“High-kicking, catwalk-strutting, splits-dropping drag Angels… props to choreographer”

“Kinky Boots is the show you didn’t know you needed right now. Unless, of course, you count yourself among the superfans who showed up on opening night in their finest patent-leather and leopard-print high-heeled footwear.

Thanks in large part to an electric performance by seasoned star Stewart Adam McKensy as Lola, the Arts Club’s new production had the entire crowd—even the masked octogenarian sitting next to me—whooping and clapping in the Stanley. Lola is memorably supported by a quartet of high-kicking, catwalk-strutting, splits-dropping drag Angels (Jeffrey Follis, Andrew J. Hampton, Joshua Lalisan, and Ryan Maschke, with props to choreographer Julie Tomaino). 

This perfectly timed blast of uplift also celebrates acceptance and individuality in a way that hits the sweet spot right now. As Lola says, ‘Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken!’”

JANET SMITH