KINKY BOOTS was the first musical in a while that I went to go see without knowing an ounce of the show. I have heard some of the music before and of course knew it won the Tony award for Best Musical, but beyond that I was going in blind. And to my surprise I actually fell in love with it!

KINKY BOOTS is not an over complicated story. With a Tony-winning score by CYNDI LAUPER, and the show based on the true story movie, there isn’t a lot not to love. KINKY tells the emotional story of Lola a drag queen who is trying to overcome prejudice and Charlie who has the challenge of saving his late fathers shoe business.

They both come together to design and make sturdy boots for Drag Queens! Lola is played by KYLE TAYLOR PARKER, a member of the original Broadway company, and he was really the stand out performer. You could tell he absolutely loves his role and really enjoys becoming Lola every night.

I have been a fan of STEVEN BOOTH for a long time, since he was first on my favorite Broadway spoof web series Submissions Only! He pretty much has a voice to die for, but his Charlie for me was lacking the emotion I wanted from the character. The singing was great but the emotional scenes between him and Kyle just missed something for me.

LINDSAY NICOLE CHAMBERS plays Lauren, a Price & Son’s employee finding herself falling in love with the boss. She was one of my favorite characters on my beloved web series Submissions Only. I loved everything she does in this show, and I unfortunately feel that she was underutilized in her character. Everything she sang was brilliant and her humor and comedic timing were definitely the highlight of the show.

For me the highlight of the show besides Lindsay were all the fantastic Drag Queens that made up Lola’s Angels. Every song that they sang or danced commanded our attention. Every scene that they are in are energetic, and you can tell they work their butt off in every single song.
The show definitely needed more of the energy throughout to keep the pacing of the story going.

My biggest problem with KINKY BOOTS is everything put together could be amazing and live up to being the Tony Award winning Best Musical, but unfortunately, nothing was remarkably remembering. Everything could have been one notch better with the performances, acting, and the story. But with everything said, that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy myself and left the theater definitly wanting my own pair of amazing red glitter boots.

KINKY BOOTS is definitely a great night out for the entire family. And at Segerstrom Center for the Arts they make it especially fun with patrons being able to strut their stuff on a runway with fun props before the show. It is the perfect fit for Segerstrom Center and will definitely put you in touch with your inner diva.

December 30th, 2014 – January 11th, 2015
Tuesdays – Fridays at 7:30 p.m.
Saturdays at 2 & 7:30 p.m.
Sundays at 1 & 6:30 p.m.

Tickets start at $29
For more information visit scfta.org