Kinky Boots review – rebooted and rambunctious

Seven years after the original production closed at the Adelphi, Kinky Boots is back in town. Based on a 2005 British film inspired by a true story, the Tony-winning musical arrives at the Coliseum in a version that originated at Curve, Leicester last year. The main selling point this time round is Strictly superstar Johannes Radebe stepping into the vertiginous high heels of Lola, the statuesque drag queen whose combination of tough love and sheer fabulousness revitalises the fortunes of a failing Northampton shoe factory.

Radebe brings immense charm and stage presence, plus some edge, to Lola, looking absolutely astonishing in a series of elaborate creations (costumes by Robert Jones and Tom Rogers, wigs and make up by Campbell Young Associates). He’s so charismatic you almost overlook that he’s not really had any previous experience as a singer… or an actor. 

What he is though is a star, every inch of him (and he is the tallest person on-stage by far); every aspect of Nikolai Foster’s efficient staging seems built around him, especially Leah Hill’s choreography. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the extended dance breaks are where this Kinky Boots lifts off the ground. When Radebe gets to cut loose, an electric charge crackles through the house. Radebe commands the stage, and the audience rightly adores him. Is it a a fully rounded performance? No. Will the people buying tickets specifically to see him care? Also no. That’s the magic of star quality. 

Foster’s production lacks the high precision gleam of Jerry Mitchell’s Broadway original but feels more authentically British. The show has always suffered from a weird disconnect whereby everybody talks in English accents before contending with Cyndi Lauper’s quintessentially American-sounding songs, by turns bouncy then soulful. That’s less of an issue here, assuming, that is, that you can make out what is being sung or said: the sound is dreadful, rendering Stephen Oremus’ exciting orchestrations unforgivably tinny, and most of the words unintelligible: that’s frustrating as Kinky Boots includes surely one of contemporary musical theatre’s most inspired lyrics: “I’m Black Jesus, I’m Black Mary, but this Mary’s legs are hairy”.

Matt Cardle, gruff but sympathetic, is excellent as Charlie Price, the shoe factory heir Lola befriends, his expressive, rangy voice superbly matched to Lauper’s musical style. He even just about makes work the character’s inexplicable temporary transition from puppyish ally to intolerant meathead, a bizarre misstep in Harvey Fierstein’s book that feels as though it should have been ironed out when the original production was in previews. 

Courtney Bowman is irresistibly cute and funny as Lauren, the factory worker with the hots for Charlie. There’s sterling, hilarious work from Rachel Izen and Scott Paige as Lola’s unlikely factory floor allies, and Billy Roberts makes a strong impression as a bullying antagonist. The sassy, athletic Angels, Lola’s back-up drag crew, all register as distinctive personalities and are great fun, despite some ragged singing. 

Jones’ impressive factory set fills the Coliseum’s enormous stage quite satisfyingly but is placed so far back that even from the best seats you feel slightly removed from the action, an issue exacerbated by the strange decision to perform several important scenes right at the rear. Ben Cracknell’s transformative lighting genuinely dazzles when required, going from the realism of daylight seeping through grimy factory windows to scarlet neon nightlife in a matter of seconds. 

Kinky Boots sanitises and glosses up its setting and characters, turning personal and professional struggles into palatable popular entertainment, but its huge heart is undeniable and the message regarding accepting people as they are will never not be relevant. Foster’s production is more workmanlike than inspired but Radebe’s star power, Cardle’s warm magnetism and Bowman’s comic joie de vivre keep it buoyantly watchable.