Moulin Rouge, Montmatre

...trip to see the famous Moulin Rouge show. I was so excited to be going to see this show for plenty of reasons and so come the end of the second evening I was quite literally bouncing off the walls in excitement! This is my opinion on one of the best shows I have seen in a long time.


The show:
The moulin Rouge has been around for years since 1889 when it first made an appearance. The show is a mix of dance, song, comedy, ...
...to take when booking the moulin rouge. Every show package comes with a half bottle of Champagne per guest. When booking you are giving the option of booking just the show and champagne or dinner and show. If booking the dinner and show you will then also have three options for dinner depending of the menu you choose. As it stands at the moment the current menu as taken from their website is as follows:

French Cancan menu priced at ... more

On my recent trip to Paris I was lucky enough to have included in the itinerary a trip to see the famous Moulin Rouge show. I was so excited to be going to see this show for plenty of reasons and so come the end of the second evening I was quite literally bouncing off the walls in excitement! This is my opinion on one of the best shows I have seen in a long time.

The show:
The moulin Rouge has been around for years since 1889 when it first made an appearance. The show is a mix of dance, song, comedy, music and acrobatics. Guests can choose to enjoy the show by having a meal beforehand in the theatre or they can just choose to turn up for the show. My experience is based on the dinner and show and so I will share my views on this side of things.

Location:
The show is based in the Montmatre area of Paris on Boulevard De Clichy and is located just across from Blanche metro stop. There are plenty of bars and restaurants around the theatre and the nightlife is particularly buzzing with crowds gathering to take photos of this famous theatre.

Show options:
As I mentioned there are a couple of options for guests to take when booking the moulin rouge. Every show package comes with a half bottle of Champagne per guest. When booking you are giving the option of booking just the show and champagne or dinner and show. If booking the dinner and show you will then also have three options for dinner depending of the menu you choose. As it stands at the moment the current menu as taken from their website is as follows:

French Cancan menu priced at 145 euros per person:
Snails in cases and 'aniseed butter' or
Vegetable soup or
Encrusted poultry pate

Plancha of sea troutwith leeks and potato sauce or
Traditional veal blanquette

Bourbon mille-feuille or
Vanilla ice cream cup with chantilly cream

Toulouse Lautrec menu priced at 160 euros per person:

Norwegian smoked salmon or
Fresh duck foie Gras

Nems of king crab with vegetables and spiced tomato salsa or
Medallion of vealsauted with caramelised raw and cooked endives

Banana pana-cotta passion fruit coulis or
Rose scented macaroon, lycheee sorbet

Belle Epoque menu priced at 175 euros per person:

Fricasse of lobster and herbs 'red' stocked sauce or
Sliced sole fillets with 'La Gouloe' caviar champagne sauce

Shin of lamb with herbs or
Beef fillet rossini, lyonnaise potatos and perigueux wine sauce

Rum savarin, fruit compote or
Very dark chocolate crunch

So if guests book a meal they will arrive at the theatre and be served the meal before the main show whilst enjoying the warm up cabaret act on stage - normally you will be asked to arrive for 7pm onwards. Guests who book just the champagne and show will be asked to arrive around 8pm. The main show is then on at 9pm. For guests who are just booking the chamapgane and show option it comes at the following prices:

9pm show - 99 Euros per person
11pm show - 89 Euros per person

Entering the theatre:
When you arrive at the theatre you will need to join the queue to get in which, depending on what time you arrive can be quite long! The reason it takes quite some time is due to the fact that most guests will want to put their coats in the cloakroom and this slows down the queue moving through the door. Plus if any guests have any cameras that they have brought with them they will ask you to also hand them in to reclaim at the end of the show. They have a strict no photography rule in the theatre and and so they try to avoid anyone taking them through into the theatre in the first place. I have to admit though that I did sneak mine in to the theatre due to how small my bag was I don't think they realised it was in there but, it wasn't to take pictures but, simply because I did not feel safe leaving my camera behind a counter! So please remember this when going to the show as if you do not need it with you and you cannot take it in with you, it might be worth leaving it at the hotel.
When you eventually get through to the theater, you will be led to your table where you will meet with your personal waiter for the evening. The theater apparently seats up to 850 diners but it doesn't even somehow seem that big! I particularly like the way the tables were decorated with a little red fancy lamp in the middle that gave it that old traditional type look and it suited the type of show we were there to watch somehow - even the decoration around the rest of the room was grand and over the top but, in a good way.

The meal:
We had the Toulouse Lautrec menu which we actually had set for us from the choice on that menu as work booked it all for us. I was a little dissappointed by this but, I suppose I cannot really complain when it was free! For starters we had the smoked salmon which looked very fancy but as I don't eat salmon I didn't particulary find it very appealing - for the fish eaters in the group they were in their element and said it was lovely. It came served as 4 slices, a lemon half and a slice of toast. We were served the veal for the main which I was very relieved about and although nice and cooked the way I like (rare) it was not a very large piece and so I still felt a litle hungry afterwards! Dessert was banana pana-cotta which again I am not fan of bananas so I didn't eat this and afterwards still felt hungry due to the amount of food I'd had! However if the items available on the menu were your thing you'd probably find it was very adequate. During the meal the waiters are very attentive filling up glasses and making sure you are happy with your meal. The courses at brought out to the table once evrybody has finished eahc course and there is just the right time between each before they bring each next course. Overall the meal is very nice and of a good service.

The show itself:
The show begins promtly at 9pm and as the music starts the stage is filled with the dancers. The outfits are glitzy and tacky all in one with shiny suits an sequins everywhere! The show follows a story but, to be honest I wasn't quite sure of exactly what it was following however this doesn't detract from anything and you can still ejoy the show without truly understanding the story. There are a variety of scenes which include a multitude of costumes - some so extravagent and fancy and some so corny and cheesy it's untrue! There is plenty of singing and yes of course it is in French but, it doesn't matter at all as the excitement is there and the music is fun and enjoyable.
In between certain set changes they have an act on to keep the audience going of which there is three all together. I have to say these were some of the best acts I have seen in a long time - funny, entertaining and amazing would be a way of describing them.
Of course the show is famed also for it's Doris girls - a troup of topless women who are all part of the act. Initially my first thoughts were how do they not feel embarrassed parading around in front of so many people but, the reality is they are doing this every evening and have been doing for a long time and plus - and I honestly never thought I'd say this about topless women - but, it really is done in a way that is artistic and to suit the type of show it is. The women are very slim and all of them are very attractive too which is probably very intentional! I can really describe the show in any other way except to say that it is mix of so much colour, variety and even animals and that there is simply no way you can't enjoy it! Of and of course, lets not forget the famous french can can which is of course is in the show!

Overall opinion:
The show is definitely worth the hefty price tag - however what you should remember is what you're getting for your money. A great two hour long show, champagne and a 3 course meal in a brilliant atmosphere. The performers are all brilliant and very talented and I was not disappointed at all by the performance. The only negative I had with the whole hing is that the cabaret act can get quite tedious if you are there for as long as we were before the mian show actually starts. We felt like we'd been waiting forever before we got to see what we really came for and that took some of the enjoyment away - plus for me I was not willing to spend any money and so because of how long I was sta there in the hall waiting for it tof ully start I really had to drag out my half bottle of champagne. I can't really complain about that though as it was really nice tasting and so much better than anythign else I've had before elsewhere! Before I went I had a slight idea in my head what the show would be like but, it was so much better than I had expected to be and so for that reason I would highly recommend this show as a must see whilst in Paris. 

...less