What do you do when the family shoe-making business is on the rocks? You team up with a drag queen, of course, to save the day by fulfilling the demand for glamorous high-heeled footwear in larger sizes - the ‘kinky boots’ of the show’s title.

The result? A clash of cultures, punchy drama, misunderstandings and panic, all of which make for a boisterous tale of the brave attempt to save the jobs of working folk and let the factory live to fight another day.

Based on a true story, Kinky Boots The Musical has won both numerous showbiz awards and the hearts of thousands of audience members. And it’s not hard to see why. Nor is its enduring appeal a surprise. With music & lyrics by Cindy Lauper, the show is living proof that girls (and boys) just wanna have fun (in size 11 stilettos, naturally).

Fresh from acquiring status as the nation’s darling on Strictly Come Dancing, Johannes Radebe (Lola) struts onto the stage perched on perilously high heels. Lola’s over-the-top flamboyance and his vision for the boots are the perfect partner to Charlie Price’s (Dan Partridge) pragmatic desire to save both the firm he has inherited and the livelihoods of those who depend on it. Together, they are bound for success. With their two worlds colliding (is a drab shoe factory in Northampton really ready for an influx of drag queens from London?) heart-warming encounters and joyful moments ensue, as they learn to love each other’s differences. This truly is a tale of 21st-century understanding and acceptance.

Radebe and Partridge are outstanding. As Lola, Radebe commands the stage. He has perfected the hair-flick and the sashay which mark Lola out as a diva, and has the eyelashes and the wardrobe of outrageous frocks to match. In a couple of quieter, more thoughtful moments, Lola reveals a surprisingly delicate side to his character which allows him to connect with Charlie, as we learn that both are more than a little scarred by their past.

Dan Partridge is a perfect Charlie, full of ideas and full of beans as he races around the stage.

Lighthearted moments come courtesy of the excellent Don (Joe Caffrey), the factory worker struggling to accept the new reality, and the equally excellent George (Scott Paige), the old-style factory foreman (complete with brown overall and flat cap) whose loyal support is invaluable to Charlie.

Kinky Boots The Musical is a heart-warming tale of community spirit and of good things happening to good people. It certainly won over the audience at Birmingham Hippodrome last night - they greeted its stars with rapturous applause and ended the evening with a standing ovation. The music is a delight, the costumes a joy to behold, and the level of ostentation is off-the-scale. As musical theatre goes, it surely doesn’t get much better than this.

5 stars

Kinky Boots The Musical was reviewed by Rachel Smith on Tuesday 15 April at Birmingham Hippodrome, where it shows until Saturday 19 April.