Sahr Ngaujah on Moulin Rouge! Being Like 'Shooting a Film Every Day' & Pushing the Box of Limitation

Moulin Rouge! has been breaking the box office since its first Broadway performance in June, which is no surprise considering the show's 50+ song score, impressive choreography and a set that needs to be seen to be believed. At the core, Moulin Rouge! is all about love, something that Sahr Ngaujah knows a lot about as he plays the bohemian artist Toulouse-Lautrec. "It's been a treat to work with the creative team," he said to Ryan Lee Gilbert in a recent interview on Broadway.com's #LiveAtFive. "Obviously, the show is packed full of brilliant people in the height of craftsmanship. It's just an absolutely wonderful and dynamic experience."

Ngaujah has been involved with the creation of Moulin Rouge! for over two years, and when he started he had no idea how big it would get. "The point of the process is to see what's on the page and see what needs to be developed and offer input to help bring it to life," he said. "For me, I didn't presume that I would be with it from the point that I started until now. I didn't presume that it would be great. I just was happy to agree to a contract of helping create something and let's find out where it's going to go."

Audiences may come to see Derek McLane's velvet red set, but they stay for the intimate story being told on stage. "It is a lot of fun showing up to work with this team of people," he said. "It's a playground. The way the piece is designed, at least for my track, is like shooting a film every day but shooting all the scenes in one day. It's a rollercoaster."

Playing a characterized version of the very real French artisan Toulouse-Lautrec has made Ngaujah truly lean into his artistic side. "One of the things I appreciate about [Toulouse-Lautrec] in particular is how he was daring enough to take in all of the things that he studied formally but to not put boundaries on his creative exploration or expression," he said. "I think the way that we deal with the Bohemian ideals, freedom, beauty, truth and love, speaks to the heart of where that kind of spirit lies in so many artists and artisans.They're willing to explore and go push beyond the box of limitation, like what we're doing on stage."

See Ngaujah in Moulin Rouge!, playing at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.

Watch the full #LiveAtFive episode below!