The level of enjoyment you have at Kinky Boots is largely determined by your mindset heading into the play. If you are in a bad mood or are simply cynically-minded, you will scoff at the largely archetypical Broadway characters, including the strong drag queen chock-full of helpful advice and almost flawless in nature, the bumbling sad sack who, by trying to please everyone, pleases no one, and the backup singers and dancers who are seemingly on stage for no reason other than to look happy and carry a note. However, if you are joyful, have a spring in your step and willingly cast away the cold lens of logic for a couple of hours, I assure you that few productions of any type will leave you feeling better and happier than this one.
First things first, this play is a musical in more ways than one. The characters on stage are always either singing or seemingly ready to burst out in song, which impacts the energy on stage and within the audience. Music is used as more than a plot device or a way to move the story along in Kinky Boots. Music is used as a form of expression, a genuine way for characters to communicate to each other that never feels trite or forced. The power of music in Kinky Boots is due mostly to the assured composing of Cyndi Lauper (I know, you laugh. Just trust me), who created sizzling pop songs that manage to create tangible energy within the play and never feel like just another Top 40 radio hit. I would compare the soundtrack in this play to that of Mamma Mia, in that the songs will undoubtedly get stuck in your head for days after the play is over, but will never feel like bubblegum pop. Of course there are a couple of ballads within the play as well, but one of my fellow audience members about two rows in front of me had a grating habit of coughing loudly and persistently whenever a ballad would start, of course managing to control herself right as the last notes of the song played. The sound was as if a cat on cocaine had decided to hack up a fur ball while chasing a mouse at the same time. Regardless, I cannot tell you about the quality of the ballads because I was too busy telepathically calling, not just the ushers, but the FBI as well. Alas.
There are valuable moral lessons to be learned from this story, among them the need for tolerance, treating your employees well and respecting people for who they are. However, the very legitimate messages are bogged-down by what is sometimes an overly preachy script. It’s good for the audience that the characters build up some good vibes from the very start of the play; without those vibes, you may find yourself feeling emotionally manipulated by the dialogue and conflicts, clearly crafted for the purpose of evoking maximum emotion from the audience. With the exception of the finale, the show’s high points undeniably occur in the first act, with standout numbers including “Sex is in the Heel” an energetic and spunky song that serves to introduce the play’s title character, and “Everybody say Yeah”, which was my personal favorite moment of the play and the moment at which the drag queens, along with the story’s major themes, are introduced.
I walked into Kinky Boots not knowing what to expect. I had heard great things from friends that attended the play before me, but I’m not a huge fan of musicals in general and Girls Just Wanna Have Fun is heinously overrated. However, the pure energy and exuberance thrust on the audience from the very start is undeniable, and by the end I, along with the rest of the audience, was standing and singing along. Days later I can sit back and poke holes at the script and the general preachy tone of some of the dialogue, but these flaws can’t wash away the enjoyment I felt at the time. See this play, preferably with friends. You won’t regret it.
Update 12/16/14: A production of Kinky Boots is coming to London in 2015!