Theater Review / Kinky Boots

By Emily Weekley

Kinky Boots opens February 16th at the Waterfront Playhouse to sold out audiences and no shortage of glitter and dancing. And red!

Kink is an old word full of implications that means something like a twist, a wave, a winding, a curl – a thing curving in on itself like a rope, like lace, like the perfect shape of a stiletto. In this dance of a performance, choreographed delightfully, the viewer watches as characters from different backgrounds present their own winding lives and twist the perspectives of those who are less open-minded, ultimately bending themselves into something new and perfectly represented by the most perfect, most kinky boot.

This Tony Award-winning musical is set in Northampton, England, primarily in a generationally run shoe factory. The musical is based on a book by Harvey Fierstein with music written by Cyndi Lauper. On the stage, the audience is presented with compelling twists and turns, often internal in nature, as unexpected characters are brought together in surprising ways.

Director Tom Thayer’s rendition of Kinky Boots is a fun, feel-good musical with touching messages about how people’s perspectives stand in the way of our collective connections and successes. Brian Robinson as Mr. Price says to his son in the beginning of the show, “May your feet never fail to point your shoes back home,” and sure enough, this production challenges all of us to consider home, legacy, and shaping our own futures.

Courtney Dease plays Charlie Price as the boy who is grappling with a family legacy for which he finds no passion – reliable shoes in an unreliable time for business. When he meets an extraordinary drag queen, Lola, played by Richard Quint, the two enter an unexpected partnership that finds them both passionate about things they never expected to be part of. In a set that shows that every shoe factory needs a nice layering of sparkle, these two actors make big impressions with their voices, their moves, and their deliveries. Dease is the perfect foil to Quint’s larger-than-life presence, and their characters’ contrasting stories take them down a path that enlightens even the most prejudiced of Northampton.

Talitha Jones as Lauren is utterly charming, hitting every line with perfect delivery. Jessica Miano Kruel plays Nicola, Charlie’s fiancé, and embodies the longing of a small-town girl to make it to the city, even at great price. James Harcup, who plays a skeptical Don, is perhaps the character most changed by the end of the show, and Harcup inspires us all to follow suit. The support cast moves almost as one unit, filling the stage with a presence that alludes to unity – a unity that is both clear and challenged in this musical.

Riley Vogel, Jordan Crawford, Ervin Tumm, Zachary Franchini, Jillian Todd, and Carolyn Cooper as the Angels entrance audiences with their dancing and lift the crowd up in the midst of some of the more serious subject matter. The musicians that provide accompaniment become a part of the stage, and the audience feels every note.

Kinky Boots runs Feb 16th – Mar 18th at the Waterfront Playhouse located in Mallory Square at 407 Wall Street. Get your tickets online at www.waterfrontplayhouse.org, or by calling 305-294-5015 or stopping into the box office, open on performance days beginning at 1 PM.