Rosedale Center has entertained with drag queen fashion shows, Sunday dog walking and "Haunted Christmas" performances. Next up: professional wrestling.
"We always look at where our customers are spending their free time, and I was shocked at how many people watch wrestling," said Sarah Fossen, a marketing executive at Rosedale. "We kept hearing about F1RST Wrestling. They've done shows at the VFW in Uptown, First Avenue and Grand Old Day in St. Paul."
On March 7, F1RST will take over the main floor of the former Herberger's space for a family-friendly show called "Saturday Night Nitro at Rosedale."
"Rosedale feels like the right team for us," said Arik Cannon, 38, a professional wrestler, founder and owner of F1RST Wrestling. "They're doing really cool stuff in their space."
Besides Cannon, other local wrestlers at the event will include Air Wolf and Darin Corbin as well as national performers.
Pro wrestling has ebbed and flowed over the years, but Cannon says it's been on the upswing since 2013.
"We have no trouble selling out 300 seats at the VFW or 850 at First Avenue," he said.
Part of the contemporary appeal may be that the audience no longer has to wonder if the wrestling is real or fake. "When I was a kid using the word 'fake' was like a swear word," he said. "Now the wrestlers refer to themselves as actors or artists. We want our fans to be in on the joke with us, not try to pull the wool over their eyes."
