Satine Smooth Voices

We have all seen the posters around the school and maybe even overheard some singing through the doors of the auditorium. And now, at last, the time has come! On Thursday the 22nd of April, it’s time for the highly expected and long awaited premiere of The Moulin Rouge, and KZINE was invited to their dress rehearsal.

The play started off with the character Toulouse (Isabella Cortés) setting the mood with a well-performed, miserable song. But the pace slowed down after this and started staggering. Partly due to the transitions, that maybe could’ve been solved in a smoother way. The sometimes too long interruptions made the play suffer and lose its flow. As an audience, that can be rather frustrating.

However, we truly enjoyed the choreographies that seemed thought through and gave a refreshing touch to the play. The Lady Marmalade dance was of particular importance as the unexpected motion of the corset-dressed showgirls appearing from the audience acted as an energy-boost. If The Moulin Rouge would be compared to a motorcycle ride, this would be the kick-start we’d all been waiting for. Although, the somewhat unsynchronized dancing gave promise of a bumpy ride.

It was impressing that the light and sound was maneuvered by one single person (Jack Jansson), but this also led to some problems. The actors had to signalize to him with looks, and sound etc. did not always have perfect timing. Since it was a dress rehearsal, there were some technical problems, especially with the microphones. Sometimes they did not work at all, while sometimes they were too loud, which made the singing suffer.

It’s a pity that some singing was pre-recorded, since everyone sang so beautifully live. But we must say that Mr. Clarke’s pre-recorded guest appearance knocked up the entire play a notch! And a big plus was the great live music, which included the violin. It brought a great feeling to the play in general.

For being such a colorful story, the scenery for the play was quite plain. It felt a bit unfinished and didn’t contribute much to the mood or feeling of the play. With that said, it was a dress rehearsal and we were told that set and props would be more in order on the day of the premiere. The authentic hats from the 20s alone are worth seeing the play for!

As the performance proceeded, there was room for some really good acting. Some difficulties arose as one actress was missing due to illness, but the main characters did well to fill the gap through great chemistry. This was especially notable in the kissing scene, portrayed by Christian (Caleb Morell) and Satine (Rebecka Rosenberg), which brought an extra hint of realism to the play. Extra points also go to the flamboyant Zidler (Peter Hallam), whose high-pitched tones could probably reach the moon before Sinatra. The just as fierce duke (Filip Dumanski) worked extremely well with Zidler, and together they created an energetic stage presence.

All in all, it was a good play absolutely worth seeing (bear in mind that this review was based on a dress rehearsal). This impressive, giant project has been organized by five students at Kungsholmen’s Gymnasium. Initially, it was Hannah Rooslien’s idea, but later four others joined and they’ve shared the responsibility. Johanna Fröberg’s taken care of the drama, Julia Lönnqvist and Maria Sydebrant have been in charge of the music, and Hedieh Setayesh has taken care of the financing. Hannah herself has choreographed the amazing dancing, with some help from Felicia Dahlquist who choreographed the cancan dance. So kudos to everyone! KZINE wishes The Moulin Rouge crew the best of luck, and are looking forward to the grand premiere.

Text: Aili Garcia, Cici Hong and Sara Wengström
Photo: Emil Lundström