In the News

Sunflower Performing Arts Presents Contemporary Percussion Group, Pax Duo

Sunflower Performing Arts presents the ensemble, pax duo, offering a contemporary percussion performance on April 2, 2023. The concert starts at 3 p.m. at Hesston Mennonite Church.

Tristan Swihart and Micah Detweiler are the musicians behind pax duo. Breaking with the traditional take on percussion stylings through collaboration and genre bending, this group will deliver a show offering an unexpected mix of acoustic instruments. In addition, a lighting design will be a component of their performance.

“A multi-media acoustic percussion duo is unusual for our series, and I’m excited to experience the virtuosic playing and use of lighting effects to enhance the performance,” said Director of Sunflower Performing Arts Holly Swartzendruber. “This concert will be a wonderful way to close our season.”

Originally from Goshen, Ind., and Madison, Wis., pax duo has performed on stages in their home cities and across the Midwest. During their first season pax duo had more than 20 engagements, and the ensemble continues to work on projects and commissions.

Tickets are available at the door or may be purchased at the Hesston College Bookstore (620-327-8105). For more information, call 620-327-8158.

Ready, Set, GO GREEN! Leprechaun Run 2-Mile/10K Race Set for March 11

On Saturday, March 11, Dyck Arboretum will celebrate its 11th Go Green Leprechaun Run. The event will again include a 10K race and 2 mile fun run/walk for all ages, with St. Patrick’s Day-themed refreshments and a medal ceremony. Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 9:15 a.m. for both distances at Dyck Arboretum of the Plains, 177 West Hickory in Hesston. Both chip-timed distances will begin at 9:30.

What started out as a 2-mile fun run to encourage people to go “green” with wise environmental practices and to celebrate St Patrick’s Day expanded to also include a 10K run in 2014. Over the years, participants have also gotten into the Go Green spirit by dressing up in themed costumes.

“With this event, we have been able to engage the community in a healthy activity, which was an important goal of our founders,” said arboretum Education Coordinator and Race Director Brad Guhr. “Evie and Harold Dyck dreamed of creating a place for people young and old to congregate, have a recreational outlet and enjoy native plants in a prairie garden setting. These ideals provided inspiration and guidance for the development of our first ever Go Green Leprechaun Run in 2011.”

This year’s race swag options will include three black and green tri-blend shirt options: unisex short sleeve, ladies v-neck short sleeve and unisex long sleeve. Additional details and registration can be found online at dyckarboretum.org/arboretum-event/go-green-leprechaun-run-2023/

EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION is available through midnight on Wednesday, March 1, and ensures registrants will receive their race shirt on race day. Online registration will close midnight, Thursday, March 9, but in-person registration is available on March 10 at packet pickup (3 to 6 p.m.) and before the race March 11 (8:30 to 9:15 a.m.).

Business partners for the 2023 Leprechaun Run include Adrian & Pankratz, Attorneys at Law; AGCO Corporation; Golden Plains Credit Union; Kairos Consulting and Counseling, LLC, and Red Truck Painting.

For information about registering or volunteering, please visit www.dyckarboretum.org, or contact the arboretum office at arboretum@hesston.edu or call 620-327-8127.

Hesston College Performing Arts Presents The Apple Tree

Hesston College Performing Arts presents The Apple Tree on March 1 to 5, 2023, at the Hesston College Black Box Theater in Keim Center. The cast and crew are Hesston College students with a special appearance by a former Hesston College staff member and alum.

The Apple Tree is a work from Bock and Harnick, the same duo that created for Fiddler on the Roof and She Loves Me. The performance consists of three musical playlets with separate storylines yet connected by a theme. This play presents comedy, tragedy and romance.

“This show is so unique with its three-in-one structure,” said Director of Theatre Rachel Jantzi. “All the playlets fall under this familiar theme of choice and consequences and our cast has met the wonderful challenge of taking on a multitude of characters and vastly different genres of storytelling.”

The first playlet is The Diary of Adam and Eve by Mark Twain. The story tells the well-known tale in a new variation. The second playlet is a fable, The Lady or the Tiger. This performance tells a story of a forbidden love. The final playlet is Passionella, a modern twist on the Cinderella story that ends much more surprisingly than the original.

