In 1959, the acclaimed Billy Wilder directed Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in the raucous caper of two men who, having witnessed a mob hit, take cover by posing as women in a traveling Jazz Age band. (Curtis came to Denver in 2002, starring in a different musical adaptation of the movie.) Sixty-three years later, an all-star crew collaborated to develop a new approach: Director Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray), and book writers Tony winner   Matthew López (The Inheritance) and Amber Ruffin (“The Amber Ruffin Show,” THE WIZ). Their fresh approach brought new meaning to the classic tale.

For recent college graduate Tavis Kordell, performing in their first national tour brought them an Equity card and the opportunity to express themself fully onstage. Kordell plays Jerry/Daphne, the role originated in film by Lemmon, who even then embraced the opportunity to live a female life as Daphne. As a non-binary and Black performer, Kordell found a depth and richness to the role, and one that went beyond historical depictions of drag as comedy.

“My character goes on a journey of self-discovery and self-identity,” Kordell says. “Rather than lying in the trope of men in dresses, we rely on the circumstances to get our comedy from. We do take more of an empathetic path toward what we would consider drag or cross dressing. The original film, typically that was all of the humor, but we find that my character begins to become comfortable as Daphne. It’s bringing to the forefront non-binary and trans identities and letting people know that this is who I love to be. Rather than sing it as a joke, just pursue it with love and respect.”

It’s also opened up new possibilities for the stories of those who don’t conform to traditional gender roles. “There are some people, they have the mindset of what a gender non-conforming person is, and they tend to write the same stories all the time, about the struggle,” Kordell says. “I believe that we should just write those characters in without having to give them some sort of struggle or trauma to heal from. Roles like Jerry/Daphne have come a long way. To play this role today, to be able to express this story and not have it be trauma-based, it’s so beautiful and cathartic.”

And while Joe and Jerry are non-blood “brothers,” their journeys are very different, as one pushes back against the dresses and the other finds a home in them.

“We get to see the nuances as Daphne begins to up the look,” Kordell says. “As we get through, the costumes begin to get more intricate for Daphne. The makeup ups a little bit, the mannerisms change. For Joe, the costumes don’t benefit the character. For Joe/Josephine’s character, their age is also a butt of the joke. That is a way that we have gotten away from the men-in-dresses trope.”

The creators of this adaptation pushed farther, by making Jerry/Daphne a Black character and having Sugar, famously portrayed by Marilyn Monroe in the movie, and the bandleader Sweet Sue, Black as well.

“Due to its world being versed in jazz music and tap dance, we cannot acknowledge tap dance and jazz music without acknowledging the contributions of African Americans,” Kordell says. “With our show specifically, they are written African American to where they could not be cast as any other race. Their race is put to the forefront in this show, where I (as Jerry/Daphne) can’t go to some of the same places where my best friend/brother Joe can go. Sugar has not been able to pursue the opportunities she wants to pursue because of the world around her.”

Even without the plot points of segregation in 1930s America, Kordell says that the very casting of Black actors imbues the story with that experience.

“As African Americans, we’re going to deliver the lines a bit differently than someone of a different culture,” they say. “It brings to the forefront the talent that is within the communities and just how suppressed it was. The talent is clear, you can see that in the performer. No matter how talented an individual was, they were suppressed, and they weren’t allowed to pursue the same opportunities as their non-Black, specifically white, counterparts.”

The company was wondering how the show and its themes of inclusion and diversity would be received. They have been pleasantly surprised so far.

“Right now, just considering the political climate and the attack against queer rights, especially trans rights, we’re wondering about the reception in each city we go to,” Kordell says. “We’re currently in the Midwest: Nebraska, Oklahoma, Iowa. We were nervous, but we have been greeted with so much love and so much acceptance to this message.”

DETAILS
Some Like It Hot
Jul 8-20 • Buell Theatre
Tickets