Getting the rights for the Minnesota premiere of a show like Kinky Boots takes more than just effort and patience; it takes a great reputation.
"The rights weren't available," says Phillip Fazio regarding the Duluth Playhouse's first look at producing the show three years ago. Fazio, the Artistic Director for the Duluth Playhouse, notes that another two years went by before getting the nod to bring Kinky Boots to Minnesota. "It's really nice to see that we're getting that recognition for the work that our staff and the community has put into building up this organization."
"This show is a very unexpected twist to musical theater," says Mitchell Douglas who plays Lola in Kinky Boots. "These two worlds of this shoe factory and the drag world combine." For Douglas, this is a dream role. "[Lola] mirrors so much of my queer experience and other queer people of color's experience."
"It is a huge undertaking," says Fazio, "[if] for no other reason, at the end of the show everyone's gotta be wearing kinky boots." Tickets are available at the Duluth Playhouse box office, in-person or by phone, or via the Duluth Playhouse website.
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