Moulin Rouge The Musical At Birmingham Hippodrome Review

DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW

Reviewed by Emma Baxter

Growing up the Moulin Rouge was always my favourite film; it was my go to film. I remember watching it and pausing it to record the songs on my cassette player, which meant I had my very own Moulin Rouge mix tape. When I heard it was going to be made into a musical I was a little sceptical as to how it was going to live up to Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 film with Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor. But my goodness it absolutely did from start to finish.

We had a great view from our seats in the middle circle and whilst we sat waiting for the show to begin some of the cast entered the stage early, so it felt like the show had started before it did. It is worth getting there early to experience this. The theatre itself was easy to get to. The staff were very welcoming. They were helpful and friendly. They had a good selection of drinks and snacks.

As the show began the theatre was filled with lights, music and dancing, transporting you into the Moulin Rouge. The choreography was incredible, the dancers never missed a beat and their costumes were just amazing.

Satine was stunning and Verity Thompson played her beautifully. You could see and feel the love she felt for Christian and the love he felt for her. It really was quite emotional at times. A true love story. Verity and Nate Landskroner who played Christian both played their parts perfectly.

James Bryers played the cruel, possessive and jealous Duke very well, he desperately wanted Satine to love him and he showered her with diamonds, but it just wasn’t enough, she loved Christian. Harold Zidler played by Cameron Blakely loved his girls but they had a job to do and falling in love was not an option. You could see he adored them but he adored money more. Kurt Kansley who played Toulouse and Rodrigo Negrini who played Santiago were great, they had so much energy and fun about them.

This is a jukebox musical. We were tapping our toes the whole way through. There were hits from Whitney Houston, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga and many more. It was great. There were a few songs from the film too which was fantastic, my favourite Come What May.

This is definitely on par with the film, the energy in this show is amazing and I left the theatre wanting to see it again. The cast were phenomenal and played their parts brilliantly. The costumes and props were incredible. A truly wonderful evening. A musical not to be missed.

Rating: 5/5

Running time 2hours 40 minutes.
October 15th – November 15th.
Ticket prices start from £69
Recommended age 12+
https://www.birminghamhippodrome.com/calendar/moulin-rouge-the-musical/
Birmingham Hippodrome
Hurst Street
Birmingham
B5 4TB
We parked in the Arcadian car park, which was only a 2 minute walk from the theatre.
The Arcadian, 41 Bromsgrove St, Birmingham B5 6NU