The Broadway production of Kinky Boots is about to have another star step into the high-heeled footwear of the character Lola. Callum Francis, the award-winning performer who has played the role in the UK and Australia, will join the Broadway production for a limited run. Francis enters the show at Broadway’s Hirschfeld Theatre on Friday, January 11, 2019, and stay through Sunday, March 17, 2019. He succeeds J. Harrison Ghee who departs the show on Thursday, January 10, 2019, but is set to return to the role again after Francis, beginning on Tuesday, March 19, 2019, through the show’s final performance on Sunday, April 7, 2019.
Callum Francis comes to Broadway directly from the Kinky Boots UK National Tour where he has been starring in the show since it began on September 19, 2018. His run in that tour will conclude on December 15, 2018. Francis is no stranger to the part, having starred as ‘Lola’ in the Australian Tour of Kinky Boots prior to his UK run. He received the 2017 Helpmann Award for Best Male Actor in a Musical. Francis also appeared in the original London production of Kinky Boots at the Adelphi Theatre. Other West End credits include Miss Saigon, The Lion King, and Ghost.
“I am so excited and honored to be able to join the incredible Kinky Boots company on Broadway,” Francis said. “I’ve been so lucky to have been able to play the fabulous ‘Lola’ to audiences in the UK and Australia. Broadway has always been a dream of mine and I am thankful that I get to continue to play this role that inspires love and acceptance.”
Also joining the show will be Conor Maynard who was originally announced to start on Tuesday, November 20, 2018 in the role of Charlie Price. Maynard will now begin performances a day earlier, on Monday, November 19, 2018. Succeeding Mark Ballas in the role, Maynard will stay with the show through Thursday, January 10, 2019.
Kinky Boots, which is based on the 2005 film of the same name, featured a score by Cyndi Lauper and a book by Harvey Fierstein. Directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell, the musical opened at Broadway’s Al Hirschfeld Theatre on April 4, 2013, went on to receive 13 Tony nominations, and won six including Best Musical. Kinky Boots will play its final performance on April 7, 2019. At the time of its closing, the musical will be the 25th longest-running production in Broadway history, having played 2,507 regular performances and 34 previews.
Mark Robinson is the author of the two-volume encyclopedia The World of Musicals, The Disney Song Encyclopedia, and The Encyclopedia of Television Theme Songs. He maintains a theater and entertainment blog at markrobinsonwrites.com.