Let me preface this blog post by saying that I grew up with the Go-Go’s. They were one of my first concerts and I truly love their music. From “Vacation” to “We Got the Beat” to “Our Lips Are Sealed” to “Head Over Heels,” their music makes me generally happy, and very nostalgic.
So, when I heard about the new show “Head Over Heels” which just opened on Broadway, I was ecstatic. Yet dubious. I knew it was the Go-Go’s music set to an Elizabethan fairytale and the most LGBTQ show ever made, according to my Broadway friends on Twitter, so I had to see it.
The show is a fairytale about the people living in the kingdom of Arcadia and an oracle’s prophecy of doom that takes the king and his royal family through a journey of mistaken identity, jealous lovers and sexual awakening. Women fall in love with women, men with women, women with men who are dressed up like me, and so forth.
And the show is ground-breaking. It’s about sexual identity and the struggles that come along with it. It’s also the first play on Broadway to ever include a trans woman in a lead role. It’s about gender bending and inclusion.The bottom line: Love is love is love is love. A message we all like to hear again and again in 2018 in the age of Trump.
It’s about freedom. Liberation. Acceptance. And the theme weaves in and out of the story effortlessly, all the way to the dancers and choreography. In the photo below, the magnetic backup dancers are set free, vogueing and striking wonderful poses with a clear sense of freedom. One that I wish I could say we had in reality these days.
“Head Over Heels” features 17 of The Go-Go’s iconic hit songs. The songs are wonderful, as you’d expect them to be, and they are well sung by a skilled cast. The show is a bit campy, but there is nothing wrong with that, particularly at a time when we all need a dose of positivity and inclusion.
“Head Over Heels” is playing Broadway at Hudson Theatre (141 West 44th Street) on Thursday, July 26, 2018 (previews begin Saturday, June 23).
Disclosure: I was provided with complimentary tickets to facilitate this review but all opinions are my own.
Follow
Speak Your Mind