SCOTS DANCER’S ALL SET FOR MOULIN ROUGE RETURN
CAN she kick it? Yes she can-can – dancer Lucy Monaghan is limbering up ahead of the grand reopening of the Moulin Rouge in Paris.
The Scots ballerina can’t wait to take the stage again at the world-famous cabaret show, which has been closed since March 2020 due to the pandemic.
Lucy, who has been dancing at the Moulin Rouge for eight years, said not being able to perform for 18 months has been heartbreaking for the whole company.
The 29-year-old, who grew up in Hyndland, Glasgow, said: “I am so excited about performing again. I have missed it so much.
“Stepping back on to that iconic stage in front of an audience is going to be incredibly thrilling. It’s the greatest show on earth and I can’t wait to share it again with the world.
“The last performance we gave was on March 13 when Covid forced the whole city to close its doors. It was the first time in history that the show could not go on and it has been terribly sad.
“To go from two performances seven nights a week to nothing was a big blow for all the dancers. It is our job and our passion and to have that completely cut off was extremely hard.”
Lucy, who is one of 60 dancers of 14 nationalities in the company, added: “Being a Moulin Rouge dancer requires you to be incredibly fit and flexible, especially for the can-can with all its tricks, cartwheels and jump splits.
“So throughout the pandemic I have kept up my dance and fitness training – doing hours and hours every day.
“During the first lockdown I was pretty much holed up in my studio
the Central School of Ballet. It was amazing. When I was in my third year, I saw an advert for Moulin Rouge auditions, which were taking place in Oslo, Norway, and I decided to go for it. By the time I finished my course, I had been offered a job.
“To a little girl who had wanted to be a dancer since she was tiny, to be on stage doing the French Can-Can at the Moulin Rouge feels like a dream come true.”
Lucy, who dances alongside Sandy Tandy, 38, from Whitburn, West Lothian and Michaela Rundelli, 27, from Almondbank, Perthshire, added: “It is such a well respected and loved place – everybody knows the Moulin. When you walk in, you can feel the history of the place in the fabric of the building –it celebrated its 130th anniversary in 2019. I love the fact I am walking in the footsteps of wonderful dancers who have graced the stage through the decades.
“There is a big backstage team who help us to get changed, so it works like clockwork. They make repairs when needed – a broken heel, a jammed zip. I wear 12 different costumes in each show so you can imagine what the dressing rooms are like. There are also 800 pairs of shoes on site.
“My favourite costume is the beautiful Féerie costume I wear in our current show. It is red, with feathers, and is very glamorous. The show is not risqué in the slightest – it is very family orientated and tastefully done.”
Lucy, who adores living in Paris and is now bilingual, has met many celebrities.
She said: “The show is extremely popular with the rich and famous and I have been lucky to meet a whole lot of well-known people.
“I’ve met Justin Bieber and not long before lockdown Celine Dion and Cara Delevingne came back stage to see us after a show.
“I feel blessed to have one of the most thrilling jobs in all the world and I can’t wait to get back to doing what I love best. Opening night is going to be pretty special and emotional for all of us.”
To be on stage doing the can-can feels like a dream