I think Moulin Rouge the stage musical is fine, not quite as good as the movie. What makes the movie so special is its drug-addled frenetic editing, which doesn't really translate to the stage. The medleys are still there, cutting together one line here, one line there--that still works and has a disorienting effect. They updated the songs, and it's all the better for it. I think the best scene musically is Crazy/Rolling in the Deep cause who does heartbreak better than Adele? I don't love jukebox musicals in general but recognizable songs are fun. I think where the play suffers is in the plot, which is pretty thin and basically abandoned at the end. I read the synopsis online afterwards and I don't know if I missed something or if it was implied through song-and-dance or if they flat out didn't finish the plot but we're sort of left hanging. The ending actually does a bit of a Mamma Mia finale jubilantly singing the hits--so much for a tragic ending. The theater is decked out in red lights, a rotating windmill and a giant elephant on the wings. Unfortunately, the scenes "in" the elephant aren't actually in an elephant. I think that was a missed opportunity. The set in the movie (including the miniatures) are so theatrically staged that I think this sort of disappoints. Overall, maybe the production isn't sexy enough? Isn't seedy enough? It doesn't have the edge of Cabaret for instance; it's more sanitized for family-friendly entertainment. In the movie there are copious scenes in which Satine and Christian steal away, but there are just a couple in the abbreviated plot points. I thought Natalie Mendoza was a pretty good Satine, taking over from Karen Olivo. I do not remember her being in Annette at all. Caught Aaron Tveit in his final week. He won a Tony for this role but with the caveat that there were no other nominees.
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