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Juneteenth weekend was hit by a sudden temperature drop, but cloud cover couldn’t keep the heat down at Alberta Street Pub on June 22. Kourtni Capree Duv, a long-standing drag artist and singer, opened the Chocolate Dipped Brunch Show in song before introducing herself as a former Darcelle XV Showplace cast member who has performed and sung for Portland State University and the Timbers, among other clients. The Lady D.U.V., also known as Portland’s baddest butch queen, switched from a glittering blue sequin gown to a green version between her sets and introducing her co-performers, Portland’s Mona Chrome and Seattle’s Amora Namor (née Dior Black).
Alberta Street Pub seemed to put more effort into the show than the menu, though the bartender offered to put an egg on anything I wanted; I declined, feeling like I got a bargain on juicy catfish strips and fries ($15 for two, $20 for four) and a damn-fine Bloody Mary or two. Namor’s tossed hair briefly got stuck on ceiling lights, but she untangled herself seemingly pain-free and lounged on an empty table while diners rained tips on her. The three ladies gave it their all, dancing and lip-synching for a crowd of two dozen, at least three of whom told Capree Duv in front of everyone that they’d come in off the street after hearing her sing.
Capree Duv shared with the audience a bittersweet reality: Though the Alberta neighborhood had rapidly gentrified since she was a child, she only now feels comfortable in her old stomping grounds being her true self. Capree Duv’s online presence is not the world’s most polished, yet she’s bursting with the tried-and-true type of charisma and talent that isn’t a factory standard for the baby queens raised on Instagram and RuPaul’s Drag Race.