Danny Burgos’ history with Moulin Rouge! The Musical dates back to 2018 when he first auditioned for the Broadway production. Twenty-seven years old at the time, Burgos was told he was too young to play the role of Santiago, an Argentine tango dancer.
So, he let go of the hope of being cast in the show. A few years later he was asked to audition twice to replace the actors who were playing Santiago.
“That didn’t happen,” he says of getting the role. “I thought it was never going to happen.”
Then, as luck would have it, he was working as a registered nurse in New York, when he got another call to come in for a dance audition for the role of Santiago.
Burgos, who is Cuban by birth, has been dancing salsa and Latin dance since he was a kid.
“It came naturally,” he says, adding he felt good about the dance audition. “I thought ‘I can do this.’”
And so he did. He’s been playing Santiago in the national tour of the musical for the past 18 months.
The winner of 10 Tony awards in 2021, Moulin Rouge! The Musical is a celebration of truth, beauty, freedom, and — above all — love. It plays Altria Theater March 4 through 16.
“Each Bohemian embodies a different value,” Burgos says. “Santiago is the embodiment of beauty in Bohemian terms. He is beautiful in that he is the purest form of all the Bohemian values.”
Santiago is truthful, loud, quirky, funny and lives freely, Burgos adds. “I like to think I embody that night after night. Santiago lives authentically. He is 100 percent himself, and I love that about him.”
Burgos has also followed his own path over the years. The Hialeah, Fla. native was a very theatrical kid growing up, but he never participated in any type of theatre. Instead, he played sports. When he was attending Barbara Goleman Senior High School, a friend asked him to audition with her for the school’s production of the musical Oh Horror! It’s Murder.
“I ended up getting cast as the lead,” he says.
While he never thought about a career in theatre, he found inspiration and encouragement from his high school drama teacher who took him under his wing to give it a try.
“He told me you are really good at this. You should do this,” Burgos says.
Still unsure about what he should study in college, Burgos talked with one of his aunts who was a nurse when he was growing up. He was encouraged about what she had to say about nursing and applied for nursing school at Florida State University. He spent two years as a nursing student and then he pivoted and made the decision to switch to musical theatre.
During his last year of college, he auditioned for the national tour of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, the Musical and was cast in the show — he had appeared in the regional production previously.
He made his Broadway debut in On Your Feet! serving as the standby for the role of Emilio Estefan. He followed that with the first national tour of On Your Feet! and later, The Band’s Visit.
When the pandemic hit and he found himself unemployed, he decided to go back to school to become a registered nurse. He worked in that profession for a year before the call from Moulin Rouge! The Musical.
While he loves being in the cast, Burgos admits that any type of touring is difficult. “We are picking up and putting down everything we own every other week,” he says. “Our bodies are in a constant state of shock.”
In the end, it’s all worth it, he adds. “This is a good show for people who want to dip their toes into musical theater. The story is told through music (mostly pop but other genres as well). It’s a fun show, a really good time. Audiences are loving the show.”
For tickets and show information, visit www.BroadwayInRichmond.com
