Kinky Boots – New Victoria Theatre, Woking – Saturday 1st February 2025

(Rated 5/5) If my memory serves me well – it often doesn’t 😉 – the 2005 film ‘Kinky Boots’ was my first encounter with one of my favourite actors of all time – Chiwetel Ejiofor. I was blown away by his portrayal of drag queen Lola – in playing her (and her alter ego) he expressed his wide acting range all in one role. I’ve never been disappointed by him since. Someone else who has never disappointed, and just like Chiwetel, continues to move me every time I see him, is Strictly dancer Johannes Radebe. In his first celebrity encounter on Strictly – partnered with Catherine Tyldesley – he showed me and all Strictly fans, what a beautifully expressive emotional human he is; capable of incredibly loving, nurturing, holding relationships producing the best from others, and at that stage possessing a wide dancing range from Afrobeats to Ballroom, and much in between. It was in that relationship with Catherine, that she or he, or maybe them both together, had the dream of Jojo on stage as Lola. The perfect role for him!!!

Kinky Boots is based on a true story. The son (Charlie) of a shoe factory owner meets a drag queen (Lola). Charlie’s father dies and the son discovers the factory is not doing well at all. How to save the factory – they need a niche? That niche becomes boots for drag queens with Lola invited to design them. So lovely and moving in itself. But, in this musical version as Johannes explained it’s even more a story of fathers and sons and the potential joys and challenges of those relationships. And, knowing Jojo’s own story and relationship with his father, he lends so much of his own experience and story to Lola.

Another draw to this musical version for me is that Cyndi Lauper wrote the music and lyrics. Within each song there is so much depth and joy or angst and, in some cases, powerful stream of consciousness processing – especially in ‘I’m not my father’s son’ – a duet sung by Lola and Charlie. And my goodness, Jojo has really extended his performance range adding singing and acting – both really coming along a treat. Yet I would have a few miniscule notes for him at this stage if I’m honest: Some fiddling with Lola’s wigs – though maybe that was a choice? His lack of confidence as Lola’s alter ego Simon felt a little 2D somehow, though maybe hard to accept Jojo lacking in confidence! And at one stage he held up a boot covering his face so we couldn’t see the expression he was delivering to a fellow actor. BUT, given he is doing all this from nothing, it’s all just minor and I am certain he will keep shining brighter and get to the point where it all flows completely smoothly and naturally just like his dancing. It’s truly wonderful to witness him enjoying himself under the bright lights. The book is expertly written by Harvey Fierstein and the stunning set and costumes are by Robert Jones. Dan Partridge excellently plays Charlie and we feel solid and safe with him as leading man in this musical. He has clearly thoroughly embraced being Jojo’s training partner when it comes to acting and singing. Courtney Bowman is a wonderfully adorable Lauren. A brilliant cast provides expert support.

Anything Jojo feels personal to me, and so here comes the personal aspects of my experience with this show so far… and I’m certain more will follow. I would have wanted to see it more than once anyway, but through trips to Jojo’s other shows I’ve added friends along the way. This Woking experience happened so I could meet up with one of my new Jojo Pals. Two more are happening as a result of wanting to share with fellow Jojo fan friends! And an extra one in Oxford just because it’s Oxford – I’ll have to encourage someone to come with me! Very early on in planning, I decided I wanted to dress for the occasion. I acquired my own set of ‘Kinky Boots’, and without knowing anything about the costumes for the show, I combined them with a LBD (little black dress), and given it’s winter a black cardigan with red buttons. My idea was the boots need to be the stars of the outfit. Same idea as Robert Jones, who gave the whole cast each their own individual Kinky Boots with all black outfits for the finale, so those red boots shone out above everything else. I received many compliments for mine 😊 That was so much fun. Including one of the two daughters in the family I sat next to. I was several seats down from my friend, but the dad in the family chatted with me at points, and I visited my friend in the interval. She had gone to the opening night, and told me Jojo had seemed very nervous. He now seems to have relaxed more and loving the vibes of it all. Unfortunately, post-show I lost sight of my friend – we’d planned to ‘stage door’ together. I hesitated a little thinking what to do, and chose to go to find the stage door anyway. She wasn’t there, but about twenty people were, so I wasn’t waiting around on my own. A little while later – and still no Jojo – my companion in life arrived so I felt safe and that someone had my back. Silly maybe, but even with someone like Jojo, I feel nerves approaching him, or, at least, I thought I would. Some more waiting… other cast members had already come out and gone. And then dear Jojo appeared – not from out of the stage door, but it seemed from behind the tour bus. He told us his car was waiting. I imagine he’d seen us and being the lovely soul he is came to say ‘Hi’ so we wouldn’t have been waiting in vain. I stood back a bit while others got autographs and selfies, and then he looked to me. I asked if I could give him a hug – yes – so I did, and told him he’d done amazing – he replied ‘I’ve been practising really hard’. Then we kinda said ‘Take care and see you soon’, and I left for others to have their turns. It all felt so completely natural – ‘the way old friends do’ <3 <3

Of course, I am biased, BUT I genuinely couldn’t recommend ‘Kinky Boots’ enough for it’s joyous celebration of difference; its message around acceptance and learning about and from others; it therapy-ness (sorry just invented that as I can’t think of another word that fits); its fun; its laughter; its poignancy; its depth of exploration of relationships especially fathers and sons, but also around what women want and women’s relationships with women of all varieties; its music; its lyrics; its colour combatting and yet also amongst dark or greyness; its world; and its humans within that world.

