Rapper Megan Thee Stallion to step into Broadway’s Moulin Rouge musical
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Megan Thee Stallion at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala in New York on May 5, 2025.
PHOTO: NINA WESTERVELT/NYTIMES
Michael Paulson
NEW YORK – It is going to be a Hot Girl Spring at the Moulin Rouge on Broadway.
Megan Thee Stallion, the Grammy-winning American rapper known for songs like Hot Girl Summer (2019) and Savage (2020), will spend eight weeks starring in Moulin Rouge! The Musical, as the show’s New York company looks to generate fresh interest before closing in 2026.
She will be the first woman to play a character previously called Harold Zidler – just Zidler during the music star’s tenure – who is the impresario of the Moulin Rouge nightclub and the de facto emcee of the show.
She is scheduled to appear from March 24 to May 17; the Broadway production is set to close on July 26 after a seven-year run interrupted by the pandemic.
“We want our show to go out with a spectacular bang, and Megan is the force of nature to lead us there,” Carmen Pavlovic, a lead producer of the show, said in a statement.
Moulin Rouge! is set in late-19th-century Paris, but its score is made up of contemporary pop songs, and the production said in the statement that there would be a hint of Megan Thee Stallion’s music added during her run. She has three Grammys, including for best new artist.
“I’ve always believed in pushing myself creatively,” Megan Thee Stallion said in the statement, “and theatre is definitely a new opportunity that I’m excited to embrace.”
It is not unusual for Broadway shows, particularly those deep into their runs, to hire musical artistes and other celebrities in an effort to goose their grosses. The Zidler role has previously been played by British singer Boy George, American comedian Wayne Brady and American actor-singer Tituss Burgess, and is currently being played by American TV personality Bob the Drag Queen. It was originated by a Broadway star, Danny Burstein, who won a Tony Award for his performance.
The musical, like the 2001 film on which it is based, tells the story of a writer who falls in love with a courtesan at a Paris cancan club. The show, which in 2021 won the Tony for best new musical, has been profitable on Broadway and continues to tour North America and to run in London and other cities. NYTIMES
