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A look at PRICE AND SON‘s production line!
Director and choreographer Jerry Mitchell’s photos of a real Northampton shoe factory!
The Real History Behind KINKY BOOTS!
KINKY BOOTS was inspired by the true story of the shoe factory, WJ Brooks, in Northampton, England owned by the Pateman family. Flip through the timeline to learn more!
1600-1700
The first records of shoemaking in Northampton England date way back to the 13th century. The trade thrived, in the 17th and 18th centuries, as shoemaking becomes the area’s staple industry and local identity.
∨1800
By 1831 over one third of the men in Northampton worked in shoe factories. By the late 19th century, over half of the men were employed as shoemakers.
∨1889
In 1889, the Pateman family founds WJ Brooks Ltd shoe factory in Earls Barton joining the ranks of proud Northampton shoemakers.
∨1900
Northampton’s shoe industry supplies the majority of British armed forces’ boots during both of the 20th Century World Wars.
∨1979
Steve Pateman joins his father, Richard Pateman as a 4th generation shoemaker, continuing the tradition of crafting high quality men’s footwear.
∨1990
WJ Brooks begins to suffer a downturn in trade when cheap, imported shoes made overseas flood the market at a lower price.
∨1997
The new international competition forces Steve Pateman to cut the WJ Brooks staff from a healthy 80 employees down to just 30.
∨1998
Even with employment cutbacks, WJ Brooks continues to struggle. Serendipitously, a nearby store selling thigh-high boots, favored by drag queens, needs an order of quality ladies’ shoes in men’s sizes. The opportunity seems profitable.
∨1999
Steve Pateman invests £12,000 in a machine to put 4½ inch heels on boots and WJ Brooks Ltd founds Divine Footwear, a subsection of the company dedicated to making kinky boots. Kinky boot production eventually accounts for 50% of revenue at the company.
∨2006
KINKY BOOTS the film premieres at the Sundance Film Festival. Broadway producer Daryl Roth is in the audience, and is immediately excited by the movie’s musical potential. Roth partners with producer Hal Luftig, and hires Jerry Mitchell, Harvey Fierstein and Cyndi Lauper to transform it into a musical.
∨
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Charlie Price
Charlie is a modern guy with dreams of moving to London with his girlfriend and starting a new life completely different from the one his father led. But when his dad passes away, leaving Charlie in charge of the generations-old family shoe factory, Charlie must decide whether to follow his dreams to London, or stick around and live up to his family legacy…
George
The manager of PRICE AND SON, George worked for Charlie’s dad and he’s one of the few employees to believe that Charlie can save the ailing factory. With a sharp wit, George sees the best in the young “Mr. Price,” as he’s the first to call him, and challenges Charlie to make the name proud.
Lauren
A production line worker like her mum before her, Lauren is a strong-willed, sharp-tongued young woman with some big ideas to help transform PRICE AND SON… and maybe end up in the arms of Charlie Price himself.
Don
A burly factory-worker at PRICE AND SON, Don’s view of the world has been forged by the small town he’s lived in his whole life. So when his company starts churning out boots unlike any he’s seen, it shakes him to the core, makes him question everything he’s known and ultimately proves that the broader the chest, the bigger the heart.
Pat
The no-nonsense office manager of PRICE AND SON, Pat’s got a secret wild side… and a little crush on the factory’s newest employee.
