Wayne Brady Takes Center Stage in Platform Heeled Boots at ‘The Wiz’ Broadway Premiere

The boots feature a square toe.

Wayne Brady is back on Broadway with a revival of “The Wiz,” starring as the titular role. For the run’s opening night, Brady appeared at the event’s yellow carpet a few inches taller courtesy of a pair of heeled boots.

The actor is certainly not new to heels. He notably had to learn to walk in heels for his turn in the 2015 Broadway production “Kinky Boots.” He’s since worn heeled boots of more moderate heights, like a suede pair at the 2022 American Music Awards.

Brady was joined on the carpet by co-stars Deborah Cox and Avery Wilson as well as others like Ben Platt and Noah Galvin.

About the shoe

Brady’s shoe is a black leather boot. The footwear features a chunky block heel for stability. The platform was similarly chunky, providing additional height while not increasing the pitch (or incline) of the shoe. The design provides for comfort as well as stability.

Brady’s boot has a blunt, square-toe silhouette. What’s distinctive about its design is the seam running up the center of the shoe

Men in heels

Men have been wearing heels since King Louis XIV in the 1670s but in the past five years they have been wearing platform heeled boots with increasing regularity. Names like Billy Porter, Adam Lambert, RuPaul Charles and Sam Smith are regularly spotted out in the silhouette. The options they choose are regularly from brands like Rick Owens, Christian Louboutin and Jeffrey Campbell as well as smaller upstart labels like Syro and Harry Halim.

For the Academy Awards this year, Eugene Lee Yang wore an 8-inch platform heel from Harry Halim. That was one of the tallest versions of their Kitana style.