by Kevin Shaw | photos courtesy of Playhouse on the Square
In the early 1990’s, I was visiting a childhood friend in New York City who set me up on a blind date. Although I was living in Los Angeles at the time, I always enjoyed the excitement of meeting new people and, if the chemistry was right, who knows what might happen. My friend was a working actor in New York, and, not surprisingly, so was the man he set me up to meet. It was a lunch date-a bit unusual for me, but I was game. I have to say, all these years later, I don’t recall where we ate, what we ate, etc., but without a doubt, I can tell what we talked about. Him. We. Talked. About. Him. From the moment I sat down until the excruciatingly last moment that I left, it was all him, all the time. It was unbelievable! As a struggling actor myself in California, I was used to being around actors. Actors like to talk about themselves. After all, it is a “look at me!” industry. But, this guy was unlike anyone I had ever encountered! He didn’t care if I was listening or not. He didn’t care if I cared or not. He was going to tell his story and how great his future looked if no one was sitting there at all. He told me that one day he was going to be famous! He told me that one day he was going to win a Tony Award! He told me that he was going to be a superstar! I told him to pass the bread. Suffice it to say, I was not impressed with his vision of himself. Suffice it to also say, I was not interested in a second date. We went our separate ways that day and I never heard from him again. He did teach me a valuable lesson though. No one on the planet going to change this man’s mind about who he was. You either accepted him for the way he was or got out of his way. I chose to get out his way. I’m certain he had friends and I’m certain they dared to accept him for who he was and loved him. I just wasn’t that guy. And that was okay. The older I’ve gotten, the more I’ve learned the value of accepting people for who they are. No need to change them. Just accept
them.
Such is the lesson in the rousingly solid production of Kinky Boots currently running at Playhouse on the Square now through September 1, 2019. Set in Northampton, England, Charlie Price is desperate to save his family’s floundering shoe business when he runs into a feisty, outspoken drag queen named Lola who happens to need help with a broken shoe. In a “way too simple to be true (although it is) plot ‘twist’” Charlie and Lola go into business together to make fabulous shoes for an underserved niche market of buyers (Drag Queens) and the business is saved and everyone lives happily ever after. That’s it. Really. With such a simply storyline, Kinky Boots relies heavily on catchy tunes by first time Broadway songwriter Cyndi Lauper (heard of her, kids?) with a book by Harvey Fierstein, who has written a few Broadway shows about men in drag himself (La Cage Aux Folles and Torch Song Trilogy) and won a Tony Award for playing one (Hairspray) with great success. The show is incredibly sweet in its showcasing of two men (one straight, white and introverted, while the other is gay, black and extroverted) both struggling with the exact same issue—a desperate longing to be accepted by their fathers. The Broadway production was a huge success. It ran for 6 years, won 6 Tony Awards, including Best Musical and it made Billy Porter a “gay” household name by playing the fabulous diva queen, Lola and winning the Tony Award for Best Male Performer in a Leading Role in a Musical. Porter has since gone on to star in Pose on FX and has been nominated for an Emmy and Golden Globe Award for his portrayal. In short, Billy Porter’s Lola in Kinky Boots is widely accepted as being as iconic as Jennifer Holliday’s portrayal of Effie was in Dreamgirls. Again, iconic.
In the more than capable hands of director, Dave Landis, this Kinky Boots is strong without necessarily being overpowering. In a show featuring drag queens, it would be easy to pull out the confetti cannons and glitter rain (and that would be an acceptable choice), but Landis seems to prefer (as in many of his other shows) to focus more on the story and the characters, rather than the “fluff,” which makes this production especially touching. This is, after all, a show that features a drag queen, but it’s not “about” drag queens. It’s about men trying to accept themselves even when their fathers didn’t. It’s inherent in all boys to want to make their fathers proud and the realization of failure simply by being true to yourself is heartbreaking. This acceptance is painful to witness as Charlie and Lola sing the show’s most moving song, “Not My Father’s Son,” as they bond in their grief of being disappointments to their fathers, but not to themselves.
