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“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” – Oscar Wilde 

For actor Virgo Marroquin, better known as their on-stage persona Komboujia, this one line, which is quoted by her character in Kinky Boots, perfectly embodies the overarching theme of the musical and the spirit of drag in general – that being your authentic self is crucial, no matter what others might think or say. 

“Our characters are all about ‘this is who I am and I need acceptance. I require it,’” Komboujia told the Outpost in an interview backstage at Ferndale Repertory Theatre, just before the final dress rehearsal of Kinky Boots. “It really drives home the fact that being who you are and having people who recognize that and nourish that is not optional.” 

Komboujia plays the starring role of Lola, a fabulous and self-assertive drag queen who, after a chance meeting with somewhat straight-laced shoemaker Charlie, ends up helping him save his father’s shoe factory by designing a line of high-heeled boots for drag queens. As the two work together they learn that they have more in common than they realized, especially that they both had expectations forced onto them that don’t fit who they really are. The musical (book written by Harvey Fierstein and music/lyrics written by the legendary Cyndi Lauper) is adapted from the 2005 film of the same name, written by Geoff Deane and Tim Firth and based on a true story. 

Charlie (William English III ) and Lola (Komboujia) share a special moment

This is Komboujia’s first time performing at FRT and the first time they’ve been in a musical since high school. As a prominent local drag artist and lead singer of local rock band Vegan Slaughterhouse, they are plenty comfortable on the stage. But being in this type of show, Komboujia said, is still a daunting task. There is so much involved in doing a musical – months of rehearsals, memorizing lines and group choreography, on top of performing the show three nights a week under the scorching stage lights – and it’s a lot to take in. 

And though playing the part of a drag queen seems perfect for a drag performer, Komboujia said that some aspects of embodying the role of Lola has been a challenge, especially since this is not a role that “someone like me traditionally plays,” they said. 

In the film and musical Lola’s character is written as and traditionally played by a Black man (Chiwetel Ejiofor played Lola in the film and Billy Porter, Todrick Hall and Wayne Brady have all played the character on Broadway). As a Latinx person, Komboujia said they were a little concerned about taking a role that may be better suited for someone else in the community. But after a bit of convincing, they decided to accept the challenge and worked with the director, Tiggerbouncer Custodio, to find ways to represent Komboujia’s identity, while still staying true to the character and the story. This required some slight changes to the script, to make Lola’s story cohesive. There are, for example, several lines where Lola or other characters speak in Spanish.  

Komboujia is also trans and non-binary and brings an element of that into Lola’s character. “I went in a different direction to represent a character who I don’t usually see represented in musicals – because I’m trans and non-binary,” they said. 

The show also features an ensemble of other local drag performers, including Glitterous Clitterous (billed as Glit Clit) and Cocky Muffington (Roux Kratt), who, along with actors Rigel Schmitt and Izzy Ferraro, play Lola’s drag entourage “the Angels.” The fabulous cast – which also includes William English III (Charlie), Elaine Yslas (Pat), Valerie Rose (Trish), Miah Carter (Harriet), Jessy McQuade (Nicola), Rocky Kratt (Don), Samahri Brice (Lauren), Brad Harder (George) and ensemble members Amethyst Shelton and Ash Quintana – bring tons of personality and joy to the show. And child actors Korbin Campbell (young Charlie) and Ziomara Paz Dominguez (young Lola/ Simon) are absolutely delightful. 

Gambino puts last minute touches on jewelry backstage at FRT

Because Kinky Boots centers around drag, there is a lot of focus on the costumes in this show (Komboujia alone has about 10 costume changes) and designer Olivia Gambino told the Outpost it was very important to her to bring an extra level of polish, glitz and glamor to the FRT stage. Gambino – who also does burlesque with local troupe Va Va Voom – has a lot of experience designing her own costumes and said when Custodio asked her to help with this show, she leapt at the opportunity. 

“I poured my heart and my soul into it and I really feel like I worked hard to make sure [the performers’] individuality shone,” Gambino said, as she was busy fixing rhinestone jewelry backstage. “We have three major local drag performers in this show and it was so important to me to say ‘I don’t want them to look like anybody else.’ I want them to be themselves out on that stage.. That’s what it’s all about. It’s all about being yourself.”

Gambino, with help from actor Roux Kratt who also assisted with costumes, brought a lot of items from her own closet and used some things provided by the drag performers in the show too, and added as much extra flare to the pieces as possible. Gambino and Kratt spent hours and hours painstakingly rhinestoning wigs and boots. Gambino said that the famous “kinky boots” – red patent leather thigh-highs, worn by both Lola and Charlie in the finale – took 14 hours per boot to rhinestone. 

But Gambino said that putting in all that time is worth it for her, because she loves helping her friends and gets to spend time with incredible people while she works on this show. Plus she loves local theater and being a part of a show that spreads such an important message during a time when it is really needed. “I feel that this positive message of both individuality and acceptance in the community is really important,” she said. 

And Komboujia whole-heartedly agrees that, especially during Pride Month and in a time when drag and the LGBTQ+ community are facing extreme backlash, both locally and around the country, that showcasing drag in a musical and the themes in Kinky Boots – love, acceptance, being yourself and not accepting the “role” that was assigned to you – are more important now than ever.

“I think it is important for people to see that there is an alternative and that there are people out here who are supportive of living authentically and not having to make concessions about who you are,” Komboujia said. “This show does a really great job of showing two people who are not from the same experience shake hands over the line, which I find really beautiful.”

You can catch Kinky Boots at Ferndale Repertory Theatre  Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. through July 2. Click here for tickets.