Anyone in Fullerton who knows drag knows Kay Sedia. They may know her name is an obvious play on the cheesy Mexican dish—quesadilla. They’re probably aware of her large black wig, brightly colored makeup and brazen personality. But who they may not know is Oscar Quintero, the man behind the persona. For Quintero, Kay Sedia is more than just a caricature; she is a representation of his heritage.
Quintero has been a Latino drag artist for nearly 30 years. Although he now lives in Sun Valley, Los Angeles, he brings Kay Sedia—a kitschy, campy queen from Tijuana—to Fullerton, where he has developed a loyal following.
“In a way, Kay Sedia became a way for me to celebrate the things that I was ashamed of when I was younger,” Quintero says. “I equated my family’s dysfunction and being different to being Mexican. But Kay is a queen from Tijuana who is this overly confident, bigger-than-life stereotype. She provided me with a lot of healing.”
In the ’90s, Quintero, in his early twenties, came out as gay and began dressing in drag for Halloween, unaware that it would be drag that changed the course of his life. A longtime fan of pageants like Miss Universe, he began attending drag pageants until he decided to audition for one himself, as Miss Mexico. With the help of friends, Oscar debuted Kay Sedia with a fluffy black wig, stretchy dress and a last-minute name, winning first runner-up.
Even though Quintero was disappointed with not winning first, Kay Sedia was a crowd favorite. When Quintero realized how much the audience loved Kay’s humor and look, he knew that he would pursue drag for years to come.
“Before doing drag, I apologized before I walked into every room, and at a certain point I just stopped apologizing,” he says.
Quintero eventually found his footing in the drag scene, not in clubs but in traditional comedy and theatre-style drag. Kay Sedia has been performing in “Chico’s Angels” for nearly 20 years, a show inspired by the ’70s classic “Charlie’s Angels.”
Oscar credits “Chico’s Angels” as one of his most successful gigs and says the behind-the-scenes stage work makes it “worth it.” For Kay and many other queens, these performances are displays of creativity and self-expression.
Quintero once worked as a seafood manager in Fullerton before returning in drag when friends suggested to The Bowery owners that they bring Kay Sedia to host events.
Since then, Kay has been one of the only queens in the area to consistently host local events. Two of her most well-known are “Huevos Dragcheros Drag Brunch” at The Charleston, and “Kay Sedia’s Bingo” at The Bowery. She has also served as grand marshal for Fullerton Pride two years in a row.
Fullerton and other small cities offer queens the chance to build their own style and closer relationships with artists. Quintero says it’s different from drag scenes in bigger cities like Los Angeles. “Drag in L.A. is very saturated. There are shows every night out there,” says Quintero. “I like to bring drag to smaller areas that don’t really have a scene or shows, like O.C. and Fullerton.”
As drag has gained mainstream exposure through shows like “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” Quintero says audiences often expect polished acts, but he offers something different. “Not everything is so glamorous, and people are looking for authenticity,” he says. “I call my drag ‘garage drag.’ It’s not polished, perfect or fierce—but it’s real, and that’s [what] I want to be all the time.”
While performing as Kay, Quintero aims to make people laugh. In a polarized political climate where debates about drag are heated and run rampant, Kay Sedia hopes to provide a distraction through entertaining shows where people can simply come together and enjoy themselves.
Oscar admits that while life as a drag artist isn’t always successful, it’s what he loves doing. With any career, but especially drag, the highs and lows come like waves. “There are days that are so much fun and so fulfilling, and there’s days when it just bombs and I [say], ‘I’m never doing this again, I suck, who am I kidding?’” But it’s the creative process and the love for his art that have given Oscar the motivation to build not only a career—but a life from drag.
