Tallitha Reese

Deep in the City…of Winona, Minnesota, lives a community-minded teen working to create a space for people to come together.

In early 2022, 15-year-old Seamus Schwaba wrote a musical – Deep in the City – and was looking to produce it for an audience. Along the way, he found that Winona didn’t need just one show – they needed shows that would go on, and on. So, Seamus put the word out, gathered folks for a board, and together they launched Winona’s new community theatre organization, Sugarloaf Theatre, with a mission to provide “fun accessible theatre and other performing arts opportunities for all ages, genders, sexual orientations, religions, and ethnicities in the community.” 

Deep in the City brought Sugarloaf to life with three sold-out shows, and began the framework for the schedule: two full-scale productions a year – a summer musical and a winter play – plus additional offerings as allows. 

On December 9-10 of 2022, folks can check out the fun 24-Hour Theatre at the Winona Friendship Center. During 24-Hour Theatre, community members gather to write, direct, rehearse, and perform short, original works for the public within 24 hours. The theme will be Upon a Snowy Eve.

“This will be exciting because it’s a fun way for community actors to get involved in a short play without making a huge time commitment,” says Seamus.

The 2023 winter play is The Rainbow Fish, a children’s book that was adapted into a one-act play. Sugarloaf is producing this play in collaboration with Winona’s Bluffview Montessori School, where all rehearsals, auditions, and performances will take place. Community performances are scheduled for February 25 at 2 and 6 pm, and February 26 at 2 pm, and auditions are January 16. “We are looking for all different kinds of actors, adults and teens to audition for this show,” Seamus says.

Additionally, every few months Sugarloaf Theatre offers Three Week Theatre for kids in the community. “We learn a variety of improv games, tongue twisters, and acting tips,” Seamus says. “It’s a lot of fun!”

While Seamus knows theatre isn’t necessarily for everyone, he would encourage anyone interested to give it a try. “Community theatre people are so kind and accepting,” he says. “It makes you feel like you’re a part of something! At least it has for me.”

Turn the page to learn more about Sugarloaf Theatre and its founder, Seamus Schwaba, in a fun Q&A.

1. What inspired you to start Sugarloaf Theatre?

Well, Winona is a beautiful and very artistic community. It’s a community I’m very proud to be a part of! The one thing I wish it had more of, though, is accessible opportunities for community members to participate in theatre. We are lucky enough to have wonderful programs that offer performing opportunities, such as the cemetery walk, but what I wanted to do was make a true community theatre organization in Winona that does full scale productions with no participation fees. Besides, I’ve always loved community theatre! It’s a fantastic way to bring people together because it allows people from completely different generations to work as a team to create something! I honestly think that’s a really beautiful thing! The other thing is that coming out of a global pandemic, people need hope more than ever. I think community theatre is the perfect way to bring people together and become a family again. There are just so many reasons to do this! 

2. What’s the process of starting a community theatre organization? 

To be honest, when I first started this project I had no idea what it would turn into. I wanted to produce the musical I wrote, Deep in the City, and I thought I’d do it as a community theatre thing. As I got further into advertising and fundraising for the show, I had conversations with so many community members and realized that Winona needs more than a one-off community musical. We need a community theatre! So I worked on getting a board! Now, we are working towards non-profit status. It’s a long journey, but we’ll get there. I know we will.  

3. The life of a 15-year-old is often pretty busy. How do you manage to fit it all in? Do you have a lot of folks helping to make this community project happen?

Of course I do. Nobody could make all this happen alone! I’ve got wonderful board members, funders, and friends to help me. And I would like to thank all of them for their support, because without them I wouldn’t be able to do this! This being said, I’d like to think I do a lot of work for Sugarloaf Theatre as well. And I’m very proud of the hard work I’ve put in to making these events possible. Yes, there are definitely times where I’ve gotten overwhelmed, but at the end of the day I know that the work we’re doing matters. We are working to do something that helps people and gives them hope, and that motivates me to continue when I’m having a bad day. I’m also just so grateful for all the people that support this project. 

