was ok to own and manipulate people… right?
Harper Miles as La Chocolate/Ensemble, Nicci Claspell as Arabia/Ensemble, Kamal Lado as Pierre and Andres Quintero as Baby Doll/ Ensemble are all outstanding. The considerable talent of the ensemble is captivating. A huge round of applause to Sam J. Cahn, Darius Crenshaw, Alexa De Barr, Christian Douglas, Tommy Gredrich, Cameron Hobbs, Chloe Rae Kehm, Tyler John Logan, Tanisha Moore, Brayden Newby, Kent Overshown, Stefanie Renee Salyers, Adea Michelle Sessoms, Jimena Flores Sanchez, Jennifer Wolfe. Not only is Moulin Rouge! The Musical excellent from a technical stand point, it is so fun and engaging to watch.
Moulin Rouge! The Musical is one of several jukebox musicals currently touring North America, but what makes it special is the addition of current pop sensations from Adele, Katy Perry, Sia, Rihanna, Beyonce and more included within the iconic song lineup. Through the electrifying blend of storytelling through live dialogue, music and dance the theatrical celebration of Truth, Beauty, Freedom and above all LOVE are proclaimed. While in many ways this story is a tragedy, with a love triangle gone awry and a deadly secret kept by the show’s star, Satine, we learn that love can overcome anything with the right imagination.
Spectacular and energetic.
***** Five stars
Reviewed by: Jamie Flowers
Moulin Rouge the Musical plays at the Academy of Music, Kimmel Cultural Campus until 23 July before continuing its tour, with tickets for the Philadelphia run available here.