Review: MOULIN ROUGE! at Majestic Theatre

No matter how many shows I’ve seen at the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio, I never cease to be amazed at how beautiful the venue is. The details, personality, and culture of the space make it truly unique. In fact, I would say it remains one of the most beautiful theatres I’ve ever seen, so I always love walking in and finding some new detail I’ve never noticed before. But, on the final night of Moulin Rouge there, I barely noticed the venue itself because the opening set for the production simply took my breath away. I couldn’t stop my mouth from dropping. The deep red layers that framed the space created a mysteriously sensual atmosphere that perfectly drew the audience into the story and setting of the show. As we were all finding our seats, some of the actors slowly walked and posed onstage, making eerie eye contact with audience members that created intrigue and excitement before the show had even begun.

At first, I was a little disappointed because some of the songs were different from the film, and I made some notes about that. Soon, though, I stopped taking notes all together. That’s when you know a show is gripping and compelling. I couldn’t believe how invigorating I found the mixture of the new songs with the original ones, creating an updated version of the beloved story, while giving fans the songs and moments that were most impactful in the original. 

The masterful scenic design, by Derek McLane, came in colorful layers that took us from the inside areas of the Moulin Rouge and out onto the streets of Paris. We were amazed at how huge the spectacle could be in one moment, and then how entire scenes would be played with a single light. The lighting design, by Justin Townsend, worked like magic against the scenic design to evoke a vast array of emotions, and the costume design, by Catherine Zuber, seemed like the glitter on top of it all. The way they all blended together was simply stunning.  They found a way to keep those locations and moments from the film that were most meaningful, while also creating something fresh and relevant. 

Jay Armstrong Johnson played the perfect Christian and absolutely blew us away with his powerful vocal performance and tremendous chemistry with Arianna Rosario, who played Satine. She also had flawlessly beautiful vocals, and the two of them created a beautiful love story together. I couldn’t take my eyes off of Jahi Kearse, who played Toulouse-Lautrec, as he guided us through the meaningful themes of the show.  Robert Petkoff, as Harold Zidler, gave the most intricately entertaining performance as his layered character nuance and powerful vocals were unforgettable. The entire ensemble provided electric performances with incredible group vocals, spectacular choreography, created by Sonya Tayeh, and gorgeous stage pictures, directed by Alex Timbers.

The pacing moved too quickly for my taste sometimes, because I wanted to fully appreciate some of the choices the characters were making and the moments where they were connecting. In the end, though, I guess that’s much better than wishing it would move more quickly toward its end. The show truly left us wanting more, and I highly recommend seeing this touring show if you get the chance!

San Antonio Awards - Live Stats

Best Musical - Top 3

1. THE WEDDING SINGER (Circle Arts Theatre)

31.8% of votes

2. JERSEY BOYS (San Pedro Playhouse)

23.4% of votes

3. JOSEPH AND THE DREAM COAT (Hill Country Arts Foundation)

18.9% of votes

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