Kiester Township is a township in Faribault County, United States. The population was 320 at the 2000 census. Kiester Township was organized in 1872, named for Jacob Kiester, a local historian who afterward served as state legislator. According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 35.8 square miles, all of it land. Minnesota State Highway 22 serves as a main route in the township; as of the census of 2000, there were 320 people, 120 households, 101 families residing in the township. The population density was 8.9 people per square mile. There were 131 housing units at an average density of 3.7/sq mi. The racial makeup of the township was 98.12% White, 0.31% African American, 0.31% Native American, 0.31% from other races, 0.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.62% of the population. There were 120 households out of which 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 75.0% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 15.8% were non-families.

13.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.2% had someone living alone, 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 2.91. In the township the population was spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 122.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 107.0 males. The median income for a household in the township was $37,188, the median income for a family was $39,205. Males had a median income of $25,208 versus $18,750 for females; the per capita income for the township was $17,258. About 5.3% of families and 7.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.8% of those under age 18 and 3.6% of those age 65 or over. On June 7, 2016, a Preparation H television commercial debuted, filmed in Kiester

The Queen of Brilliants is a comic opera in three acts with music by Edward Jakobowski and a libretto by Brandon Thomas. It was adapted from Jakobowski's German-language operetta Die Brillantett-Königin, with a libretto by Theodore Tawbe and Isidor Fuchs, which premiered in March 1894 in Vienna. A vehicle for Lillian Russell, the plot concerns Betta, who runs away from a nunnery to join a variety troupe known as "The Brilliants" and is nicknamed their queen, she proves the worth of her lover and turns out to be a real countess. A feature of the spectacularly-staged production was several corps de ballet. Musical numbers include "Love's Freedom", sung by Florian, "Whisper Song" sung by Betta, a lovers' duet sung in the first act; the third act includes a duet and dance for the lovers. Lillian Russell starred in the title role in both the New York productions; the piece premiered at the Lyceum Theatre in London on 8 September 1894 and was revived in an adaptation by H. J. W. Dam at the Abbeys Theatre in New York on 7 November 1894.

Despite the presence of Russell in the cast, the London production failed, playing for 41 performances, the New York production closed after 29. Besides Russell the British cast included Hubert Wilke as Florian, Arthur Williams as Della Fontana, George Honey as Fritz, Avon Saxon as Major Victor Pulvereitzer, W. H. Denny as Lucca Rabbiato, an itinerant knife grinder, Annie Meyers as Orsola, wife of Lucca Rabbiato, John Le Hay as Grelotto. In London, the dances were arranged by John D'Auban and the scenery was painted by Hawes Craven, Joseph Harker and William Perkins; the American cast included Wilke, Digby Bell as Della Fontana and Laura Joyce Bell as Madame Engelstein. Count Radaman Caprimonte of Borghoveccio is a descendant of the Emperor Diocletian. A young architect named, he loves Betta, a fisher girl, a Countess in her own right, to whom the Count is distantly related. A duplicitous marriage broker, Madame Engelstein, wants Florian to marry her daughter, she sends Betta to a nunnery. However, the nuns refuse to accept the wayward girl, Betta runs away from the convent after a prophetic dream and joins a variety circus troupe called "The Brilliants".

Betta becomes a celebrated circus singer, known as "The Queen of Brilliants". Her success enables her to become the benefactress of Borghoveccio, she is able to test Florian's affection, he proves to be true to her, so all ends happily. The London critics complained that Russell had more costume changes than songs: nine costumes to only three songs. "The audience wants singing, not posturing", one wrote. One London critic wrote: "Lillian Russell has never been in better voice. There is nothing more gorgeous on the light opera stage, it is a mediocre play with a weak book and the music is not catching. The excessive magnificence of the scenery smothered the performers. Dullness seemed to be the unpardonable sin of both composer and author."The New York critics were less favourable: "If the original English book was worse than the present one, it must have been a bad work. There is a story, of course, that which by courtesy may be called a plot, but it is difficult to discover it during the progress of the performance, it would be utterly incoherent without the aid of the auditor's imagination."

The New York Times wrote that there was not one funny line in the show and called Jakobowski's music "the veriest trash... cheap, reminiscent of his former works, by no means catchy." Photo of Russell in the role London review of the opera