Sheffield Lyceum – until Saturday 28th June 2025
Reviewed by Adam Craddock
4****
It was an absolute pleasure to be invited along to review the latest UK Tour of “Kinky Boots: The Musical” at Sheffield Lyceum. Starring Johannes Radebe as “Lola” and Dan Partridge as “Charlie Price”, Kinky Boots follows the story of a struggling shoe factory having to reinvent itself for a niche market to keep its doors open and its community paid and fed. Kinky Boots is well known to many from its acclaimed West End production and subsequent tour and, while this very much has the same essence and feel, there is enough to make it feel like different too!
Dan Partridge was fabulous as Charlie Price, with a real relatability to the scenario he finds himself dropped into and a vocal smooth as caramel. Soul of a man sent chills down my spine, an exceptional vocal performance! Courtney Bowman was brilliant as Lauren, with my favourite performance of “History of Wrong Guys” that I have seen. She had a beautiful feeling of a bit more naturalism than what I am used to seeing in Lauren and that was lovely… and she actually sang Charlie too, not Charlay… always been a bugbear of mine in Kinky Boots! Gold star! Kara Lily Hayworth was strong as Nicola, as was Joe Caffrey as Don, with Hayworth having a brilliant oblivious energy to all the trouble going on around her and Caffrey really shining in the scenes when Don has come good. Scott Paige was hilarious as George, bringing a whole heap of energy and a strong bass vocal that really caught me off guard! The wider company were all very strong too, with not a weak link amongst them. Well done to all! However, the absolute star of the show was Johannes Radebe as Lola. Radebe’s Lola was by far the strongest in terms of dance that I have seen, as to be expected, but his vocal and acting chops really caught me off guard actually. This man is a true triple threat and he has definitely stolen the title of my favourite Lola!
In terms of production this show was first class. The set was very impressive, with a real industrial feel that leant itself to the setting of the show. I particularly liked the used of levels with the office etc. The costuming was brilliant, with the Angels particularly standing out in this regard. Lighting and sound design were both spot on.
Overall I would absolutely recommend you come along and watch Kinky Boots: The Musical while it is in town, this is a brilliant production and is not to be missed.