Heklina memorial in the Castro

Photos by Steven Underhill

Fans of the late drag performer and producer Heklina (Stefan Grygelko) celebrated his life in the blocked-off Castro Street outside the Castro Theatre on May 23, where a capacity crowd watched tributes from local nightlife luminaries. After the quick sell-out of theater tickets, friends and event organizers Nancy French, Peaches Christ and others had arranged for projection screens and online access in bars (and even for those at home) to the onstage memorial via Oasis nightclub’s Twitch channel. ‘She would have hated this’ was the memorial’s sardonic subtitle, but somewhere above, we can hear that distinctive Heklina cackle.

See plenty more photos on BARtab’s Facebook page, facebook.com/lgbtsf.nightlife. See more of Steven Underhill’s photos at StevenUnderhill.com.