As I arched my back, raised my chin and stuck out my behind, it occurred to me that I had never given so much attention to how I stand. I was being trained to mimic a cabaret dancer’s posture as part of an attitude and dance class at the Crazy Horse Paris. Once I had mastered the stance, it was time to strut my stuff.
My initial self-consciousness quickly faded. By the end of the session (€90pp/£77), after learning how to spin on a pole, all awkwardness had melted into camaraderie and fits of laughter.
Cabaret is a Parisian institution that dates to the 1880s and draws visitors from around the world to be entertained and titillated. The Parisian scene is undergoing something of a resurgence, partly thanks to the reality TV show Drag Race France increasing interest among younger audiences, and Jean Paul Gaultier incorporating it into its fashion shows. In 2025, the French government launched an initiative to support cabaret artists and venues.
Shorts
The best-known venue is the Moulin Rouge – inspiring Baz Luhrmann’s film and West End show. It lures more than 600,000 visitors annually and, among them, they consume around 240,000 bottles of champagne. The club is in the Right Bank Pigalle neighbourhood, just 20 minutes by public transport from the Eurostar terminal at Gare du Nord, making it the perfect first stop on my no-fly, Parisian cabaret-hopping tour that would also take in the Crazy Horse, La Nouvelle Seine and Madame Arthur.