4. Can you tell our readers a little more about 24-Hour Theatre?

The event will take place on December 9-10 of 2022. The goal is to write, direct, rehearse, and perform three short plays for the community in 24 hours. It will start on the 9th with a meeting that all writers, directors, stage managers, and actors will attend, where we will go over the schedule for the day following. Then, the writers will go home and write over the night. In the morning the directors will meet at the Winona Friendship Center, which is where the majority of the event will take place. They will have a short time to look at the scripts that were written the night before, and come up with a plan for blocking (the process of teaching actors where they enter, exit, and stand on stage).

Then, the actors will arrive and they will rehearse the show. The show will be open for the community to see the night of the 10th at 7 pm. Tickets to the performance will be $10 per person, and are available at linktr.ee/sugarloaftheatre.

5. The summer musical you wrote, Deep in the City, was Sugarloaf Theatre’s first-ever show, and you directed it! Can you tell us about that process? How did you feel once the run was done? 

I was so proud of Deep in the City! And yes, Deep in the City was my first time directing a show, but I’ve been involved in Theatre since I was five. Honestly, it was the only thing I thought about for a year. I lived for my time to write at the piano. That show was so much fun to work on! I counted down the days for auditions and I couldn’t wait. The show turned out to be everything I dreamed it to be and more. The cast performed for three sold out audiences and got two standing ovations. And I would never have been able to do it without the help of my piano accompanist, stage manager, and musical director. I always expected to feel sad once the show ended, but I really didn’t. I was really happy that it went so well, and I was so excited for the future of Sugarloaf Theatre. I still am! I also had a lot going on. A few weeks after the show I went to go perform at the State Fair for 4-H and I won first place in the performing arts division for the second year in a row. I met so many wonderful people on that trip. This summer, overall, just reminded me how wonderful the world is!! And if you stick through a hard time you can always find yourself and contribute amazing things! If there’s one thing I want people to know it’s that you should always have hope, because things will always get better if you wait long enough and hang in there. 

6. Can you tell us a little more about The Rainbow Fish?

Yes! The show is going to be a lot of fun. The actors will be ages 12 and up, but the show is great for children and families. The Rainbow Fish was originally a children’s book that was later adapted into a stage version. It is a one-act play, and it tells the story of a young beautiful fish that has rainbow scales, but never wants to share them with anyone. By the end of the story he learns to share his scales by giving some of them to his new friends. The story has a beautiful message of sharing and friendship that all ages can enjoy! 

For show tickets or to register classes and events (actors please register at least a week in advance), go to linktr.ee/sugarloaftheatre

Hazel was interviewed by her daughter: Connie Sabbann

Hazel Grotegut (born Hazel Telford) has lived in Decorah all of her 90 years with the exception of two years in Waterloo after high school.  She has endured the loss of two husbands, Marlyn Rasmussen and Rollie Grotegut. Cloey, a Yorkshire Terrier, is now her faithful companion; the two of them are great company for each other. Every single night before bed Mom can be found sitting in her chair praying for each of her 3 daughters (Deb, Connie, and Denise) and their husbands, 10 grandkids, and 20 great-grandkids – all by name. She faithfully sends birthday cards to all of them as well as many other friends and relatives. 

Mom has a great sense of humor and a quick wit. She’s creative, and has always been good at organizing and planning things. Years ago, she created a list of the “Seven Wonders of Decorah”, listing sights for our family to visit in the area. Each Christmas she writes (and reads) a story about everyone in our family for her “Left-Right” game.

Mom’s passion is sewing. She started the craft as a child and has sewn countless things since then – including matching dresses for her three little daughters and many square dance dresses. For many years, she has sewn quilts, many of which were patterns she developed after seeing a picture of one she liked. She has made well over 100 quilts (most of them queen-size) that she has shared with her family and donated for fundraisers. She now also makes Quilts of Valor to be given to veterans.

Mom has always had a lot of ambition, and she gets things done. She taught us to work hard and honor our commitments.

