FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 14, 2013
Contact: Meghan McNamara
Marketing Coordinator
412-454-9117
mmcnamara@pittsburghballet.org
Pittsburgh Premiere of Moulin Rouge® — The Ballet Opens Valentine’s Day
PBT Presents a Story of Love, Ambition and Heartbreak Valentine’s Day Weekend
The iconic cabaret, high-kicking cancan and extravagant excesses of turn-of-the-century Paris set the scene for a story of love, ambition and heartbreak in Moulin Rouge®—The Ballet. Drawn to Paris by the city’s passion, struggling artist Matthew and launderette-turned-performer Nathalie find themselves swept into a passionate romance and the intoxicating nightlife of the Moulin Rouge.
Choreographer Jorden Morris, the creator behind PBT’s 2011 production of Peter Pan, laces contemporary and classical ballet with international influences from the vivacious French cancan to the fiery partnering of the Tango Café. The passion peaks with an intimate pas de deux set to Debussy’s Claire de Lune on a bridge by the Eiffel Tower. The cabaret’s possessive proprietor Zidler, however, casts a shadow over their romance as he ensnares his newly-discovered performer and her lover in a dangerous love triangle.
A number of historic figures from the origins of the Moulin Rouge® also find roles in the ballet. French painter Henri Toulouse-Latrec, who immortalized the Moulin Rouge® with depictions of its performers, takes the role of Matthew’s mentor, and the cabaret’s co-founder Charles Zidler becomes Matthew’s adversary.
With a score spanning 27 different works by 14 different composers — including some well-known titles such as Clair de Lune, La Vie en Rose, or the Can-Can — Morris selected the majority of music from the late 19th and early 20th centuries during the rise of the Moulin Rouge®.
Moulin Rouge® — The Ballet features more than 70 vibrantly-colored costumes, created by Anne Armit, Head of Wardrobe at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and Shannon Lovelace, a freelance designer, who drew inspiration from the fashions of the era and from Toulouse-Lautrec’s paintings of the Moulin Rouge®. A luminous red windmill and Eiffel Tower top the onstage scenery, designed by Andrew Beck.
Experienced by more than 100,000 people across North America, Moulin Rouge®—The Ballet had its world premiere in 2009 at Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet, where Morris trained and later danced professionally.
The Moulin Rouge® was co-founded in 1889 — the same year the Eiffel Tower was constructed —by builder Joseph Oller and manager Charles Zidler in the Monmartre district of Paris. The cabaret’s iconic red windmill, and namesake, became a symbol of the city’s thriving nightlife. Today, among other performance requirements, all of the Moulin Rouge’s performers must possess a solid base in classical ballet training.
This production of Moulin Rouge® — The Ballet is generously sponsored by UPMC and PPG Industries Foundation.
In the spirit of the Moulin Rouge of Paris, Moulin Rouge® is a registered trademark of Moulin Rouge S.A.
Tickets
Tickets range in price from $25.75 to $95.75, and are available online at www.pbt.org, by calling 412-456-6666 or visiting The Box Office at Theater Square.
Media Note: For interview or photo requests, please contact Meghan McNamara, marketing coordinator, at 412-454-9117 or mmcnamara@pittsburghballet.org.
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