Kinky Boots

KINKY BOOTS a musical staged by St. Paul’s Players, at Adlington Community Centre, Railway Road, Adlington, Chorley on Friday, 11th March, 2020.

Kinky Boots the musical is based on the 2005 British film of the same name which was written by Geoff Deane and Tim Firth.  Adapted for stage by pop star Cyndi Lauper and writer Harvey Fierstein, the musical, like the film, is inspired by true events.  Charlie Price has suddenly inherited his father's shoe factory in Northampton, which is on the verge of bankruptcy! He attempts to save the family business and live up to his father’s legacy, and, in doing so, he discovers an unlikely partner/hero in the form of Lola, a fabulous drag queen in need of some sturdy ‘RED’ stiletto boots! Lola turns out to be the one person who can help Charlie become the man that he is meant to be. The result is an engaging, big-hearted spectacle full of dancing, singing and laughs. 

Where to start… well let me start by saying, if you missed this production then you missed a ‘real treat’! The director, in his programme notes, tells us about the difficulties in getting this production to stage. Rehearsals started in March 2021 when you thought the word ‘pandemic’ would have been a thing of the past, but as we all know now, that was not the case!  Most cast/crew suffered, rehearsals were disrupted and always, in the back of the mind, would this production ever reach the stage!  Well, it did and the ‘standing ovation’ that accompanied the end of this performance said it all… so congratulations to the production team of Dave Maloney (Director), Lily Blundell (Producer /Choreographer and Helen Washington (Musical Director) … all that time and effort definitely paid off, be ever so proud guys!

Before moving to the cast, can I again pay homage to the creativity of the back stage/technical crew who, once again, pulled together another amazing set!  St Paul’s are blessed with a team of ‘magicians’ who design/create/make their own sets to fit their stage for every production… Sam Heyes, Jill Heeks, Vincent Taylor, Judith Armstrong, Richard Cornes, Howard Bates, Barry Heeks and Tony Henry should be all congratulated on their efforts… not only do these sets enhance the production, they allow the production to flow… in ‘awe’ … be proud folks, another job extremely well done!

This was an excellent production from ‘first note to last’ with so many quality performances on show…

SHOWSTOPPER for ME (and many others I suspect) was Jamie Fletcher’s portrayal of ‘Clacton’s’, very own charismatic drag queen ‘Lola’ aka ‘Simon’. Jamie adopted with ease, the style and characteristics of a drag queen. Great stage presence, great voice, moved really well; stunning costumes, perfect wigs, this was an outstanding performance, and to top it all his poignant, reflective rendition of ‘Not my father’s son’ with ‘Charlie’ was amazing… be ever so proud, first-class job sir!   I loved Katie Toole’s portrayal of ‘Lauren’, the unassuming working-class girl, whose love life to date can only be described as ‘Unlucky’, but who falls head over heels in love with Charlie!  Another with great stage presence, great comic timing, some of her mannerisms and facial expressions were priceless. Another blessed with a good singing voice, again be proud Katie, great job! Christian Brabin took on the role of ‘Charlie Price’, our ‘hen-pecked’, unfocused Shoe Factory Owner.  Christian did a good job in this role, good stage presence, worked well with Lola and Lauren and the rest of the cast… well done sir!  John Whitehead did a wonderful job portraying Factory Manager ‘George’. Never out of character, always involved even when not front and centre… his little ‘thumbs up’ gesture when agreeing with one of Lola’s statements was ‘genius’ … great job John!  Hannah Ward-Jones took on the role of ‘Nicola’ Charlie’s childhood sweetheart and now fiancé.  Hannah made this role her own!  Good stage presence, never out of character.  Well done, be proud Hannah.  Andy Lane was the perfect fit for ‘Don’, the rather bad-mannered, judgemental ‘guys guy’!  Great stage presence, totally at home in this role, extracted every ounce of humour from the character. Well done Andy great job sir!  ‘The Angels’… Lola’s Support Group (backing singers and dancers) were provided superbly well by Harry Cohen, Lily Fothergill, Matthew Gavin and Georgia Hilton.  Looked great, sounded great, moved well, supported Lola really well be proud folks!   The cast also included, Lauren Brown in the role of ‘Trish’, Hayley Seal took on the role of ‘Pat’, Neil Brogan played Harry, Barry Heeks played Mr. Price (Snr), Cooper Seal played ‘Young Charlie’ and Hanan Arnold played ‘Young Lola’... The Ensemble included Tracey Higginson, Georgia Brooks, Janette Livesley, Jane McQueen, Alicia Scally and last but not least Sharlene McKeon.

“What’s the first thing you usually think about when someone mentions a musical? -  surely THE MUSIC!  This was under the guidance of Helen Washington (Musical Director) and her amazing orchestra who were located outside the main auditorium and included Jim Davies on Trumpet; Dave Dossett on Keys 2; Mark Jones on Guitar, Ed McFarlane on Bass and Phil Steventon on Drums.  Great sound, great support guys, be proud!    

Props - were first class and under the care of Sue Heyes and Becca Hilton… well done girls!  
Make up - under the watchful eye of Lily Fothergill… I suspect there was ‘bucket loads’ - well done, Lily!
Sound - as always, was under the guidance of Natalie and Joanne Sweet.  We did have one or two small hiccups, but with all the comings and goings this was never going to be easy task; the hiccups caused no major concerns and none that affected the overall performance… well done ladies! 
Lighting - Stuart Naylor was the man tasked with keeping everyone and everything ‘illuminated’!  It’s never easy commenting on either ‘lighting or sound’ without knowing much more than I usually do, but I do feel it would be remiss of me not to highlight a couple of small issues that I and others experienced!  I felt, on occasions, that ‘principals’ were singing/acting slightly in the dark… this could well have been actor error and not a lighting issue, but either way it was an issue!  There were also times when the faces of the actors were in ‘shadow’; making it difficult to see both face and especially the eyes.  The old adage that ‘the eyes are the windows to the soul’ is so true and much is obtained by being able to see them. These issues did not affect the overall enjoyment of the production, but I do feel it would be remiss of me not to have mentioned both points!  I hope I haven’t overstepped the mark or offended anyone, that was never my intention… these are just points to be looked at for development and for future productions.  

Having spoken at length with Graham and other committee/production team members, it was obvious that this had not been the easiest of productions to get to stage; but be assured guys all that effort, commitment and dedication paid off… this was an amazing production and the reception from the audience at the end, should have told you everything you needed to know… be so very proud!

Finally, can I just say thanks for inviting my wife and I and thanks for arranging our ‘special seats’ (really appreciated).  Thanks for allowing me to speak with cast and crew backstage after the show… it really was great to see you all!  Already looking forward to ‘Calendar Girls’ and as I said to cast and crew… ‘LIVE THEATRE IS BACK’…  well done St Paul’s… this was an amazing show!

Jim Briscoe
NODA NW
District 6 Rep

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