Posted: 11/10/17 at 12:13am
Kee-ryst people! Jake Shears is 4 days younger than Stark Sands.
Is it too much trouble to save all the bitchery until after he debuts?
Posted: 11/10/17 at 12:24am
Posted: 11/10/17 at 8:32am
I wonder if there were/are any shows waiting for a house like the Martin Beck, that was hoping they could come in this season.
Posted: 1/16/18 at 10:03pm
I was there tonight to see Jake Shears and J Harrison Ghee. I thought Shears was good, not spectacular, English accent came and went. But J Harrison Ghee was just as good as Billy Porter if not better. Really fabulous voice, charisma, I loved him! The show remains remarkably fresh for such a long-running show.
Posted: 1/17/18 at 8:27am
Heard Jake was out this past Monday from a friend that went. Wonder if it was planned or if he already is missing shows.
Posted: 1/19/18 at 11:55pm
Posted: 1/20/18 at 7:52pm
I am surprised there hasn't been any promotional videos showing Jake Shears in his role.
Posted: 1/23/18 at 11:46am
I saw this last night on a whim for $35. Most of the mezzanine was actually empty, which concerns me quite a bit.
I saw the original cast of Sands, Porter, Ashford, and Hall, so this colors my view a bit. The show currently plays like a very good tour/regional company. The cast hits their marks in a workmanlike fashion, but doesn't exceed them in any sort of spectacular way.
Jake Shears gets about a 5/10 from me. He tries his hardest, but there is A LOT of growth and discovery to be had. Oddly enough, his acting wasn't really the issue for me (His meltdown with Lola was a highlight), but his singing had many weird choices and inappropriate high notes that didn't blend well with the score. He also cracked during "Everybody Say Yeah" while looking winded from the treadmill choreography (which he had a few visible missteps on, and kept on going).
J. Harrison Ghee gets about a 7.5/10 for his portrayal of Lola. He's nails Lola's charisma like any seasoned drag queen, and the final scene with his father choked me up moreso than the first time I saw it, even though I knew it was coming. However, he also takes quite a few too many liberties with the score vocally to his detriment (It makes him sound off-beat). Also, he performs with such a thick layer of polish that it makes me miss some of the rawness and world-weariness that I got from Billy Porter.
I hope they will continue to grow and improve over time. The show is not terrible by any means and you will probably still have a great time, but it's very workmanlike right now instead of the spectacular spectacle it can be.
For those worried about the stage door, it's not a madhouse by any means. It grew to about 30-40 people, and Jake Shears is one of the friendliest, most conversational celebrities I've ever met. He signs, takes pictures, and is just so happy to share about his whole process with KB.
Updated On: 1/23/18 at 11:46 AM
Posted: 1/23/18 at 12:14pm
I was there last night too and Shears is really working his hardest, which I respect. He has a great voice and I love Scissor Sisters, but I think the role is just out of his range. Those high notes that Sands belts are highlights in the score. And Shears just can't hit them, and goes for a falsetto instead, which makes some of the songs' endings very anit-climatic. This was my first time seeing Kinky Boots, and I had a great time. But Shears was definitely in Ghee's shadow.
Posted: 1/23/18 at 6:27pm
Posted: 1/23/18 at 8:19pm
ACL2006 said: "I'm guessing the producers thought he'd bring in similar numbers like Urie did. Not even close. Show is always up at TKTS for 50% off. Makes me wonder if the show will make another year."
I highly doubt they expected the lead singer of a niche band that broke up 5 years ago to draw the kind of audiences that a guy who sells out arenas and recently had a #1 Billboard album (and a Grammy nomination to match) drew.
Posted: 2/6/18 at 10:50pm
Just back from revisiting this and much love to Billy Porter, but it's difficult to imagine a better Lola than J. Harrison Ghee. There's a polish that others didn't care for, but I think it fits the character perfectly & makes the embodiment of Lola, so perfect. It seems so effortless (and I can't imagine it's even close to effortless).
Kirstin Maldonado was sweet and did a good job on her solo. I'm not a big Pentatonix fan, so I didn't have a lot of exposure to her.
I'm a big Scissor Sisters fan, so it was a bit of adjustment to see Jake Shears in an entirely different light. I think he did a very good job, but very different from Stark Sands and Brendon Urie. He was more gentle and sweet, but it worked. He seemed oddly uncomfortable for about the first ten minutes, then settled in and seemed to be giving it his all. I only noticed the note issue twice, but it didn't bother me. If anything stood out is that Ghee has a far more powerful voice than Shears and it can seem a little mismatched, but not a big deal for me.
In all, the show is in very fine shape for such a long run and in spite of the subject matter (my dad just died), I had a great time.
Posted: 2/21/18 at 9:50am
Posted: 2/21/18 at 10:33am
I was there last night too- Ghee may be my favorite Lola and this is the 8th time I've seen it- twice with him and he just blows me away! He's got such an ease and grace that makes him a joy to watch- he IS Lola. Kirsten I thought was serviceable, I thought her voice was much stronger, but I was wrong, she was very airy and had really garbled diction. Shears may not have the money notes, but he was so damn charming and raw I really didn't care- Aaron C. Finley still sings this part the best for me- Urie belted his face though, maybe at times over-sang it. Shears' acting was really a revelation for me, he definitely came off as a straight leading man and had great chemistry with Ghee- if you're expecting "Let's Have a Kiki" Shears, you'll be disappointed. I like Caroline Bowman a lot- I didn't care for her Elphaba though and I may be in the minority in my thinking that I like her better in supporting roles, I thought this was a great showcase of her acting skills- the Nicola's often tend to fade, but Bowman held her own and I appreciated that. I enjoy that all but two of the Angels are the originals back from stints in other shows- shout out to Fred Odgaard who is just a vision and it was great to hear Joey back for the "In this corner" solo! Also, I was sitting aside of Corey Mach's mom, he made his debut in the show last night as Harry and covers Charlie- it was great to experience it through their eyes having never seen the show before. I'd love to see him go on- he's a star in his own right! This one always lifts me up!
Updated On: 2/21/18 at 10:33 AM
