Kinky Boots, 24/07/2018; a review.
I
saw ‘Kinky Boots’ at the Adelphi Theatre, London, last
night…
...EVERYBODY
SAY YEAH!!!
Okay,
now that’s out of my system, let’s crack on with the review!
With
songs by pop icon Cyndi
Lauper,
this ‘dazzling, fabulously sassy and uplifting’ (Time Out)
musical celebration is about the friendships we discover, and the
belief that you can change the world when you change your mind.
Kinky
Boots
tells the story of Charlie Price, a wannabe London highflyer who, to
his dismay, inherits his father’s shoe factory. Charlie is
struggling to live up to his father’s expectations when help
arrives in the unlikely but dazzling form of Lola, a spectacular
performer in need of some new stilettos.
(Source: From the Box Office)
(Source: From the Box Office)
(Photo: Kinky Boots UK)
It
won the 2016 Olivier Award for Best New Musical, and since then has
dominated in every major theatre awards Best Musical category. When
it landed in London, back in summer 2015, it wasn’t just theatre
nuts who went mad for it – there were also Cyndi Lauper fans, drag
lovers, and loads of folks who’d seen and enjoyed the film when it
came out in 2005.
Yep,
'Kinky Boots' really is for everyone. And I
saw all kinds of people in the audience last night, as well –
couples, colleagues, friends; teens, twenty-somethings, middle-agers,
silver foxes…! It was a wonderful sight. Because music and drag
really are universal things.
I had a bit of a moment when I saw Oliver Tompsett appear onstage as Charlie actually, because I only knew him as the sweet Fiyero I saw in Wicked about a decade ago. And not only has he not aged a day, his voice is just as warm and beautiful as ever. Honestly, his rendition of ‘Soul of a Man’ knocked me out (and everyone around me too, if the applause and whoops were anything to go by).
And I gotta give a shout-out to the young Charlie. The young Lola, too; both kids were little bundles of excitement and energy. I also came to love George (Antony Reed), the sweet older man who watched over the new Mr Price as he took the helm – and was 100% into the drag vibes when they first came in.
We also saw some covers in the show on Tuesday night; Momar Diagne
played the legendary Lola, Keith Higham was the very difficult
Don, and Suzie McAdam absolutely smashed it as Lauren – we were
giggling so hard at every one of her lines, and howled when she sang
about a very silly crush…!
I
cannot fault the choreography in this show; it was utterly fabulous.
I also loved every physical interaction between characters, dancing
and
just
talking,
it was all very cleverly done. Jerry Mitchell did a great job there.
The
costumes were also flawless – especially the drag. Every time Lola
and the Angels made their entrances, I heard myself saying in my
head: ‘category
is...kinky realness!!’
Bravo,
Gregg Barnes.
Finally,
I loved the set design and the way it was altered and used in the
absolutely stonking musical numbers.
My
favourite song has to be ‘Everybody Say Yeah’ – closely
followed by ‘Not My Father’s Son’ and ‘The History of Wrong
Guys’ (okay, the latter is in there mostly because I related to it
HARD).
Life
lessons you learn from ‘Kinky Boots’ include:
- Drag is perfection.
-
The best way to fit in is to stand out!
-
The sex is in the heel.
-
Pink is for play things, green is for pickles...red is sex.
-
You might not be what your parents expected, but you must be true to yourself.
Be
sure to follow this show on Twitter – their tweets are cheeky and
fun, plus you really feel you get to know the company and get a BTS
glimpse of the show. I am always impressed by a West End show with a
good online presence, tbh.
Book
now with From the Box Office for seats starting at just £15!
But
hurry – this magnificent show is packing up in January!
(I kinda think I needn't have posted this whole review.
Our faces when we left the theatre at 10pm said it all, right?)
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