In the 2001 film Moulin Rouge!—Baz Luhrmann’s flaming absinthe-soaked fever dream—Toulouse-Lautrec (John Leguizamo) and his merry band of bohemians are creating a show called Spectacular Spectacular. In the new Broadway adaptation, titled Moulin Rouge! The Musical!, lest there be any confusion, librettist John Logan has changed the show-within-a-show’s title to Bohemian Rhapsody. Perhaps it’s simply another anachronistic musical reference in a piece packed with them. Maybe it’s a nod to the recent Oscar-winning Queen biopic. Or perhaps, for this glamorous theatrical extravaganza, Spectacular Spectacular suddenly seemed insufficient. Comment dit-on spectacular en français?
No disrespect to headliners Karen Olivo (a Tony winner as Anita in 2009’s West Side Story), who plays the tuberculosis-plagued performer/courtesan Satine, and Aaron Tveit (Catch Me If You Can, Next to Normal), as the lovestruck aspiring composer Christian but the real stars of this Moulin Rouge! are the artists who don’t appear onstage. Lighting designer Justin Townsend can evoke anything from a pulse-pounding nightclub to the shadowy alleys of Argentina to a hallucinogenic electric-green drunken dream. Six-time Tony winner Catherine Zuber, fresh off the elegantly appointed My Fair Lady, has crafted a stunning array of costumes: cascading cancan underskirts; bondage-style corsets; crushed-velvet tailcoats; and, for Olivo’s Satine, glittering bustiers, satiny robes, and body-hugging gowns. And set designer Derek McLane has turned the inside of the Hirschfeld Theatre into a crystal-studded, heart-shaped, hopelessly romantic fantasyland. Before the show starts, audience members are falling over themselves to take videos of the onstage sword swallowers and snap an artsy pic of the infamous elephant. If you didn’t post the perfect photo, did Moulin Rouge! really happen?
[Read Jesse Oxfeld’s ★★★★ review here.]
Once the Insta-orgy dies down, director Alex Timbers (late of Beetlejuice) draws us into the action instantly with the irresistible French-tinged anthem “Lady Marmalade.” If you’re a fan of Luhrmann’s movie, you’ll surely recall the chart-topping soundtrack cover by Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mya, and Pink. If you don’t know the film, you might remember Patti LaBelle singing the original disco-funk version and the then-controversial lyric “Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir.” This is our welcome to the Moulin Rouge: It’s where “sparkling diamond” Satine descends from the ceiling to perform; it’s where Christian first glimpses and falls desperately in love with her; it’s where the Duke of Monroth (Tam Mutu) decides he must possess her; it’s where painter Toulouse-Lautrec (Sahr Ngaujah), Christian, and tango dancer Santiago (Ricky Rojas) plan to produce their Bohemian Rhapsody. And it’s all presided over by ringmaster/emcee Harold Zidler (six-time Tony nominee and character actor extraordinaire Danny Burstein): “Welcome, you gorgeous collection of reprobates and rascals, artistes and arrivistes, soubrettes and sodomites,” he proclaims with a deliciously lewd grin.
Fervent fans of the film will be delighted to know that this is, in large part, the Moulin Rouge! they know and love. The changes by Logan—a 2010 Tony winner for his Rothko bioplay, Red—are character-driven and relatively subtle. Toulouse-Lautrec gets a backstory, which explains why he’s always hanging around the club despite the fact that he’s broke. This Christian is more impulsive and foolish, almost blinded by love. Gone is Satine’s too-glossy veneer: She calls herself a “whore” rather than a “courtesan”; she’s not looking at the Duke as her ticket out of the nightclub and onto the legit stage; and she knows she’s trading her services for the Duke’s sizable investment in the ailing Moulin Rouge. But inside, she’s crumbling—literally and figuratively. “Do you ever feel/ Already buried deep/ Six feet under/ Screams but no one seems to hear a thing?” she sings to a mirror. (That’s Katy Perry’s “Firework,” and Olivo sells it so well you’d swear it was written for Moulin Rouge!) Meanwhile, Mutu’s Duke is worlds away from his insipid onscreen predecessor; he’s almost a legitimate romantic rival. When he waltzes in crooning not one but two Rolling Stones songs—“Sympathy for the Devil” and “You Can’t Always Get What You Want”—it’s no wonder Satine succumbs to his charms so quickly.
Yes, there have been a few musical changes—mostly additions (many, many additions)—from the film version. But fret not: Christian and Satine still duet on Elton John’s “Your Song” in her Moroccan-chic boudoir, and the lilting “Come What May” remains their secret love song. However, if you were waiting to hear Burstein do “Like a Virgin,” you’re out of luck. His big moment is now Sia’s “Chandelier,” conceived as an alcohol-fueled delirium, and it’s bliss.
The total tally of contemporary tunes packed into this turn-of-the-20th-century story: roughly 70. Still, adding Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)” into the “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend”/“Material Girl” medley is a stroke of genius. And the Act 2 opener—Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” with a bit of “Tainted Love,” “Toxic,” and “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” thrown in—becomes a brilliant mix of love-gone-wrong tunes. It’s also a showcase for the extraordinary work of choreographer Sonya Tayeh, who starts with a combative Argentine tango—a breathtaking pairing of Ricky Rojas and Robyn Hurder—and amplifies it into a sexy, roof-raising ensemble number.
Over the top? Oh, just wait until the bows, a megamix that features pop hits from the likes of Tina Turner, Outkast, and the Human League. And, for good measure, one more drop-dead gorgeous gown for Satine.
Moulin Rouge! The Musical! opened July 25, 2019, at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre. Tickets and information: moulinrougemusical.com
