Moulin Rouge

live theater so special.

“If he switches up his feelings or how he’s going to deliver his lines, it will definitely change how I will then respond, which is really cool,” Reed says. “Certain actors tend to stick with what they know. They’re very consistent, no matter who’s onstage. With my costar and myself, things morph and change. I think it’s kind of cool because it stays very much alive.”

Although their interpretation of the material remains fluid, Reed is at home in the Moulin Rouge when the red curtains rise.

“I feel like I’ve gotten so much more comfortable with the show, all of the technical aspects, which are tough to nail down within the first several weeks or months,” she says. “I feel like I’ve really settled into that. And my stamina has really gotten much stronger with the show, so I’m able to discover new things with her — especially with some of the comedy bits. It’s a lot of trial and error to see when the audience laughs.”

For fans of the movie, this adaptation keeps the heart of the story.

“I’m a massive fan of the movie,” Reed enthuses. “I remember everything from the movie. In fact, I’ve seen it recently. A lot of it is similar, and then there’s a lot of changes.”

Still front and center of this Baz Luhrmann story are the star-crossed lovers. “Moulin Rouge” followed his box office smash “Romeo + Juliet” — two tales alike in doomed romance. The musical now includes Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” along with the classics like “Lady Marmalade,” “Come What May” and “Your Song” from the film.

“I think people refer to the show as a jukebox musical, which I don’t think it is,” Reed says, adding that the music is so “seamlessly” woven into the plot that the “characters feel like they’re telling the story through the music. I think it’s a really, really hard thing to do. And the show has done it so successfully.”