London Community Players: 'Something for everyone' in 2023-24 season
Kinky Boots is strutting into town.
Article content
The high-heeled musical extravaganza that took home six Tony awards including best musical and a Grammy for best musical theatre album is dancing onto the Palace Theatre stage for the first time next year.
It is one of six shows the Palace Theatre Arts Commons unveiled this week, with shows starting in September.
With music and lyrics by the pop icon Cyndi Lauper, the musical score and glamorous costumes are sure to lift spirits and even motivate the audience to get up and dance in the aisles.
Kelli Gough, chair of the board of directors, said the theatre chose the play because “it has such great audience appeal.”
“It’s a fun story, motivating and a good night out,” she said. “It’s going to be an extravaganza for sure.”
Based on a 2005 British film and a book by Harvey Fierstein, the London Community Players will tell the story of a man who inherits a nearly bankrupt shoe factory.
Charlie Price tries to live up to his father’s legacy and turns, for help, to a dazzling drag queen, Lola, a entertainer in need of some sturdy stilettos.
Working together to save the factory, the duo discover what happens when someone changes their mind about long-held beliefs and embraces differences.
“Kinky Boots is full of opportunities for a theatre to flex its artistic muscles with elaborate costumes, exhilarating choreography and a heartfelt story,” Gough said.
The London production of Kinky Boots is directed by Susan McKone and Rick Smith with musical direction by Marque Smith.
It is one of six plays in the London Community Players’ new season, including a spooky play this fall.
“We’re excited we have the rights to Dracula at Halloween time,” Gough said.
First up in the new year is Exit Laughing.
“You want something funny and light in January. You get the January blues and the bills are coming after Christmas,” she said.
“We try to pick a wide variety of shows so we will appeal to a wide variety of audiences. We like to know at the end of the season there has been something for anyone.”
Kinky Boots runs from May 2 to 12, 2024.
Other shows:
Hamish, a playful comedy by Canadian Michael Grant, Sept. 21-Oct. 1. A Canadian man haunted by a Scottish past he didn’t know he had returns to Scotland. Believing himself to be an orphan, the ambitious corporate lawyer is not interested in family traditions or obligations, but when his clan’s property is threatened he must decide whether or not to take a stand .
Dracula by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderson, Oct. 26-Nov. 5. When his daughter is attacked by a mysterious illness, her father, head of an English sanitorium, believes a vampire might be to blame. The vampire ghost already had been making nocturnal visits sucking blood from victims. The apparition turns out to be Count Dracula, whose ghost is finally laid to rest. The play is intended for all who love thrills in the theatre, and is appropriate for all ages.
The Game’s Afoot or Holmes for the Holidays by Ken Ludwig, Nov. 23-Dec. 3. This Christmas mystery, set in 1936, sees Broadway star William Gillette, admired the world over for his leading role in the play Sherlock Holmes, inviting his fellow cast members to his Connecticut castle for a weekend of revelry. Then disaster strikes.
Exit Laughing by Paul Elliott, Jan. 18-28. Three southern ladies who have played bridge together for 30 years find themselves at a loss when their fourth player dies. That leads them to “borrow” their friend’s ashes from the funeral home for one last card game and find themselves on the wildest ride of their lives
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time is based on the novel by Mark Haddon and adapted by Simon Stephen, Feb. 15-Feb. 25. A 15-year-old named Christopher has exceptional math skills but struggles to understand everyday life. He has never ventured alone beyond the end of his road, he detests being touched, and he distrusts strangers. But when he is suspected of killing a dog, Christopher is determined to solve the mystery.
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.