Put Yourself in Someone Else's Kinky Boots
As part of a backstage experience at PPAC, I was able to zip up and walk in the “kinky boots” and interact with some of the cast members.
From now through June 14, Providence Performing Arts Center is hosting the Tony Award-winning musical Kinky Boots. Based on a true story, Kinky Boots tells the story of Charlie Price, a struggling businessman who is forced to give up his own dreams and take over his father’s bankrupt shoe factory. An unlikely pairing, Charlie meets a glamorous performer named Lola who is in need of a new pair of stilettos. Together, the two work to turn the factory around and discover that they have more in common than they ever thought possible.
As part of a backstage experience at PPAC, I was able to zip up and walk in the “kinky boots” and interact with some of the cast members. Though very constricting on the leg, the boots were just as fabulous to wear as they are to see on stage. The performers also gave me a private tour of the backstage, which is filled with customized and handmade costumes (dazzled to perfection of course). Many of the performers, including Kyle Taylor Parker, who plays the lead role of Lola, were spending their time off-stage relaxing in the dressing rooms before performing in the second show tonight.
Actress Anne Tolpegin, who plays the role of factory worker Marg Cobb, says the Providence audience is fantastic. “We are really excited to see what the rest of the week will be like,” she says. “The audience on our Tuesday night performance was incredibly energetic and lively which really motivates us behind the scenes.”
Tolpegin says the message of this musical is simple yet very meaningful. “Be who you are, respect who you are, respect who other people are, and you can change the world with that.”
Kinky Boots is playing at PPAC June 9−14. Tickets range from $56 to $93. Providence Performing Arts Center, 220 Weybosset St., Providence, 401-421-2787, ppacri.org.
Joe Coots (Don) and Kerri Whelan wearing the boots from the show.
A close-up of the boots.
More footwear from the show.
