Summer of Pride - Legendary Hedda Lettuce Makes PV Home

ENTERTAINMENT

Legendary Hedda Lettuce Makes PV Home

ACTOR, SONGWRITER AND COMEDIAN ENTERTAINS AT ACT2PV

By Salvador Dominguez

YOU CAN’T TALK ABOUT PUERTO VALLARTA PRIDE WITHOUT

MENTIONING ONE OF THE CITY’SLONGEST PERFORMING ANDMOST POPULAR DRAG QUEENS,HEDDA LETTUCE.to has done a little bit of everything in the entertainment industry. She has appeared on TV, in movies, and had special appearances with great divas like Madonna and SarahJessica Parker.In addition to her comedy, she

Having grown up in a tough and competitive environment with NYC

queens, she learned from some of the best in the business."I am not a fashion diva, nor do I follow trends in social networks,”

she explained. “I am an actor, aher audience each night. An artist of her caliber, who can entertain

with her ingenuity, music, lyrics and comedy full of fun and madness, is a treat to see.Hedda plans to continue enjoying

PV, the weather, the people and herwrites and sings her own original

comedian. I do not need to changedog son’s. She looks forward to ha-

It was the words of a dying drag

queen that helped bring PuertoVallarta’s drag superstar HeddaLettuce to town. Some might say it was destiny.songs. Her shows are a mix of

improvisation and songs from her repertoire."The kind of show I do in PV is not

outfits on stage all the time either,

my work is more on stage and the image accompanies it and peoplehave recognized me throughout mycareer.”ving great seasons at Act2PV. If you

are a fan of the art of drag and have not seen Hedda Lettuce in action,run now for your tickets because hershows almost always sell out.done by anyone,” she explained. “I

Lettuce shared the circumstances

that initially brought her toperform, and then move, to become part of the drag queen fabric thatweaves Puerto Vallarta together.“A fellow drag from New York City,

one night before she passed away, told Danny Mininni (partner withAct2PV, who recently passed away)that I would be a great addition tothe Act2Pv cast,” she explained.“And that set into place a series of circumstances that brought me here.Lettuce, instantly known by her distinctive green color look, is an American drag queen, comedian and singer originally from New York City. Since the mid-90's she has been known as PV’s Great Queen of Comedy. Actor Steven Polito is the one who magnifies Hedda Lettuce, and has lived in Puerto Vallarta for the past seven years. While he regularly returns to NYC for a few months each year, Polito loves to call Puerto Vallarta home.

"My home is Puerto Vallarta, here I have found everything to feel calm and happy," he said. “I’ve adopted three dogs, ‘Patas Saladas’, which have become a part of my family.

In character as Hedda Lettuce, Poli-think a true performer is one who can captivate an audience for an

hour and a half, without the needfor cheap tricks and a lot of costumechanges."Hedda is a drag queen of the old

guard, that of the generation ofqueens who bring talent and entertainmentto shows, more than justspectacular makeup or incredible costumes. She was involved in activismin the mid 90's and did streetperformances to raise money. Shewas part of the great NYC drag scene at the time and she knew what it was like to strive to stand out."I think the drag scene today has changed in such a way that it has lost its essence," She said. "The point of doing drag is a gay man doing it. I respect the fact that other genres do it now, but originally drag wasn't conceived that way. A lot of girls today spend a lot of time wanting to be a drag version of Kim Kardashian and that's not entertaining on stage. It's not enough for a full show."

You’ll never see the same show if you go to a Hedda

Lettuce performance.Eachshow is uniquebecause part of her repertoireoriginates fromthe improv thatshe puts together,based onEncuentra nuestra versión en español en:

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50 • SUMMER OF PRIDE 2022 outandaboutpv.com