MOULIN ROUGE, PARIS
Moulin Rouge (French for "red windmill") is a traditional cabaret, built in 1889 by Joseph Oller who already owned the Paris Olympia. Situated in the red-light district of Pigalle on Boulevard de Clichy in the 18th arrondissement, near Montmartre, Paris, it is famous for the large red imitation windmill on its roof.
The Moulin Rouge is a symbol of French Culture as well as the Bohemian influence on Western Europe. The building has a rich history that is still being added to today. Over the past hundred years, the Moulin Rouge has remained a popular tourist destination for many visitors each year.
Today the Moulin Rouge offers musical dance entertainment for adult visitors from around the world. Much of the romance from turn-of-the-century France is still present in the interior environment.
The design and name of Paris's Moulin Rouge has often been imitated by other night clubs worldwide.
Notable performers at the Moulin Rouge have included La Toya Jackson, La Goulue, Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Yvette Guilbert, Jane Avril, Mistinguett, Le Petomane and others. The Moulin Rouge was also the subject of many paintings by post-impressionist painter Toulouse Lautrec who in turn romanticized the building.
"Moulin Rouge" was also the title of a book by Pierre La Mure. This book was the basis for the 1952 movie of the same name. It was also the name of the 2001 film staring Jim Broadbent, Ewan McGregor, Nicole Kidman, John Leguizamo and Kylie Minogue.
 CAN-CAN AT THE MOULIN ROUGE
The main feature of an evening at the Moulin Rouge is the performance. The Moulin Rouge is famous internationally as the 'spiritual home' of the traditional French Can-Can, which is still performed there today. While the dance of the can-can had existed for many years as a respectable, working-class party dance, it was in the early days of the Moulin Rouge when courtesans first adapted the dance to entertain the male clientele.
It was usually performed individually, with the courtesan moving in an increasingly energetic and provocative way in an attempt to seduce a potential client. It was very common for them to lift their skirts and reveal their legs, underwear and occasionally the genitals. As time progressed, the can-cans seen at the Moulin Rouge became more and more vulgar and overtly erotic, causing much public outrage.
Later, however, with the rising popularity of music hall entertainment in Europe, courtesans were no longer required at the Moulin Rouge and it became a legitimate nightclub. The modern can-can was born as dancers were introduced to entertain the guests, many of them failed ballet dancers with exceptional skill. The can-can that we recognize today comes directly from this period and as the vulgarity of the dance lessened, it became renowned for its athletic and acrobatic tricks.
The Moulin Rouge has lost much of its former reputation as a 'high-class brothel' and it would soon become fashionable for French society to visit and see the spectacular cabarets, which have included a can-can ever since.
The dance is recognizable for the long skirts with heavily frilled undergarments that the dancers wear, high kicks, hops in a circle whilst holding the other leg in the air, splits, cartwheels and other acrobatic tricks, normally accompanied by squeals and shrieks.
As the dance became respected, it became less and less crude, but the choreography is always intended to be a little risque at times, somewhat provocative and 'a little naughty'.
Today, the Can-Can performed at the Moulin Rouge has iconic status in dance throughout the World.
From Wikipedia.org, the Free Encyclopedia
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