By Jo Lowden | Arts Angle Vantage Reporter
Homeschool Student, Class of 2025
“Moulin Rouge! The Musical,” based on Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 movie with the same name and adapted for stage by writer John Logan and director Alex Timbers, opened Feb. 18 in Louisville at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts with beauty, tragedy, recognizable songs, and beautiful design. The musical premiered in 2018 in a Boston theatre but opened on Broadway in 2019. It runs in Louisville through March 3.
Robert Petkoff (Harold Zidler) and the cast of the North American tour of “Moulin Rouge! The Musical.” Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman. Courtesy PNC Broadway in Louisville.
The story is about a man named Christian (Christian Douglas), an American singer-songwriter who comes to Paris in 1900 and has an affair with the lead in the Moulin Rouge cabaret, Satine (Arianna Rosario). Their love is complicated and strenuous at times. Soon, he finds out about her relationship with a rich duke that keeps the cabaret in business. But Christian’s and Satine’s love has care and passion at the core.
Then there is the owner of the cabaret, Harold Zidler (Robert Petkoff), who showcases his great stage presence. He was my personal favorite character, and it was great to see some queer representation even if it was small.
The stunning sets included Satine’s opium den called the elephant room, which had a beautiful heart window and, in the background, looked onto a huge neon sign with the word “L’amour” across the Paris skyline and a full moon. Timely furniture pieces and drapes all around really set the mood for the room. There was also another set for the show they created that had a very vintage background, looking like it was from an early 20th-century movie with its frills and paintings.
The cast of the North American tour of “Moulin Rouge! The Musical.” Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman. Courtesy PNC Broadway in Louisville.
The lighting designers took full advantage of all they had. They incorporated lighting into the decorative sets on the outer stage or the proscenium arch as a part of the show as well as into tricks in the songs, adding more to the story. The costumes were beautiful and very intricate down to the color — a lot of red, but also lots of gold and black. All of it helped showcase the era and even added depth to the characters.
The show was full of fun and recognizable references. Within the musical was a show called “Bohemian Rhapsody” and a character from Lima, Ohio, also the town of “Glee.” Then, all the musical mashups also remind me of that same sitcom. Douglas as Christian, specifically in the number “Rolling in the Deep,” strongly reminded me of J.D. from “Heathers” with his mannerisms, which was fun since they are vastly different characters.
The show was absolutely stunning, and I can’t recommend it enough. The vocals were incredible, the mix of familiar songs was so much fun, and the costumes and stage design were just gorgeous. But what really made it special was its story about a forbidden romance and a love that is too short. It pulled me in, made me feel for the characters, and stuck with me long after the final bow.
Jo Lowden (they/he), a dual-credit student at Elizabethtown Community and Technical College in their junior year of high school, is a youth leader at Louisville Youth Group and their local library. They are passionate about all things involving mental health and queerness. They plan to finish their studies at University of Louisville in Social Work and plan to become a therapist working with queer teens and young adults.
Comments