“Kinky Boots” is a musical filled with laudable sentiments. You know, things like trusting and understanding one another and having the courage to open our hearts to others. 

But let’s get real. What we really love about “Kinky Boots” is that it combines those big-hearted qualities with a characters that are brassy and sassy and deliciously cheeky. But then, what else would you expect from a show that has music and lyrics by the original feisty girl, Cyndi Lauper, and a script by Harvey Fierstein, the man behind “Torch Song Trilogy” and “La Cage aux Folles?”

Besides Lauper’s music, which ranges from raucous to raunchy – occasionally at the same time – it has lots of men in drag, singing and dancing and carrying on in ways you think would embarrass your mother but would probably delight her.

And yes, there’s something about boots, as well.

The story revolves around an old-school shoe factory in northern England on the verge of bankruptcy. Fashion and technological has passed it by. What used to be a middle-class mainstay has become nearly irrelevant.

Then comes a chance meeting between Charlie, the young owner who has inherited the business from his father, and an imposing drag performer whose stage name is Lola. Lola needs better-made boots. Charlie is desperate for more business. And ... well, you can probably see where all this is going.

However predictable the story may be, the characters’ emotional journeys are as rousing as they are inspiring, filled with self-enlightenment, production numbers that feel more Vegas than English factory town and, of course, a love story tossed in for good measure.

And then there are the boots. They’re spectacular. Towering, glitzy, sleek and oh-so-feminine in a rough and slightly dangerous way.

The problems that Lola describes in the show are real-life issues for every drag performer, especially those who are generously proportioned. The audience may know you’re a man. But your onstage persona demands an authentic air of femininity. And nowhere is that more important than in the shoes. “The Sex Is In The Heel,” Lola sings to Charlie.

It’s a situation Tony Cody knows all too well. The Cincinnati performer weighs 270 pounds and stands 6-foot 2-inches. When he takes the stage in his drag persona – Penny Tration – he needs to look, if not ladylike, decidedly womanly.

“This is a job for me, not a hobby,” says Cody, a former product manager for a design firm who now hosts weekly cabaret shows at Below Zero Lounge in OTR. “Until last year, I was on the road six days a week, doing at least one show a day.”

“Show” isn’t really the right word for Cody’s work. He was hosting private event and parties and occasionally emceeing larger shows. And we’re not talking backroom gathering, by any means.

“I’ve hosted gatherings for every major company in this city,” says Cody, rattling off a list of the city’s most recognizable corporate names. “P&G even sent me to Palm Springs to host an event there.”

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Business is good. And there’s plenty of glamor.

“But I have to tell you, wearing those shoes is exhausting. And painful,” says Cody. “Cheap shoes have a plastic shank. And when you’re wearing heels that are five inches or more, that’s just dangerous. I could wear clogs, but this is entertainment, you know? Clogs won’t do.”

Clogs weren’t an option for Britton Spitler, either. He wears size 13 shoes. When the former Cincinnati Ballet dancer performed with the Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, he was often called upon to dance female roles.

“My pointe shoe size was 17, if you can believe it” says Spitler, who now teaches in Cincinnati for DanceFix. “When I do non-ballet appearances in drag, I tend to use five-inch heels. That’s high, I know.”

But the key to making them stable, he says, is to pair the heel with a 3/4- to1-inch platform.

“Platforms are a little more feminine” says Spitler. “And they’re more cushioned for the ball of the feet. Because of my ballet dancing, I have some of that strength in the ankle. But for me, when the shoes have a platform, I can keep them on a lot longer.”

These are the sorts of stories Gregg Barnes has heard over and over the past few years. Barnes is “Kinky Boots’” award-winning costume designer.

“I don’t think I had a had a clear understanding or appreciation for the incredible artisans who do drag,” says Barnes, whose designs for “Follies” won a 2012 Tony Award. “They’re like performances artists. A good drag performer encompasses so many things – politics, gender roles, fashion, celebrity. They are so much more than entertainment.”

For Sam Rohloff, one of the Angels, the ensemble of men who perform in Lola’s drag numbers, that has meant leaning to perform in 31/2 inch heels.

“They’re stilettos, but they are a lot more stable than you would imagine,” says Rohloff, a 24-year-old Michigan native. “They’re custom-made with steel heels and shanks. We do eight shows a week, so they’re subjected to a lot of wear and tear.

Rohloff had a gig performing in “La Cage aux Folles” in Florida last year. It’s that experience, he thinks, that paved his way into “Kinky Boots.”

“I definitely got an education there, learning how to dance in heels and do make-up for drag,” says Rohloff. “As a dancer, you’re already accustomed to pushing your body to the limit. Learning to dance in heels was just another variation on that. You can’t let the heels hinder you. ... The whole point is to be glamorous and sexy.”

And for the most part, he feels he’s succeeded.

“Of course, my ankles and feet hurt every day,” Rohloff admits. “But we travel with a full kit of rollers and balls and creams. And we have physical therapy once a week. But you have to know your body. You take care of your feet and ankles, get plenty of rest and start all over again. It’s worth it – this is the most fun I have ever had on a stage.”

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