Porter returns after a leave of absence from the production that began Jan. 27. During that time the Tony Award winner toured his concert act, which was also broadcast on PBS. Kinky Boots national tour star Kyle Taylor Parker stepped in for Porter during his absence from the Broadway production.
Porter, whose contract with Kinky Boots continues through January 2016, will also join the musical's national tour Aug. 4-9, when it stops in his hometown of Pittsburgh, PA.
The cast of Kinky Boots also features Andy Kelso, Jeanna de Waal, Daniel Stewart Sherman, Cortney Wolfson, Marcus Neville, Nick Rashad Burroughs, Paul Canaan, Sean Patrick Doyle, Kevin Smith Kirkwood, Kyle Post, Joey Taranto, Adinah Alexander, Eugene Barry-Hill, Stephen Berger, Anna Eilinsfeld, Mia Gentile, Natalie Joy Johnson, Jake Katzman, D’Andre Lee, Eric Leviton, Ellyn Marie Marsh, John Jeffrey Martin, Graham Montgomery, Abby Mueller, Jake Odmark, Nathan Peck, Robert Pendilla, Jennifer Perry, Stephen Tewksbury, Jeremy T. Villas and Timothy Ware. .
Based on the 2005 film of the same title, the Northampton, U.K.-set musical has a new book by Tony winner Harvey Fierstein (Torch Song Trilogy, La Cage aux Folles, Newsies) and a score by Grammy and Tony Award-winning "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" hit-maker and "True Colors" songwriter Cyndi Lauper.
Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell (2004's La Cage aux Folles, Legally Blonde, Catch Me If You Can), who created the high-energy dances that sent audiences and cast members into a frenzy during Hairspray, directs and choreographs Kinky Boots, which is bedazzled with a series of show-stopping numbers by Porter and a bevy of drag performers. Kinky Boots premiered on Broadway March 3, 2013, following an out-of-town engagement at the Bank of America Theatre in Chicago last fall. It opened to acclaim April 4 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.
In addition to taking Best Musical and Tony wins for Lauper (Best Score), Mitchell (Best Choreography) and Billy Porter (Best Actor), Kinky Boots also saw awards go to Stephen Oremus (Orchestrations) and John Shivers (Sound Design).
Designing the production are Tony nominee David Rockwell (scenic design), Tony Award winner Gregg Barnes (costume design), Tony Award winner Kenneth Posner (lighting design), John Shivers (sound design), Josh Marquette (hair design) and Randy Houston Mercer (make-up design). Casting is by Telsey + Company, Justin Huff, CSA.
Kinky Boots is produced on Broadway by Daryl Roth and Hal Luftig, James L. Nederlander, Terry Allen Kramer, Independent Presenters Network, CJ E&M, Jayne Baron Sherman, Just for Laughs Theatricals/Judith Ann Abrams, Yasuhiro Kawana, Jane Bergère, Allan S. Gordon & Adam S. Gordon, Ken Davenport, Hunter Arnold, Lucy and Phil Suarez, Bryan Bantry, Ron Fierstein and Dorsey Regal, Jim Kierstead/Gregory Rae, BB Group/Christina Papagjika, Michael DeSantis/Patrick Baugh, Brian Smith/Tom and Connie Walsh, Warren Trepp, and Jujamcyn Theaters.
For tickets visit Telecharge.com. The Al Hirschfeld Theatre is located at 302 West 45th Street.
Check out highlights from Kinky Boots:
