'It really is just breathtaking'

Revel in an evening of electrifying enchantment as Moulin Rouge! The Musical heads to Bristol. NATALIE BANYARD spoke to musical theatre veteran Cameron Blakely, who stars in the dazzling show

- NATALIE BANYARD

ENTER a world of splendour and opulence, of glitz and glamour, of love and heartbreak, as the first ever world tour of Moulin Rouge! The Musical makes its sensational way to Bristol.

The breath-taking, multi-award-winning stage show, which has caused huge excitment in London's West End and on Broadway, now tours across the UK, Europe and beyond, playing The Bristol Hippodrome from June 26 to August 9.

Pop the champagne and prepare for a spectacular, as Baz Luhrmann's revolutionary film comes to life on stage, remixed in a new musical mash-up. A celebration of truth, beauty, freedom, and, above all, love.

The talented cast of this ravishing show includes veteran of musical theatre, Cameron Blakely, who stars as Moulin Rouge impresario Harold Zidler, our jubilant host with a sinister side.

"Moulin Rouge is a wonderful, moving and exciting musical to be a part of", says Cameron, an award-winning actor who has starred in smash hit plays, musicals in the West End and across the UK, as well as various Shakespeare productions at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre.

"We opened in Edinburgh in April and the audience reaction has been incredible. Absolutely incredible. They love it and are all up on their feet at the end cheering and joining in. It's just so wonderful to see.

"We've had so many people come up to tell us that this is the best show they've ever seen. I can't wait to bring it to Bristol."

Set in Paris in 1899, a world of indulgent beauty and unparalleled extravagance, of bohemians and aristocrats, of boulevardiers and reprobates, Moulin Rouge! The Musical is the story of a lovesick American writer, Christian, and Satine, the dazzling star of the Moulin Rouge nightclub.