Photo: New Rock Musical STILETTOS AND STEEL Debuts June 4 at Hudson Backstage Theatre

The exuberant new rock musical Stilettos and Steel will make its debut this Saturday, June 4, at the Hollywood Fringe Festival. Stilettos is based on the true story of a suburban girl who ran away to San Francisco in the 1960s and became the top gangster and pimp of the Tenderloin District. The show grapples with issues of gender identity, morality, and how far you'd go to discover your true self.

The show was born when Isabel Storey, the musical's book writer, met Jeri Estes, the person on whose story the show is based. Estes regaled Storey with tales of her life as a masculine woman - or "butch" - in an era when this not accepted in mainstream society. Estes escaped from her hometown in the San Fernando Valley to the freewheeling Tenderloin District, known then as the "gay capital" of the U.S.

Estes' journey took her into a colorful subculture in which sultry femmes and swaggering butches mingled with flamboyant queens, hustlers, pimps, prostitutes and crooked cops. While enjoying the freedom in her newfound world, she also drifted into prostitution and drug use. But her life transformed when she met the seductive and savvy Bunny, a high-class call girl, and Carmen, the endearing waitress who became the love of her life.

The show follows Estes' journey from a naïve Valley girl to navigating her way to the top of a male-dominated and dangerous red-light district. On the way, she meets unforgettable, vibrant characters who changed her forever. The real-life Estes has dedicated the book based on her story (also titled "Stilettos and Steel"- Amazon) to "the fallen comrades who didn't make it out of the Tenderloin alive."

Stilettos and Steel will play for three performances only at the Hudson Backstage Theatre, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd., LA: June 4 at 8:30pm ($20) and June 12 and 19 at 8:30pm ($25). Buy tickets at http://hff22.co/7434.

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