Moulin Rouge! The Musical Reviews

Dee from London, England

STYLE OVER SUBSTANCE

I had really been looking forward to seeing this show. It had a strong start with great scenery, costumes, and dancing. In the end, however, I'm glad I got the cheapest ticket possible. Perhaps if I'd listened to the new soundtrack ahead of time, I wouldn't have gone to the show in the first place. The story and music changes from the film version were disappointing. The new pop song arrangements weren't as clever, and the scoring for a small band lacks the lushness of the original film soundtrack. Why not score it for a full pit orchestra? "Roxanne," without the Argentinian singing, had no passion - a common thread throughout the show. Although "Christian" has a lovely voice, he and Satine had no chemistry. The over-the-top antics, larger-than-life characters, and manic energy (the fun!) from the film were mostly absent in this production. The supporting cast were the diamonds of this show, but they weren't able to make up for everything else.

Hils from London, England

DON'T GO IF YOU LOVE THE FILM

Firstly, the good: The sets are a visual feast, dancing & costumes excellent & the cast enthusiastic. Now for the bad (spoilers)… The leads had no chemistry whatsoever not helped by the ridiculous changes to the plot. Satine & the Count sleep together from the off, leaving no room for escalation in Christian’s despair. The Argentinian doesn’t sing Roxanne, instead this is given to insipid Christian. Satine is not betrayed by Nini, but rather they declare how much they like each other (girl power!?), then Satine tells the Count that she’s her own woman (girl power again… who cares that it ruins the plot & removes any tension in the finale). And, worst of all, for anyone who has loved the film, they remove “Come What May” from Christian and Satine’s finale (well, it’s not really needed now they trashed the plot so much), making the song’s earlier inclusion meaningless. So, in conclusion, if you have any sense of feeling for the film, avoid like the plague.

Martha from London, England

YOU CAN’T, CAN’T, CANT!

After waiting two years ( thanks covid!) to have a theatre trip , my daughters and I were so excited for this musical. We loved the film, so couldn’t wait to see this on the stage. Now we aren’t silly enough to think there wouldn’t be any changes etc etc, but we left thinking “what the actual f………” Walking into the theatre was breathtaking. The set is amazing. The cast/company are great. The dancing/costumes are brilliant. And that’s where the good points end. The 3 main parts were disappointing. No chemistry at all between Christian and Satine, their voices didn’t blend well together , and often both were out of tune. Christian on his own lacked passion. The duke ……. just a let down. The plot……… totally changed . Come what may …… absolutely ruined with bad harmonies , Roxanne …… not sung by the Argentinian but a feeble version attempted by Christian. An awful Adele mash up which is where for me it really Rolled in the Deep and didn’t recover. I love the theatre and I love the passion and hard work that artists put into bringing a story to life…….. but this, this was such a let down. If you love the film stay away, if you haven’t seen the film I suggest you do , it would be a better way of spending your time and saving your money .

Lauren from London, England

LEFT AT INTERVAL-

We loved the opening five minutes but then after that it just went downhill quick. None of the music was original and storyline wasn’t good. Felt like we were in like a tribute show if that makes sense, they jumped from like Katy Perry firework song to like a queen song then to a Chic song etc and so on which is fine but it just didn’t flow well at all. Nothing like movie, nothing like the actual moulin rouge, just didn’t enjoy it. Such a shame. All the reviews are amazing for it and the crowd were going wild but for me and my auntie we just were so upset; didn’t feel like storyline or musically it was ready to be at the west end.

Claire from London, England

VERY DISAPPOINTED - DON’T GO IF YOU ARE A HUGE FAN OF THE MOVIE

Yes, great costumes, orchestra, props but total lack of chemistry between the leads, weak voices both of them. As a huge fan of the movie, I was really looking forward for the show. Instead, the major plot changes, Roxanne (why, why, not letting the Argentinian sing? He has such a good voice!), like a virgin and other of the best songs were missing (to be replaced by..single ladies and an overdose of Adele and sia). Well, this should have been definitely thought better not to completely disappoint a huge movie fan. All considered, the tickets were too pricey for the quality the director delivered.

Debbie MCLINN from London, England

YOU’RE REALLY CRAP CRAP CRAP

Ok if you loved the film don’t waste your money I. All style no substance utter rubbish, total karaoke 🎤 too many mashed up mixed numbers probably some music producer’s thinking there better than the original it isn’t it’s utter rubbish, look if ya gunna do Moulin get at least ONE a lister in to headline stages setting ok very red that’s about it don’t waste yr money.

Annie from London, England

AWFUL STORY

The cast were amazing and performed out of this world with the script they were given. But for a fan of the movie I wasn’t prepared or aware that they’ve updated the music to frame the story in current pop music (including Britney Spears Toxic). If they had performed all the usual songs and added extras I could have dealt with it but they’ve changed some of the classics and left some out altogether. Roxanne and Come What May were moving and I can just imagine how amazing this would be if they had replicated the film. What’s interesting is that people who hadn’t seen the film or had watched it once absolutely loved this production. I hope they revert to the original but until then it was an overall disappointment. Which is a shame because the cast and the set were phenomenal.

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