Meet Stefan Grygelko, whose stage name is Heklina. She was an American actor, drag queen, and entrepreneur based in San Francisco. He was born in the United States and his mother was Icelandic.
In the 1980s, he lived in Iceland and named his drag character after an Icelandic volcano called Hekla. Grygelko founded a drag club called Mother in 1996, which was previously known as Trannyshack.
Heklina Biography
Stefan Grygelko, also known as Heklina, was an American actor and drag queen. He was born on June 17, 1968, and passed away on April 3, 2023, at the age of 54. He was found dead in London by his co-star Peaches Christ.
Heklina, an American drag queen and entrepreneur, expressed in a 2006 interview that drag queens are still considered safe to laugh at and not really shocking anymore.
She mentioned that the early 90s was when RuPaul became famous and was the first drag queen to have mainstream exposure. The British drag queen also believed that it’s unlikely for another drag queen to break out like RuPaul did.
Husband | Children
Heklina, also known as Stefan Grygelko, has not talked about having a husband, being married or have children. So, we don’t know anything about the British drag queen’s husband.
Age | Date of Birth
Heklina’s real name was Stefan Grygelko, and she was born on June 17, 1967. ((en.wikipedia.org)) When she passed away on April 3, 2023, she was 54 years old. ((yahoo.com))
Where Was Heklina Born
Heklina, whose real name was Stefan Grygelko, was born in Minneapolis, USA. But his mother was Icelandic, ((sfgate.com)) so he lived in Iceland for a few years during the 1980s.
Parents | Father | Mother
The British drag queen’s mother was Icelandic, and he spent some time living in Iceland during the 1980s. ((en.wikipedia.org)) Unfortunately, there is no available information about his father or any other details about his parents.
Mother (formerly Trannyshack)
Heklina, a drag queen from San Francisco, founded Trannyshack in 1996. The event series is the longest-running drag event series in San Francisco. In 2015, Trannyshack was rebranded as Mother, which became a weekly event series at The Oasis.
The British drag queen also co-produced and co-hosted the Miss Trannyshack Pageant, which is considered the premier annual drag event in San Francisco and has sold out every year since its inception. Heklina said that Mother is a place for all drag mothers to bring their children and hone their craft.
Theater | Community Activities
Aside from founding and hosting drag events in San Francisco, Heklina was also involved in local theater productions and acted as emcee for various community and charitable events.
She received recognition for her contributions to the LGBT community, including being voted Community Grand Marshal of the 2004 San Francisco GLBTQ Pride Parade and winning the 2009 Pride Creativity Award. Heklina also co-starred in a series of short films and starred in the film “Baby Jane?”.
The Oasis | Mommie Queerest
Heklina, along with business partners D’Arcy Drollinger, Geoff Benjamin, and Jason Beebout, purchased a theater and cabaret nightclub in San Francisco’s SoMa district called The Oasis. They host various events and performances including drag shows, cabaret, live music, and DJs.
She also appeared in a drag parody show called Mommie Queerest with Peaches Christ in Palm Springs and Seattle in 2022. The show was set to be performed in London and Manchester in April 2023.
Filmography
Heklina appeared in several films, including “Filthy Gorgeous: The Trannyshack Story” (2005), “The House of Venus Show” (2006), “Spin the Bottle” (2005), “Season of the Troll” (2001), “A Nightmare on Castro Street” (2002), “Whatever Happened to Peaches Christ?” (2004), and “Baby Jane?”.
Television
Heklina has made several television appearances, including “The Cho Show” with Margaret Cho, “Trauma” in 2009, “The Daily Show”, “Playing It Straight” in 2004, “The Ricki Lake Show”, “Jerry Springer”, and “Judge Steve Harvey”.
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