REVIEW|Kinky Boots in Concert at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane

Photo Credit: Mark Senior

 

Photo Credit: Mark Senior

Kinky Boots in Concert
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
09/08/2022
★★★★★

It is no secret that Kinky Boots is up there as one of my favourite shows, the story and its message of acceptance of yourself and everyone else is one that needs to be heard. I have seen Kinky Boots multiple times in London and on Tour so as soon as I heard that the concert had been announced I was ready to book and then when they sprinkled in some cast glitter I was sold.

This show has seen me through good times and bad, shaped my life and hugged my heart through it all. This production, which was a staged concert, had the feel of the show just without some of the large choreographed moments and with the music being played by the amazingly talented London Musical Theatre Orchestra and with background ensemble vocals being performed by the London Musical Theatre Chorus alongside actors taking the main roles on stage.

Creatively it was amazingly complete with excellent lighting designed by Ben Cracknell and sound by Tom Marshall, which alongside the direction by Omar F. Okai kept the feel of the full show in this concert but also made it a treat for the eyes and ears. Literally Creatively Flawless.

Photo Credit:Mark Senior

The cast were pretty special too. Led by the glorious Cedric Neal as Lola/Simon, Joel Harper-Jackson as Charlie and Courtney Bowman as Lauren, alongside Graham Bickley, Duane Gooden, Hannah Lowther, Kayleigh McKnight, Madison Swan, Nikki Bentley, Sean Needham, Ahmed Hamad and Daisy Wood-Davis.

Cedric was outstanding as Lola, a role they were born to play, putting all of their heart and soul on the line, which when you learn about the journey Cedric has been on with this role through the years. It was also great to see Joel perform as Charlie after he last took on the role on the UK Tour, especially after you remember that over the last two weeks Joel has done two of these staged concerts, his career is really on the rise as of late.

Lola's angels played by Ashley Samuels , Eli Caldwell, Finton Flynn, Jayred Lempriere, Jordan Bennett and Ross Carpenter were outstanding, from the moment they arrived on stage until the final bows, absolutely exceptional and I was in love with them all.

This was the greatest homage to a great show and literally highlighted that this show needs a return in full either in the West End or on Tour. The audience were one hundred per cent behind it all and was the perfect way to spend my birthday weekend.