Get on your own ‘Kinky Boots’, Let the Kinky Boots Team 'Raise You Up' and Go Be Fabulous!!!

KinkyBoots – Review by TheRestrictedReviewer © 2025

The Importance of Being Earnest – Lyttelton, National Theatre – Tuesday 31st December 2024

(Rated 7/5) To say the National Theatre’s production of ‘The Importance of Bein Earnest’ does Oscar Wilde proud is almost an understatement! It’s the loudest, proudest, pinkest, campest (yet in the necessary moderation to ensure it not being OTT, and so losing the audience) exhibition of all his themes and ideas in his final play that could possibly be produced. However brave Oscar was himself in ‘inferring what could not be stated directly’ in ‘coded references’ and ‘linguistic playfulness’, the actors here shouted it to the heavens! And I’m certain he could hear… and also see his characters in their brightest gloriousness!

On entering the auditorium, you are faced with the infamous black HAND-BAG (see Lady Bracknell later) hanging outside a gorgeous red velvet curtain. Just before the play starts, someone extricates the bag, and off we go…

The performance opens with Ncuti Gatwa as Algernon Moncrieff in a screaming pink corseted dress at a piano. There were screeches of delight and laughter as he played, beaming his pearly whites at us, then being caught out as the piano continues to play without him. Ncuti had us all in the palms of his hands straight away! He and the rest of the cast give us a stunning Burlesque-style opening number with the freedom of expression Oscar sadly never had. That, and the flamboyant curtain call are the best tribute to a man, who deserved so much happiness and joy, we feel he sadly never had. It felt like giving him the best posthumous present to perform his work as we can only imagine he might have wanted it.

AND, however much the play itself sends up Victorian Society, this performance of it takes that sending-up to the next level. As Dad said, they couldn’t have done more and all lines were delivered to perfection. Excellent interactions too as they all bounced off each other with Oscar’s witty, exquisite dialogue. I believe the most famous character in this play is Lady Bracknell – here played by Sharon D. Clarke. She is simply stunning with fabulous Afro-Caribbean costumes and mannerisms. Yep, as Hugh Skinner as Jack Worthing tells her he was found in a handbag, we wait with baited breath to see how she will give us her reaction along with that word! Of course, such a class act cannot disappoint, she looks away – taking her time – then turns back, and ‘A HAND-BAG???!!!’ Exuberant applause! I’ve seen Sharon before in ‘Caroline, Or Change’ – she has such a special singing voice too.

I am jumping around all over the place – actually a little like the play itself – not that it’s not well-structured – it’s brilliantly so – but there is so much energy to it and so fast-paced, as is Ncuti especially in his embodiment of the multi-faceted Algernon, and his changes of costume/persona! Such fun to watch! Maybe not as many as 15 regenerations (see what I did there), but close! 😉

Everybody is excellent, and lovely to see Hugh Skinner again – I so enjoyed his performance as the young version of Colin Firth in ‘Mamma Mia 2’. In this play, Wilde gives us so much fun yet serious comment on how people of the time (Victorian), but also of other times, find ways to live double (or even multiple) lives to cope with the challenges they face maybe trying to conform to what is expected of them. Arguably never more so than in the times in which Wilde lived. But, of course, the mistaken-identities theme was used so often by Shakespeare in his comedies. People do joke that they all had the same plot – and in a way he did seem to over-use it. I would argue maybe Wilde adds more cleverness to the device.

Max Webster has thought of everything in directing this version so we can enjoy the full scope of Wilde’s work. The curtain itself and the handbag both also need shout-outs as they very-actively play such significant parts, even called-upon to do so by the human characters at times. And the sets -Rae Smith - are all in superb technicolour with ever so much detail in all cases. Costumes, sound and lighting also amazing and impress – of the time, but also incorporating other times.

On the surface the romantic interactions are ‘straight’ but the chemistry between Ncuti and Hugh and the dynamics of the ‘Earnest’ communications between Ronke Adekoluejo as Gwendolen Fairfax and Eliza Scanlen’s Cecily Cardew are so wonderfully gay and charismatic. They are all geniuses in their use of movement in addition to voice and facial expressions to convey the comedy and drama. Sharon’s Lady Bracknell reminds me a little of Judi Dench’s appearances as Elizabeth I in ‘Shakespeare in Love’ in their gloriousness, but briefness. In Judi’s case Oscar-worthy, and in Sharon’s definitely Olivier-worthy. BUT, I’d argue so were everybody else’s acting turns. Can they all get awards?!

Marvellously Magnificent and Jovially Joyful to the Nth degree!! ImportanceofBeingEarnest – Review by TheRestrictedReviewer © 2024