“Your hair is tres magnifique!” Well, thank you very much Mr. Moulin Rouge Bouncer. After complimenting my coiffure, he let our group into the lobby more than one hour before our show time. We showed up WAY early. My research indicated that you must queue up early because it is first come, first serve to get the best seats since we didn’t order dinner and had no seat assignments. Well, by the time we stood in line and got back to the table concierge who was assigning the seats, he took one look at our tickets and told us we would have to leave and come back in 20 minutes. Oops-the bouncer was distracted by my hair and messed up. It happens. I pleaded that they had sent us back to be seated and it wasn’t our fault. Worked like a charm and we got to sit in the lovely bar area right by the main hall to wait our turn with a kind gent giving me a complimentary wine and some Parisian potato chips. Ooh la la! We started chatting with one of the tour guides who was also hanging out there and he took our picture before we finally were summoned to go to our teeny tiny table wedged into the first balcony. The adventure began!
The Paris icon, Moulin Rouge, which translates to “Red Mill”, was built in 1889 the same year as the Eiffel Tower and it was on Patti’s “must see” list for our Girls Trip 2023. It is situated below the Montmartre neighborhood in Pigalle. This famous cabaret show features elaborately dressed topless show girls. Yes, it is expensive and not everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s been around for over a hundred years so it’s legendary. Patti has extensive costume design experience, and she spent the show marveling at all the finery and wondering how chaotic the backstage was with all the costume changes. You wouldn’t think that it would be so complicated when the top half is largely bare but the headpieces, elaborate appendages (think huge lips or feather tendrils) alone are complicated. I wish I could share pictures of every one of the costumes. Alas, while pictures before the show were supposed to be taboo, the staff mostly looked the other way. However, no pictures were allowed once the show started, and customers complied.
What’s in the show? Well, Moulin Rouge is well known for the Can Can and the bare ta tas and g-strings but it’s so much more. There are 20-30 beautiful showgirls, all thin and all with long ponytails. No diversity to speak of in the cast. There are about 10-20 guys who lift up the dancers and who keep on their colorful outfits. No bare skin on the boys! All of the cast is very talented whether dancing, singing or performing various feats of gymnastics or ballet. In between the singing/dancing showgirl numbers, there are skilled acts to allow time for the cast to change. These skilled acts were marvelous and included two male gymnasts with incredible moves lifting up one in various poses requiring muscles of steel and a lovely interpretative dance.
One scary act (at least for those watching!) involved two roller skaters on a small round platform on the stage with the male twirling around the female crazy fast. A good reason to not sit in the main section by the stage where those who buy dinner sit. At any moment with one wrong move, that woman would have gone flying into the crowd, steel wheels gouging your eyes out. I held my breath for that act, but they were amazing. If you don’t like people being held by a wire flying close over your head, don’t sit too close to the stage as a charming couple sang a song while flying barely above the crowd. Same goes for getting wet…yes, the dance floor (to use when the pre-show band entertains) becomes a huge water tank rising out of the floor during the show. The topless dancer fell into the pool (you knew that was coming!) and the mermaid entertained AND cooled down the audience with water flying everywhere nearby.
The showgirl numbers feature a wide variety of music-everything from disco Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive to big band hits like In The Mood, which was my mom and dad’s song. I felt like they were there with my sisters and I. Dad would have loved the show and my mom would have blushed at the skimpy costumes while she sipped Sidecars. I miss my mom and dad and think of them often when travelling. I wish they could have seen more of the world when they were alive. I certainly plan to! #YOLO
We didn’t book the dinner package, though it looked pretty good as the servers went by. We also didn’t get a bottle of champagne, a popular package. Instead, we went ala carte, and I ordered a glass of wine ($15) and Patti got a cocktail ($20). Enjoy the journey!
Travel tips:
- The tables are very close together with no room to pass by without everyone standing up, so plan ahead to go to the facilities before the show starts. Once the show begins, there is really no getting up from your table without really inconveniencing everyone in your way between your table and the exit.
- As soon as house lights come up hit “reserve” for an Uber. There were lots of available Ubers when we were there but it was a mad dash to get to street to find ours and yes, it was chaos with the early show getting out and the late show crowd arriving. We crossed the street and managed to find our Uber circling around looking for us.
Show Details
At the Moulin Rouge, shows run every day of the week and there are 2 shows every day:
- 9 pm show with optional dinner starting at 7 pm (dinner show ticket holders will get the best seats)
- 11 pm show only no dinner available
Plan to arrive early! These shows are usually sold out, so arrive at the entrance one hour before the time of your show. Doors close ten minutes before the start of the show and you won’t be allowed to enter if you arrive late. There is no refund policy for Moulin Rouge tickets. Plan your transportation and allow, as always, for the Paris traffic jams that are bad at all hours.
Buy your Moulin Rouge tickets as soon as you book your travel dates. You never know when travel groups will suck up all the available tickets, as this show is always on their itineraries. You can buy direct from Moulin Rouge (Official Website) for tickets for all showtimes and options. If, for whatever reason, you don’t want to buy the tickets there, you can also book through Viator: Paris Moulin Rouge Cabaret Show with Champagne Only or Dinner 2023 (viator.com) but not all options like the 9 pm show are available.
Getting there
Of course, you can walk there or take the Metro aka subway. I prefer to get around Paris during the day by walking or Metro. However, you’ll be there in the evening and the Pigalle neighborhood is probably not the best place to wander around late at night. Known for being a tourist magnet, you can imagine that all kinds of folks would frequent here around showtimes to take advantage of people visiting Paris. I would recommend using an Uber, which works quite well in Paris. I have not had great luck with taxi apps in Paris working so that, at least for me, taxis won’t be an option. If you do take the Metro, the closest station to Moulin Rouge is Blanche on Metro line 2.
Travels with Melinda 