Moulin Rouge: A Spectacle to Behold on Stage

Moulin Rouge is a spectacle to behold on stage. From the costumes to the set design, to the songs and story, it screams opulence and desire. The musical explores giving in to your hidden and forbidden desires and has the vibes of a massive party. The actors draw you in, the choreography keeps you hooked, and the songs keep you entertained. The theme of desire runs throughout and encourages not just the characters to think of their desires but the audience as well.

I’ll never forget the first time I walked in and saw the set, a dazzling red all lit up with a giant elephant head and a windmill filling the two corners. While you sit and wait, the dancers draw you in with sensual moves that are often directed toward the audience, especially those up close. The costumes throughout the show play on this sensuality and go beautifully with the absolutely gorgeous sets. I’ve been lucky enough to have seen the show three times, and it truly is one of the most pleasurable, enticing, and sensual shows on Broadway.

The show focuses on Christian and Satine and their love and secret desire for each other. Satine is expected to impress the Duke of Monroth, who is supposed to help fund and ultimately save Moulin Rouge. She ends up mistaking Christian for the Duke, and the two fall in love even after she discovers the truth about Christian, that he is a penniless artist. The Duke discovers the two together, and to cover up they told him they were working on a show that mirrored their love story, a poor man falling in love with a woman meant for another rich man. While Satine is skeptical about continuing to see Christian behind the Duke’s back, she decides to give in to her desires and continues seeing him as they rehearse their show. 

On the side, one of Christian’s friends, Santiago, falls in love with a dancer at the Moulin Rouge, Nini. They perform a very sensual dance to Bad Romance and give in to their desires. This is when the show takes a turn and becomes a bit darker. The desires of all the characters are now in the forefront, which increases the tension. The Duke becomes enraged, realizing that the play is a metaphor for what is happening between him, Satine, and Christian. This is when one of my favorite scenes comes up where Christian’s friends attempt to get him to forget Satine. They begin to drink absinthe, and instead of forgetting this amplifies Christian’s want for Satine. He becomes frustrated and distraught because of this desire and sings a powerful ballad to air his frustrations. 

Tensions come to a boiling point where Satine’s love is put to the test she must either say she does not love Christian or the Duke will kill him. However, she does not know this will lead him to wanting to commit suicide on stage without her love, killing him either way. Their love and desire towards one another are strong but misguided at this point. However, as Christian is about to pull the trigger onstage, Satine convinces him that she never stopped loving him, saving his life. She has not revealed to him her deepest secret, that she has consumption. This leads to her dying onstage in his arms as they affirm their love for one another.

The musical is a beautiful example of want, desire, and love. While it may have ended sadly, the ending allowed for the story to be told and showed how love will overcome, but sometimes that is not enough. Satine and Christian did not get the happy ending written in story books, they got the sad, thrilling, and messy love that exists in real life. The opulence and splendor of the sets and costumes are overset by a story of desire, grief, and ultimately love. It is a show I encourage anyone to see especially if they want to give into their own wants and desires.

Written by Kat Reed