Broadway: Moulin Rouge! (2.0)

I wanted more, more, more—so I returned to Moulin Rouge!

I will preface this by saying this is more of viewing from the fan perspective and not so much from the critical eye. I am a huge fan of Derek Klena and his work, and I really revisited Moulin Rouge! to see all of the new cast members in their roles.

Like I said in my previous post on Moulin Rouge!, the set design of this show is so stunning and will get me every time. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a show that has put so much attention to detail into making you feel like you are a part of the show’s atmosphere.

On the night of this performance, we had the wonderful Bobby Daye on for Zidler. It was great to see him in this role again, as I also saw him covering for Eric Anderson in April.

Kaitlin Mesh and Caleb Marshal-Villarreal tore up the stage as Nini and Santiago. I was very curious about Marshal-Villarreal’s Santiago. When I saw the show in April, it felt like the role was written very close to Ricky Rojas and his strengths on stage, and I was interested to see how a new performer would adapt to that. Marshal-Villarreal didn’t miss a beat. He completely took Santiago and made him his own, and absolutely killed this role. Kaitlin Mesh was on for Nini at this performance and had stellar chemistry with Marshal-Villarreal. It was so fun to see her take on Nini after seeing Jessica Lee Goldyn in April.

It was no surprise that I loved Derek Klena‘s Christian. It was a dream to get to see him perform the role live and to hear him sing “El Tango de Roxanne” live. I had said way back in 2019 I would love to see him in this role, and it’s not every day you get to see a Dreamcast come true. Klena put his own spin on Christian and brought his own strengths to the role with Tveit-sized shoes to fill. It was so amazing to see Klena take this character that has been carved out and put his own personal touches on it. He took a softer, dreamier approach to Christian which I really enjoyed. I was a little nervous because Klena is well renowned as Broadway’s Boy Next Door and well known for playing the dashing leading man, but Christian takes a different turn in Act II.

When I saw Tveit in this role, I think my jaw was open for the whole second half of the second act because the show seemed to take such a cynical turn. Klena softened this approach, tackling it with more empathy and taking the audience with him on the turn of a heartbroken man.

I also was blown away by Ashley Loren as Satine. She has one of the most unique and beautiful voices I’ve ever heard, and I just wanted to keep hearing her sing. Her entrance in “The Sparkling Diamond” was unforgettable, and even “Firework” (which I was never 100% sold on this song choice, with or without Loren) was jaw-dropping.

This breakout performance for Loren is one of my favorites I have seen this year. She leads the company with such tact and grace, and her powerful vocals just complete the role.

Aside from “El Tango de Roxanne” and “Backstage Romance” being two of my top numbers in this show, I loved watching this cast perform “Elephant Love Medley” and “Chandelier.” Any moment Klena and Loren sang together was incredible, and the robust company of this show dazzles in the large ensemble numbers centered around Christian and Satine.

Something I found really interesting from the first time I saw Moulin Rouge!, was that when I saw it with Aaron Tveit, Natalie Mendoza, Ricky Rojas, et al., they seemed to lean very heavily into the camp and caricature of the show. I really enjoyed it because I tend to enjoy very intentional camp in shows, but can see how many of the roles were developed as caricatures of those who originated the roles.

During this performance (which did have a few tweaks that were made when the new cast members joined in May of this year), I noticed the cast gave a more grounded performance. As I mentioned before, Klena seemed to bring more empathy to Christian and in playing off Loren’s Satine, they seemed to create characters that were a bit more dynamic than the original cast. I liked this subtle change because it plays to Klena and Loren’s strengths.

I have enjoyed this show both times I’ve seen it with both casts, but this time, led by Klena and Loren was absolutely spectacular. It has to be one of my favorite performances, and I think for anyone who can get past the camp elements of the production, this current cast is doing phenomenal work with the material. This cast is not to be missed, and I recommend catching them in Moulin Rouge!