Landis’ cast mimics the “blue collar” workers in the story—they’re hard workers, who get the job done with a few standing above the rest. In a first, if there was ever a performer who makes you want to stand up and cheer at the very beginning of the show, it’s little Johnathan Brooks, Jr. as Young Lola who struts his stuff in high-heeled shoes. He is fabulous! His turns, poses and attitude are FIERCE! Rupaul could learn a thing or two from this dynamo. Shantay, you stay! Kevar Maffitt adds just the right machismo to the homophobic shoe factory worker who struggles accepting people different from himself. Although Maffitt appropriately plays the role as the comic relief, he’s a cautionary reminder to all members of the LGBT community that bigotry is always just around the corner. Brent Davis maximizes his opportunities to present the shoe factory manager, George, as a sweet, charming, affable fellow and Kent Fleshman shines as Charlie’s father in a limited, but compelling capacity. Kelly McCarty gives a valiant effort to make Lauren (the factory worker with a crush on the factory owner, Charlie) comical and quirky, but misses the mark. With so much opportunity to be awkward and dorky, McCarty plays it safe and leaves the audience wanting more.
There’s a cliché in show business that says you should never work with children or animals—they’ll steal the spotlight. Let’s add drag queens to that list. In perhaps one of the most thankless roles in musical theatre history, Isaiah Rosales crafts a solid, nuanced portrayal of the factory owner, Charlie Price. His choices are often subtle, underplayed and yet believable. But, playing the straight, white, introverted male next to a character like Lola is a losing proposition every time. He hasn’t got a chance. Perhaps Rosales made the conscious decision to be as minimal and simplistic as possible to help contrast him with the flamboyant Lola, which works in isolation, but in contrast, he’s practically a ghost next to her.
If you recently saw The Legend of Georgia McBride recently at Circuit Playhouse, you’ll swear you’ve seen some of these drag queens before. That’s because you have. It’s almost as if the queens from the former perfected their act, moved to England and needed some new stilettos. Not quite, but kinda. Just like in Georgia McBride, Justin Allen Tate plays a drag queen with spunk, heart and talent. Fortunately for us, Fierstein’s script this time around gives Tate a lot more material to work with and you can’t help but feel what Lola feels—injustice, pain, strength, resilience and pride. Tate’s Lola respects everyone she meets because she knows the pain of being disrespected. While Tate’s singing voice doesn’t necessarily “plaster you to the back wall” with strength, he hits all the right notes with a tenderness and vulnerability that suggests a frightened child behind that leather and lace. You can’t help but fall in love with her.
Daniel Stuart Nelson’s choreography seemed a bit minimalistic and reserved until the
outstanding final number, “Raise Up.” Perhaps the movements leading up to the finale were a physical “warm-up” for the performers to the finale that will make you forgive all that came before.
Technically, I have to say I still expect more from Memphis’ only professional theatre in town. On the second weekend of a run, performers should not still be standing in the dark (“Go into the light Carol Anne”) and microphones should be turned on before actors begin speaking. Likewise, while the set was technically “functional,” it just doesn’t feel like a “professional” set. Paper thin flats that serve as the main visual, combined with odd, see-through squares that allow the audience to see actors mingling backstage waiting to be seen were disappointing choices. While visually interesting enough to keep the show going, it just felt cheap and half-hearted. I know budgets are always an issue, but somehow scenic designer, Jack Yates over at Theatre Memphis is able to make every set for every show look like a million bucks.
I first saw Kinky Boots in Los Angeles at the Pantages Theatre and I have to say I enjoyed Playhouse’s production much more. The national tour had all the glitz and glamour you might expect from such a show and had the audience rocking in the aisles, but not the heart. That’s where this production triumphs. There’s a song in this show called, “The Most Beautiful Thing in the World” and it’s about shoes. Charlie even says to the entire cast, “You realize you’re talking about shoes?” But, this show is not really about shoes. Or drag queens. Or kinky boots. It’s a show about discovering, accepting and loving yourself, no matter what. It’s a show about standing in your own truth with pride. It’s a show about learning to accept yourself and then challenging yourself to accept another person just as they are. And, for many of us, that can still be quite a challenge.
Oh, and my blind date all those years ago who I couldn’t really accept? His name was Billy Porter.
http://playhouseonthesquare.org/
GRADE: A-
