Kinky Boots

From a small factory in Earls Barton, Northamptonshire to Broadway and beyond! Kinky Boots is a wonderful story of how one man entered a world he didn’t know existed to save his business by walking in six-inch heels!

What a privilege it was to be invited not only to the opening night of this fantastic musical, but the re-opening of The Derngate Theatre, which recently had to close due to the presence of RAAC concrete. Although a few adjustments had to be made, the Derngate managed the re-opening well and it was fabulous to see so many people in attendance.

Kinky Boots follows the story of the “Price and Son” shoe factory in Northampton. The book was written by Tony winner Harvey Flerstein and the score by Cyndi Lauper and is based on a true story. The show tells of a struggling British shoe factory’s young, strait-laced owner, Charlie, who forms an unlikely partnership with Lola, a drag queen, to save the business. Charlie develops a plan to produce custom footwear for drag queens, rather that the men’s dress shoes that his firm is known for, alienating many in the process.

We were welcomed to the theatre by Kathryn, NMTC’s business manager, who sorted our seats and showed us where to go. We were joined in our box by none other than Steve Pateman the man behind the true story that inspired this well-loved, award-winning musical.

The company worked well together and were obviously well rehearsed. There were some beautiful harmonies from the singers and the cast filled the stage well. As we moved through the story, we met an array of characters including Oliver Britton as young Charlie, Leo Myles as young Lola, Ashleigh Standage as Nicola, Matt Umney as Harry, Graham Breeze as Mr Price (Senior), Hannah Hauser as Pat and Susie Pack as Trish. All were well cast and performed the characters well – playing the Northamptonshire accent perfectly (no surprises there!).

The Angels were very well cast, and how super to be able to have all men – men in amateur theatre are few and far between! They moved well together like a well-oiled machine.

Frazer McDonald played Don, and he got this character spot-on. I’ve known Frazer for some time now, and he never fails to amaze me with his talent and his flexibility in different roles. I always look forward to seeing (and performing with him) on stage. Lauren was played by Rachel James, and she has one of my favourite songs in the show “The History of Wrong Guys” which is hilariously written and was acted well by Rachel. I felt like she was battling against the orchestra at times however, and this made it difficult to hear her. 

Luke White played Lola. What an enormous part to undertake! Luke delivered his lines well and has a beautiful singing voice. When he was in his “Simon” shoes; Luke’s acting shone through, and Luke seemed much more comfortable on stage.  Although I thought Luke did very well with Lola, I couldn’t help but feel there should have been a bit more presence with her, she almost seemed a little timid. Lola should dominate the scene, and this didn’t happen for me. I felt a little more practice in heels would have benefitted Luke, who looked somewhat awkward when wearing them. Having said this, Luke was very popular with the audience and left them wanting more.

The star of the show for me was Dan Hodson. Dan took the role of Charlie Price and did an awesome job of it. His singing was tremendous, and he hit every note perfectly. I have to say I’m somewhat jealous of his voice! He was utterly believable as Charlie and was a joy to watch.

The costumes and boots were provided by D and S Costumes LTD. They were spot on, and the boots were terrific. Scenery was provided by Scenic Projects LTD and was perfect. The stage crew did a brilliant job with seamless scene changes.

The show was directed by Martyn Knight, who has directed over 175 shows! He did a brilliant job of Kinky Boots and should be very proud. In the chair as MD was Rod Iliffe. Although the band sounded wonderful, it was overpowering at times, making it difficult to hear what was being sung on stage. I noted that the orchestra was a “Silent Pit” (meaning everything goes through the sound board). This, for me, makes the sound a little dead, with little emotion. Having said that, the audience were on their feet at the end of the show giving a standing ovation and having a boogie in the aisles.

The programme was well set out and had some good sections. I can't include the programme in our competition, however, as the correct NODA wording is missing - See here for information about requirements:

https://www.noda.org.uk/_assets/ckfinder_library/files/PosterComp/Programme%20and%20Poster%20Criteria%2022-24_30680.pdf

All-in-all, we had a brilliant evening at The Derngate and felt privileged to see this award-winning show back in its home town. Thank you NMTC.

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