Lily Hiott-Millis
Staff Writer
Surprise, surprise, a lot of
people had problems with the
Kinky Boots performance during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Many people took to Twitter and Facebook, criticizing the cast’s performance of “Raise Up / Just Be You,” calling it “disgusting and wrong” and “#sickening.”
Kinky Boots, of course, has the potential to rub against some people’s values. Yes, it’s a play about acceptance and love, but it’s also a play about designing high heels for drag queens. And that means it is a “disgrace” to some people. Macy’s responded, saying “Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has always spotlighted the best of Broadway since the ’60′s, and this year is no exception,” the rep said. “As 2013′s Tony award-winning best musical, ‘Kinky Boots’ is not only a hit with Broadway fans, but Black Friday shoppers.”
So the actors and one of the show’s creators, Harvey Fierstein, decided to do a little Black Friday shopping at Macy’s — shopping while the male cast members wore the show’s signature high-heel, thigh-high red boots. “I’m so proud that the cast of Kinky Boots brought their message of tolerance and acceptance to America’s parade,”
said Fierstein. “You have to start a dialogue. And you can’t have a dialogue unless someone says something first. It takes actual work to open up minds.”
Keep up the good work, Kinky Boots! (And werk.)