On October 6, 1889, at the foot of Montmartre, Paris welcomed a new entertainment venue that would soon become one of the most recognizable cabarets in the world. On the Place “Blanche”, the Moulin Rouge opened - a place designed as a mixture of a ballroom, a café-concert and a garden for entertainment.
Behind the venture are entrepreneur Joseph Oller and impresario Charles Zidler. Initially, the venue was called “Jardin de Paris“, and its program combined dance, music and stage acts. The complex features a huge mirror wall, a garden and a large elephant statue. A red windmill is placed above the facade, illuminating the nighttime Parisian landscape and giving the cabaret its name.
The opening draws audiences from all over Paris
The Moulin Rouge was created during a period when Paris was experiencing a boom in cafés, music halls and artistic districts. The new establishment attracted a diverse audience - from wealthy visitors and artists to workers, tourists and curious Parisians.
The newspaper “Gilles Blas“ described the first night as a resounding success. According to the publication of October 8, 1889, “there had never been so many people and never had they had more sincere fun“, and by nine o'clock the Place “Blanche“ was filled with audiences and carriages.
The biggest attraction was the can-can - an energetic dance with high kicks, which gradually became a trademark of Parisian cabaret life. Among the first stars on the stage was Louise Weber, known as La Goulieu. Along with her, Mauve Fromage, Rayon d'Or and the dancer Valentin le Desaussé performed.
Toulouse-Lautrec turns the cabaret into an image
The Moulin Rouge quickly went beyond the confines of an ordinary dance hall. On October 26, 1890, the Prince of Wales, the future British King Edward VII, visited it. A year later, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec began creating posters for the establishment. His posters with La Goulieu, Valentin le Desaussé and other performers made the cabaret one of the emblems of the Parisian Belle Époque.
Historical references usually indicate October 6, 1889 as the opening date. Archive publication of “Le Monde“ since 1989, it has given October 5 as the original ceremony, but notes that the centenary was celebrated on October 6.
Fire does not interrupt its history
The first building was destroyed by fire on February 27, 1915. After restoration, the Moulin Rouge reopened in 1925. In the following decades, Mistange, Edith Piaf, Yves Montand, Frank Sinatra and other artists appeared on its stage, and the can-can remained at the center of the performances.
More than a century after the first night, the red mill continues to mark a place that began as a bold Parisian experiment and became an international symbol of cabaret.
Sources: agerpres.ro, retronews.fr, lemonde.fr