‘Moulin Rouge!’ is coming to the stage

This is not a drill. Baz Luhrmann’s epic musical spectacle, Moulin Rouge!, is being translated for the theatrical stage.

Though no timeline has been set for an opening date, we do know that  John Logan and Alex Timbers will do the honors of translating the film for the stage. The question is, of course, how much new music we can expect. The film famously included covers (many in medley form) of songs like Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, The Police’s “Roxanne”, and David Bowie’s “Nature Boy”, along with the love song central to the story, “Come What May”, which was originally written for Luhrmann’s Romeo & Juliet, though it was not used in that film (though the fact that it was written for a different film made the song ineligible for the Best Original Song category at the Academy Awards).

On the news of the adaptation, Luhrmann had this to say, “I first encountered Alex Timbers through the remarkable and inventive production of Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson and the brilliance of Here Lies Love. I immediately recognized the young director’s creative spirit and felt we shared similar sensibilities and instincts. So I’m tremendously happy to celebrate that Moulin Rouge! will be under his direction and that the book will be the creation of the gifted Tony Award-winning playwright John Logan whose writing I also admire deeply. It’s immensely gratifying to know that a new wave of artists will be leading Moulin Rouge! into its rightful theatrical realm.”

Carmen Pavlovic, CEO of Global Creatures who are the production company behind the stage adaptation, added, “Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin are so special to Global Creatures and I’m thrilled that we have the opportunity to partner with them once again to bring their ground-breaking work to the stage. Moulin Rouge! is a film begging to be theatricalized. I can think of no better creative collaborators than Alex Timbers and John Logan to realise this new musical.”

We are also delighted to be partnering with Twentieth Century Fox and Moulin Rouge in this hugely exciting venture.”

I can’t tell you how excited I am to hear this news. As someone who would list Moulin Rouge! as one of her favorite films of all time (I saw it 10 times in the theatre), it’s exciting to see the story move to the stage, and I’m sure we can expect some exciting new music and stagecraft.

What do you think about this news? Are you hoping for an all new song list, or do you want to see some of the covers and medley’s make the trip to the stage too? Sound off in the comments below!

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