Star Tribune
Rochester artist preserves Minnesota drag queen history through portrait series
ROCHESTER – It took more than 220 hours to properly convey Sidonia Dudval on canvas.
In her portrait, Dudval lounges on a luxurious ottoman inside a Hollywood-style mansion — the kind of elegant atmosphere Dudval embodies at drag shows throughout southeast Minnesota.
Artist Joseph Alexander captured Dudval’s vibe as part of his portrait series, “The Grand Drag Legacy of Southeastern Minnesota.” The five portraits are on display at the Historic Chateau Theatre in Rochester to honor pioneers of the region’s modern drag scene.
“Not only is drag culture being remembered but there’s a reason to remember them and who they were,” Alexander said.
Alexander has attended drag shows in Rochester since the 1990s, when performers like Dudval and Anita Tiara started consistent events. Dudval is the founder of the Rochester Girls shows while Tiara has hosted drag queen bingo fundraisers for years.
Both are longtime pageant winners and have a history of the area’s drag scene that wouldn’t be preserved without this kind of attention, Alexander said.
He started the series a year and a half ago, setting up photo sessions with each queen. After taking hundreds of photos of each performer in numerous outfits, he put together backgrounds that brought out each queen’s personality. He then built each portrait’s canvas, followed by painting each queen’s likeness.
Alexander selected queens from a variety of genres, from elegant performers like Dudval and Tiara to campy Gosh Alice Johns, along with the flashy Allota Shots and Jayda Cline. Each has performed in the area for years and has played a part in expanding drag in Rochester.
Drag has come under fire over the past few years, with some performers across the state subject to fierce debate and protests. Yet Minnesota has had drag performances for decades.
There were popular “womanless wedding” revues at the turn of the 20th century where an all-male cast performed comedic wedding scenes for school and church fundraisers. Shows were done from Worthington to Lanesboro to the Twin Cities.
The performers included in Alexander’s series say it’s an honor to be portrayed, a validation of the work they’ve put in.
“Drag has really thrived in Rochester for the last 25 years,” said Bob Werner, who portrays Tiara. “I don’t think that’s very common in most towns of 100,000 people.”
Darren Wendt, who portrays Dudval, said the portrait series was a little bittersweet. He was close friends with drag queen Celeste DeVille, who died in 2000 in a car accident. Wendt credits DeVille with kickstarting drag events in Rochester.
“She was kind of the anchor,” Wendt said. “I wish Celeste was here because if her portrait was in it, it would be the staple. But I guess having Sidonia there, my portrait there, it’s kind of like the history is still there because Celeste is always part of me.”
“The Grand Drag Legacy” opened Aug. 13 and will be on display until early November. Alexander said he plans to hold talks and artist forums that include the queens, along with a closing ceremony where all the queens will come together.
He’s already hard at work on his next project: another portrait series, this time featuring prominent Minnesota LGBTQ advocates over the years.
Alexander is already taking photos of Minneapolis City Council President Andrea Jenkins. He plans to include First Nations advocates as well as leaders some may not have heard of before.
“They’ve been so important in your life if you’re queer in Minnesota,” Alexander said. “There’s [some] who people will not ever know who they are except for something like this.”
Star Tribune
St. Paul planning commission to discuss a potential citywide ban of new fast food drive-thrus
Twin Cities franchisees and business advocacy groups have already voiced their concerns about the potential drive-thru restrictions to the planning commission.
Over 80% of Taco Bell transactions in St. Paul are done via drive-thru windows, according to Zach Zelickson, vice president of Marvin Development, which develops Taco Bell restaurants for Border Foods. A ban on new drive-thrus could limit what can be done with existing restaurants and make customers travel to locations outside the city, he said. In 2022, Border Foods opened a futuristic Taco Bell Defy location with four drive-thru lanes in Brooklyn Park.
“We believe that drive-thrus play a vital role in serving the needs of our communities across Minnesota,” Angie Whitcomb, CEO of Hospitality Minnesota, which represents the state’s hospitality businesses, said in a statement. Drive-thrus provide convenience for busy customers and contribute to the safety of fast food workers, particularly duing late-night hours, she said.
Drive-thrus have been synonymous with America’s fast-food culture since the concept became mainstream in the 1970s. During the pandemic, drive-thrus became even more important, allowing consumers to grab food while COVID-19 restrictions shut down many restaurant dining rooms.
Besides traditional fast food operations, other fast casual restaurants such as Chipotle have begun to add drive-thru lanes.
According to a study released last month by the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, drive-thrus are critical for many businesses. Average monthly visits to studied stores with drive-thrus were down a little more than 4% in December 2022 (post-pandemic) compared to December 2019 (pre-pandemic). However, traffic at stores without drive-thrus declined about 48%.
“[The most pressing issues] are everything from gentrification to community policing to climate change,” he told the Star Tribune. “MCAD’s role is: How do we begin addressing the most critical issues of our time? Frankly that’s got to be part of the work we do in educating the next generation of cultural leaders.”
MCAD’s Board Search Committee will begin a national search for the next president, working with executive search firm Isaacson, Miller, along with the MCAD community.
“We thank President Sethi for his dedication for the past five years, as he led the college through the challenges of COVID, acquired a new building for much-needed student housing, reimagined the campus of the future, and advocated for greater access to an art-and-design education,” said Board Co-Chairs Chris Barry and M.E. Kirwan in a joint statement.
Sethi is the 19th president in MCAD’s 139-year history, previously serving for four years as inaugural director of George Washington University’s Corcoran School of the Arts & Design, and previously holding leadership positions at Santa Fe Art Institute, Memphis College of Art and California College of the Arts.
The medical center is owned by a local nonprofit, but operated by Duluth-based Essentia under an affiliation agreement that dates back to 2009.
With the ruling announced Wednesday, Essentia Health says it will continue to operate the hospital, clinic, assisted-living and long-term care facilities in Fosston, plus clinics in Bagley and Oklee.
“Now that the arbitration process is over, Essentia is focused on the opportunity to engage our patients, colleagues and the community in building a shared vision for the future of health care in Fosston,” said Dr. Stefanie Gefroh, interim president of Essentia Health’s West Market, in a statement.
Arbitrators were asked to rule on whether Essentia eliminated a “core” service by discontinuing deliveries, since the city of Fosston would then have the right to terminate the affiliation agreement. But the panel in a 2-1 vote concluded that labor and delivery is just one aspect of obstetrics (OB).
“OB is a ‘core’ service under the agreement, encompassing labor and delivery as part of comprehensive care for pregnant women,” the ruling states. “Simply put, while the delivery of the baby is an essential component, it is not the sole care provided to a pregnant woman.”
Fosston officials, including the town’s mayor, were involved in the arbitration because the city has a legal connection to the nonprofit owner of the medical center, which historically was a municipal hospital.
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