The sails of the windmill atop Paris’ legendary Moulin Rouge cabaret club began to spin once more yesterday for the first time since they fell off in 2024.
Dancers took to the front of the venue in the Montmartre district, located in the north of the French capital, to commemorate the resumption of the sails’ movement, while others waved sparklers behind the club’s signage.
Throngs of tourists and local Parisians gathered to witness the spectacle.
Australian dancer Jasmine Bard, who has graced the club’s stage for eight years, expressed her joy by stating she “couldn’t be happier” to see the windmill’s sails turning again.
Dancers performed in front of the venue in the Montmartre district
Montmartre locals Laure Morandina and Zelia Van Den Bulke also shared in the excitement of the sails’ revival. “It’s a party, a fairy tale,” remarked Ms. Morandina.
Established in 1889, the Moulin Rouge has evolved into a global emblem of late 19th-century Parisian culture. Its renowned can-can dancers have been immortalized in artworks by avant-garde artists of the period, including Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Georges Seurat.
Watch: ‘I actually couldn’t be happier for our windmill to turn again’ – dancer
Today, the audience primarily consists of tourist groups.
The sails atop the windmill at the club fell off overnight in April 2024 and were reinstated in preparation for the Paris Olympics the following July.