Some of mom’s other interests over the years have been making ceramics, tole painting, rosemaling, drawing, making woodcrafts with a band saw, camping, square dancing, and wintering in Arizona. She is on Facebook and manages her cell phone and iPad like a 60-year-old! She meets regularly with friends for coffee at McDonalds and is known by name when she calls the library to check out a new book. 

Sadly, when mom turned 90, she was denied the renewal of her motorcycle license!

What’s the best advice anyone ever gave you? 

Live within your means, pay as you go, and always be honest.

What did you want to be when you grew up?  

An art teacher. I would liked to have gone to college to study art, but money was short. 

What did you do? 

Each place where I was employed, I worked in the payroll department, figuring by hand at first and later with the computer. I spent most of my career working for the District Auditor of Interstate Power Company. I’ve now been retired longer than the 25 years that I worked there. I’ve always liked numbers and really enjoyed bookkeeping. I was usually the treasurer of every organization I was in, including 11 years as the treasurer for Decorah Lutheran Church.

If you were stranded on a desert island, what three things would you want with you? My Bible and daily devotions, my loving husband, and my sewing machine.

Try to describe yourself in one sentence:

I like to think of myself as someone who has worked hard, saved, and raised three wonderful daughters. 

If you could eat anything every day for the rest of your life, what would it be? 

Lefse, with plenty of butter and sugar

Name one thing you could not live without:

My family

Tell us about your first job:

When I was 12, I got a job as a waitress at the Springer Hotel dining room because I wanted to earn money to go to Clear Lake Bible Camp. I wasn’t very good at waitressing and wasn’t very mature then, so I quit as soon as I earned enough money to go to camp! 

The largest of five owl species that breed in the Driftless Area, Great Horned Owls are also the most common. Found from Alaska to Argentina, they are habitat generalists, equally at home in oak woodlands, suburban yards or urban parks. Their pronounced “ear tufts” – modified head feathers – create the bird’s iconic silhouette.

Courtship begins in early autumn. The characteristic, stuttering “hoo-hoo-hoo” that gave rise to the moniker “hoot owl” can be heard in September. By October, the duet of paired owls resonates through leafless woodlands as the birds proclaim fidelity and publicly announce their intention to raise a family. 

Nest site selection begins even as daylength diminishes. Not one to waste energy with winter nest construction – wise owl? – the female Great Horned Owl typically appropriates old stick nests from Red-tailed Hawks or crows. Large tree cavities or the ragged tops of broken tree trunks can also provide suitable digs.

By the end of January, contrary to every lick of common sense, the female carefully deposits as many as four eggs in the nest. Over the next four weeks, she will tend her eggs while the male brings her food. It’s not uncommon to see a snow-covered female hunkered and incubating during raging blizzards, signature ear tufts twisting in the wind. As the landscape remains draped in white, little owlets hatch naked, blind, and hungry. Overnight, mom transforms from a doting parent to a voracious hunter, partnering with her mate to feed their brood of squawking owlets. 

Great Horned Owls are among the most efficient predators on earth. They prowl the darkness aided by keen eyesight and extraordinary hearing. Serrated combs of small feathers on the leading edge of their wings enable silent flight, facilitating their ability to ambush unsuspecting prey.  

Equal opportunity carnivores, hoot owls eat just about anything they can catch. Rats, mice, rabbits, and squirrels are dietary staples. On occasion, frogs, snakes, and birds land on the menu. For reasons not fully understood, Great Horned Owls have a predilection for skunks. Perhaps an owl’s poor sense of smell protects it from the olfactory vicissitudes of Pepé Le Pew and his ilk. 

After 40 days of constant care, young owls leave the nest. They’ll spend the summer shadowing mom and dad, learning how and where to hunt. By fall, they drift away from parents and siblings. Another year will pass before they’re ready to seek a mate and begin the cycle anew. 

The secretive, nocturnal lives of these feathered phantoms add an element of mystique to our woodlands. But their importance transcends folklore. Predators are essential for functional ecosystems. By keeping populations of rodents and other small mammals in check, Great-horned Owls contribute to the health of our natural communities. Next time you retire for the evening, turn off the lights, crack a window, and listen for the Great-horned Owl. It will be a hoot!