Review: Kinky Boots

An ode to high interest rates

The production of the musical Kinky Boots at the Helsinki City Theatre is close to perfection.

How to make a high heel for an adult man? The heel breaks easily from a man’s weight if the shoe is not shaped correctly. This problem is explored in the hit musical Kinky Boots, and it is spectacularly pondered. Directed by Samuel Harjanne at the Helsinki City Theatre, the performance is pure joy and skill of performing, colour, sequins and glitter.
The story itself is simple: Charlie (Petrus Kähkönen), the owner of a shoe factory teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, bumps into drag queen Lola (Lauri Mikkola) on a London street. A surprising friendship is formed, and Charlie comes up with the idea of asking Lola for help in getting a new product for the factory. The traditional factory milieu with its workers and the show world of Lola and her drag dancers form a delicious contrast. The story is naturally intertwined with a message of tolerance, self-knowledge and relationships between fathers and sons.
Both Petrus Kähkönen and Lauri Mikkola are brilliant singers and interpreters. Even the smallest performances stand out, such as Anna Victoria Eriksson’s factory girl falling in love with her boss and Sanna Saarijärvi’s stubborn single mother.
The greatest pleasure is provided by the crowd scenes: they work perfectly.