‘I love the legend of Kate’: A Q&A with Maret Bylander, the 2023 Klondike Kate
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By JARED KAUFMAN | jkaufman@pioneerpress.com | Pioneer PressEven before being “sashed” as 2023 Klondike Kate on Wednesday night, Stillwater native Maret Bylander embodied the legendary Winter Carnival character.During her first-round performance of the burlesque classic “Let Me Entertain You,” Bylander, then wearing a dress adorned with a black boa and a peacock-green feather headdress, looked out at the cheering crowd behind the judges’ table.“Hello everybody, my name is Kate!” Bylander exclaimed. “What’s yours?”Five women competed for the title Jan. 11 in a packed ballroom at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel on St. Paul’s East Side. The contest, inspired by a real-life Gold Rush entertainer named Klondike Kate, has chosen a new “mistress of fun, frivolity and good fellowship” before the Winter Carnival just about every year since 1971. (The 2020 Kate, Shelley Pabst, served for two years due to Covid-19.)Several hundred people were cheering on the contenders; so many showed up that hotel staff had to bring in extra chairs at the last minute to accommodate them. Some in the audience jokingly cursed the name of Vulcanus Rex, the Carnival’s fire king character, for making the room feel so warm.Other Kate contestants wowed the crowd, too. Jody Vander Hart of Vadnais Heights — who, as she noted in her official bio, was “born to be a singer” since Singer is her maiden name — belted out impressive renditions of R&B classics like Alicia Keys’ “If I Ain’t Got You” and the Nina Simone hit “Feeling Good.” And onetime local radio DJ Kat Connery, church choir singer Toni Coffey and carnival volunteer Teri Theno-Erb had audience members singing along, too.2023 Klondike Kate Maret Bylander waves to the crowd after being sashed at the end of the Klondike Kate contest at the DoubleTree by Hilton Saint Paul East on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)But it was Bylander who ultimately stole the show. The newest Kate is a 16-year veteran of the Oakdale show choir group Harmonic Relief and said she’s been coming to Winter Carnival events since at least the 1980s. She was also a contestant last year when Tina Hacker of Plymouth was ultimately crowned the 2022 Kate.After Bylander earned the sash, we caught up with the new Klondike Kate in between photo ops to ask a few questions.Q: You really embodied Kate onstage tonight — tell me about the first moment in your life that you truly felt like Klondike Kate.A: I knew I was Klondike Kate way back when I saw Klondike Kate. I would say that was back in the ‘90s. But I never had the confidence to do it back then.So as I got older and embraced the Winter Carnival more, that’s when I learned how much fun it is, and how much Kate is part of the legend. I love the legend of Kate, and reading the story of her.Q: What does it mean for you to carry on the legacy of both the real Klondike Kate and the generations of past Winter Carnival Kates?A: That’s what this whole skirt is about. She (the original ‘71 Kate, Carol Carney) started out very young, and also she never retired! Not until her death did she retire as a Kate. This skirt is (similar to) her signature skirt — it was glittery, and she would roll it behind her like it was fire.My stepson is a vintage costume designer and did the history of Klondike Kate, and designed this skirt for me for that purpose.Q: What did it feel like to be on stage in front of a crowd like this one?A: I’m used to that; I sing in a group, but I’ve never been on a stage all by myself like this. It was very — an adrenaline rush! Really, really enjoying this.Q: And finally, what are you most looking forward to about officially being Klondike Kate for this year?A: I’m looking forward, No. 1, to the 10 days of Carnival, because I’ve never been involved in all 10 days. I’ve been involved in different pieces of it: the coronation, the (North, East, West and South) Wind Dinners, the parades. But actually being involved and being a part of the experience — I really am looking forward to that.Copyright 2023 Pioneer Press.
