Drag performer and entrepreneurHeklinawas found dead in London, her friends and business partners confirmed.
The news was first announced Monday, April 3, on Facebook and Twitter by longtime friend and frequent collaborator Peaches Christ. The pair were set to perform the show “Mommie Queerest” at the Soho Theatre.
“I’m living a real-life nightmare,” wrote Peaches Christ, whose birth name is Joshua Grannell. “I am shocked and horrified to bring this news to you … I am utterly heartbroken.”
@sohotheatre, HOME & Tim Whitehead are in shock and incredibly saddened with the news of Heklina's passing. Our thoughts are with Peaches and the Mommie Queerest company, Heklina's family, friends and their wider community at this time.https://t.co/VA5Nt6iQVH
— HOME (@HOME_mcr)April 3, 2023
A cause of death has not yet been released, but the Soho Theater also posted the news on social media, stating theater leaders there are “in shock and incredibly saddened with news of Heklina’s passing. Our thoughts are with Peaches, Mommie Queerest company, Heklina’s family, friends + their wider community.”
Heklina was 55.
“I kept thinking it was an April Fool’s joke, it doesn’t make sense. I spoke to her the day before yesterday when she was heading to England from Iceland,” said Oasis owner D’Arcy Drollinger, Heklina’s business partner. “But it is confirmed, it is real.”
By late afternoon, the Castro Theatre paid tribute to Heklina on its marquee. The entertainer frequently graced the stage for Peaches Christ productions, most recently playing the Bruce Willis role in a parody of “Death Becomes Her,” which was cheekily titled “Drag Becomes Her,” last summer.
Even during a contentious San Francisco Board of Supervisors’ Land Use meeting Monday at City Hall about proposed renovations to the Castro Theatre, former supervisor, state assemblyman and San Francisco mayoral candidate Tom Ammiano took a moment to acknowledge Heklina’s passing, echoing the movie palace’s marquee: “Rest in power.”
Devastated by the tragic loss of SF legend@Heklinaforever a pillar of our community ️pic.twitter.com/cf6ViuiOKp
— Castro Theatre (@Castro_Theatre)April 3, 2023
Born Stefan Grygelk in Minneapolis, the entertainer moved to San Francisco after living in Iceland and began widely gaining recognition as Heklina — inspired by the volcano Hekla— after co-founding “Trannyshack” in 1996.A Tuesday night drag event at the now-closed Stud Bar in the South of Market neighborhood, “the shack” became known as one of the most experimental, artistically daring drag venues in the Bay Area, known for its post-Punk, defiant aesthetic later influenced much of the local drag that came after it.
事件后,于2015年改名为“母亲”产品g to the Oasis nightclub, another SoMa venue where Heklina was part owner. “Mother” ended in February 2020 (“I just feel like I have nothing more to say within the format of a weekly show,” Heklina toldThe Chronicleof the decision) before the coronavirus pandemic shut down live entertainment spaces throughout the country.
“I do not know how to process this,” San Francisco performer and politician Honey Mahogany said in a Facebook post. “Truly a legend who has changed the landscape of drag forever.”
Heklina was well-known for her regular appearances with Peaches Christ in drag movie parodies and for playing the role of Dorothy in “The Golden Girls Live!,” a Christmas staple at the Victoria Theater in the Mission. She was also the host of the podcast “Drag Time with Heklina” and even appeared on the reality TV show “Judge Steve Harvey” last year.
“Heklina is not just my best friend, but a beloved icon of our community,” Peaches Christ posted. “I am a mess.”
Heklina was a longtime San Franciscan who moved to Cathedral City (Riverside County) in recent years where she was active in the Palm Springs drag scene.
Drag mother Juanita More remembered meeting Heklina in 1995 and said “from the start (we) understood and appreciated each other. We loved, respected and laughed at each other with great ease. I’ll miss that laugh.”
Former San Francisco Supervisor and BART commissioner Bevan Dufty tweeted that the death of Heklina was “unbearable” and called the performer “an Ambassador for Queer and Drag culture and artistry. She will always be a San Francisco Icon.”
Author Monique Jenkinson, who performs in drag as Fauxnique, remembered Heklina’s “healthy skepticism, irreverence and Scandinavian impatience” as hallmarks of her humor onstage and off.
“She made it so easy to write about her by being such a character,” said Jenkinson, author of 2022’s “Faux Queen: A Life in Drag.” “She’s why we know each other (in the drag scene). She’s the glue. She created the space. We throw around these words like ‘iconic’ but she really was.”
“The entire community is reeling right now,” Drollinger, who also co-starred with Heklina in “The Golden Girls Live!,” said Monday. “We’re going to open the bar now so people can come and cry.”
Plans for a formal memorial are pending, said Drollinger.
We are shocked and devastated to learn of the passing of Heklina today. Oasis will be open at 4pm for drinks, stories, and community, if you’d like to come by. Sending love to all.pic.twitter.com/AN01QTSCaf
— OASIS (@sfoasis)April 3, 2023
Correction: The original story misstated the age and birthplace of Stefan Grygelko, also known as Heklina. The entertainer was born in Minneapolis in June 1967.
San Francisco Chronicle reporter G. Allen Johnson contributed to this report.