It was very appropriate that the musical Kinky Boots here in Toronto during Pride Week. Afterall, it features a book by Harvey Firestein and songs by Cyndi Lauper and is a story about cross dressing, acceptance, gender equality and of course, boots
Thigh high, sparkly, red, 10 inch heeled boots. What some of us would call stripper boots. What the characters in the play refer to as Kinky Boots
The play is set in working class England and opens in the shoe factory of Price and Son, manufacturers of fine men's footwear. Fine men's footwear that no one can really afford anymore and that stores really have no ability to purchase.
The Son in Price and Son is Charlie, a young man who's future (as the heir apparent to the factory) has been so well plotted for him by others (his father) that he has never really thought was his future should actually be. Charlie is a wimp, he just doesn't want to think about his future. Luckily his girlfriend is willing to do the thinking for him and she thinks they should move to London and get into the real estate speculation game.
There is another son in the story, one who could never realize his father's dream for him and who diverges on to a very different path. At the beginning of the story we meet little Simon, a British schoolboy who has altered his school uniform with a pair of shoes; high heeled shoes
Kinky Boots is a about a lot of things, but mainly it is about expectations. Two boys are expected, by their fathers, to follow very specific career paths. Men are expected to wear pants. Drag queens are expected to be overt "sissies" All of which may be true. None of which may be true
Expectation and perception. We first meet Lola (the drag queen who young Simon has transitioned into) as a dazzling drag queen, moving confidently on her mile high boots, hips swaying with sexual bravado, glittered and painted to the point of anime fantasy. Then she begins to sing.
Alan Mingo has a voice that is soulful and rich, capable of expressing sorrow and reflection yet entirely capable of blowing the roof off the Royal Alexandria Theatre. As Charlie, Graham Fleming is a technically capable singer, he makes all his notes, but his voice is on the boy band side of things and in his duets with Mingo, often gets quickly left behind
Kinky Boots does a nice job of mixing the pathos with the humour but mostly, it's about the humour. The messages are there but you're not hit too hard over the head with them. The stage version of Priscilla Queen of the Desert follows a similar stories; drag queens and their fight for acceptance. Priscilla had its funny moments but its tone sometimes veered into tragedy. Kinky Boots never goes there. It is quite happen to make you think as you are bobbing your head to Lauper's well crafted pop tunes
Boots definitely falls into the "feel good" category of shows. Not giving much away to say things end well. And there are some genuinely funny scenes: A boxing match with the most interesting ring girls ever, a fashion show that had the paragons of Milan gasping and some very unlikely wearers of some very kinky boots
Mostly Kinky Boots is a romp, with lots of big ensemble numbers but of course there are some memorable solos. One of them features one of the most individual, jaw dropping comedic performances I have seen in a long long time. Aj Bridel as Lauren absolutely stops the show with her rendition of The History of Wrong Guys. When I wasn't laughing it was because my jaw was literally hanging open, this woman is a force of nature and she quite easily rattled the roof of the old theatre
I was not compelled, after watching Kinky Boots, to don mascara and stripper boots ... well maybe not the boots. Ahem. Moving on. But the tunes stayed in my mind as did some of the performances. And I will never look at a "female" wearing mile high sparkly red boots the same again
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