It’s been more than a year since those famous red boots strutted across a London stage for the final time, but Kinky Boots London did not end there. During it’s time at the Adelphi Theatre, the show was filmed with original cast members Killian Donnelly and Matt Henry returning to their roles of Charlie and Lola respectively. And now, after having to wait a very long time as it shown in cinemas across America first, we finally got a chance to see it this fabulous, sassy and memorable show in all it’s big screen glory this week.
If you missed out on seeing Kinky Boots during it’s West End run then you really missed a trick. This life affirming musical tells the story of Charlie Price, who inherits his father’s struggling shoe factory and turns to fabulous drag queen Lola in the search of a new niche market. With high energy dance numbers and powerful ballads, combined with some incredible costumes and a simple but effective set, Kinky Boots is guaranteed to please and leave you with a smile on your face.
With a story of acceptance and friendship at it’s heart, this show takes important messages and weaves them into a believable and easily likable story line with characters that you can both love and relate too. It effortlessly combines passion and love with sass and comedy, providing something for everyone to enjoy.
Natalie McQueen impresses as Lauren, a worker in the shoe factory who inspires Charlie to look further afield and find something new in order to save the business. She is a lovable comical character, and McQueen proved a hit with the audience with her bundles of energy and lovely vocals. Sean Needham plays the love to hate character of Don, who walks around the factory as if he owns the place and tries to put everyone in their place, until he meets his match in Lola. Jordan Fox also makes an impact with his performance as Harry, impressing with his rendition of ‘Take what you got’
You cannot fault the powerhouse that is the ensemble of this production. Lola’s gang of back up dancers have a ridiculous amount of sass and fabulous style, and if any show could make you jealous of a man’s legs, then it’s this one. Alongside the cast playing the factory workers, they bounce from one high energy number to the next with apparent ease.
One of the best things about watching a recording of a show is the close ups and new angles. As someone who has watched the show live from the front row on a number of occasions, I could see even more detail with this cinema screening. You can see every emotion in the performers eyes, hear every click of the fantastic heels across the stage and see every sparkle on the costumes. I personally loved the angles looking out in the audience during ‘Land of Lola’, an angle that we normally do not get to see.
Kinky Boots is a crowd pleaser. With it’s heartfelt story based in truth, a fabulous cast and some very catchy songs, it’s simply impossible not to smile whilst you watch it.