In honor of Pride, Tony, Grammy, and Emmy Award winner Billy Porter reprised his performance of “Raise You Up” from Kinky Boots alongside performers from the Broadway casts over the show’s six-year run, the national tour, and casts from the companies of the international productions in England, Germany, South Korea, Australia, Japan, and Canada in this new music video.
The video features reunites Porter with original Broadway castmates Grammy Award winner Stark Sands, and Tony Award winner Annaleigh Ashford. Also making cameos are the musical’s Tony Award-winning book writer Harvey Fierstein, Tony and Grammy Award-winning composer-lyricist Cyndi Lauper, and Tony Award-winning director-choreographer Jerry Mitchell, including special appearances by previous cast members Wayne Brady, Jake Shears, David Cook, and Kirstin Maldonado.
The video, produced by Tony and Grammy Award–winning music supervisor and orchestrator Stephen Oremus and musical director Brian Usifer, raises funds for True Colors United, which provides support to homeless LGBTQ+ youth.
Kinky Boots opened at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre April 4, 2013. Before closing April 7, 2019, the musical racked up six 2013 Tony Awards, including one for Porter for his performance as drag queen Lola, Best Original Score for Lauper, Best Choreographer for Mitchell, and Best Musical.
The story, based on the movie of the same name, follows the unlikely partnership of Lola and Charlie, the shoemaker’s son trying to save his father’s factory from ruin. Together, the two tackle the niche market of making boots sturdy enough for drag queens, and change the world by changing minds.