“This will be the first production that our new scenic and lighting designer, Micah Bachert, has created for Hesston College, and it is as unique as the show!” said Jantzi. “Every massive piece he designed is integral to the action and featured heavily throughout each story. I have had fun directing in such a creative space. This show is also special in that the band is featured onstage interacting with the characters.”

As an additional treat to this performance, Hesston College Theatre Guild members will serve an apple dessert for the audience to enjoy.

Tickets are available at the door or may be purchased at the Hesston College Bookstore (620-327-8105). For more information, call 620-327-8142.

The Small Glories Debut at Dyck Arboretum February 4

On Saturday, February 4, at 7 p.m. in Hesston, The Small Glories make their debut at the Prairie Window Concert Series at Dyck Arboretum of the Plains. The concert will take place in the Prairie Pavilion at the arboretum overlooking the lake.

Tickets are by reservation at https://dyckarboretum.org/arboretum-event/the-small-glories-2/ or by calling 620-327-8127. Cost of tickets is $20 for adults and $10 for children, plus tax. Proceeds benefit the arboretum’s mission to cultivate transformative relationships between people and the land.

Roots powerhouse duo The Small Glories are Cara Luft and JD Edwards, a musical tour-de-force partnership planted on the Canadian Prairies.

With a stage banter striking a unique balance between slapstick and sermon, these veteran singer-songwriters have a way of making time disappear, rooms shrink and audiences feel as they are right there on the stage with the band — writing the songs, living the songs, performing the songs. It’s not uncommon for listeners to find themselves laughing, dancing, crying or caught up in a good old fashioned sing-along.

“Luft is a Wailin’ Jennys alum whose work on the clawhammer banjo is to die for, while Edwards’ guitar and vocal harmonies deepen and enrich the duo’s sound.” — NPR Music

“Some things just work together: the Lennon and McCartney syndrome – and to witness a performance by The Small Glories is a rare opportunity to experience that indefinable quality that creates perfection… ” — David Allen, Americana UK

“… you can’t help but be drawn in by Luft’s soulful vocals and the instrumentation that is quietly powerful.” — AmericanaHighways.org

“…impressive and memorable. We’ve seen the success of duos like the Civil Wars, Mandolin Orange and Shovels & Rope. The Small Glories can now begin to take their rightful place.” — Glide Magazine

Sunflower Performing Arts Presents Our Song, Our Story: The New Generation of Black Voices

Sunflower Performing Arts presents Our Song, Our Story: The New Generation of Black Voices Feb. 6 at 7 p.m. at Hesston Mennonite Church. Performers include pianist and musical director Damien Sneed, soprano Jacqueline Echols, baritone Justin Austin and a string quartet.

Musical performances will include operatic arias, art songs, spirituals and jazz pieces. The musicians will also pay homage to Marian Anderson and Jessye Norman, African American opera singers and civil rights pioneers. “I’m thrilled that we can present this program of world class black artists performing such a great variety of musical styles,” said Holly Swartzendruber, Sunflower Performing Arts director and music professor at Hesston College.

Music composed from a variety of time periods will be performed. Composers may include George Frederic Handel, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppi Verdi, Richard Strauss, George Gershwin, Margaret Bonds, Harry T. Burleigh, Richard Smallwood and a newly commissioned work by Damien Sneed.

“It’s also wonderful that two of the musicians will lead a vocal master class for area high school voice students who were nominated by their choir directors and Hesston College voice students. What an important opportunity for our community!” said Swartzendruber.

Tickets are available at the door or may be purchased at the Hesston College Bookstore. For more information, call 620-327-8158.

Dyck Arboretum Kicks Off 2023 Winter Lecture Series with Author Heather Holm

On Tuesday, January 31, at 7 p.m., Dyck Arboretum of the Plains will kick off a busy season of educational events, first featuring as part of our Winter Lecture Series, “Attracting Bees and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants,” presented by Heather Holm.

The lecture will take place via Zoom.

Author of “Pollinators of Native Plants,” Holm will cover how native plants can be selected to attract specific bees and beneficial insects including predatory and parasitic wasps, beetles, flies, true bugs and lacewings. Participants will learn about the predator-prey relationships of these beneficial insects and how they help keep problem insect populations in balance. Holm will also cover the life cycles, diversity and nesting habitat of native bees with examples of native plants for different site conditions.

The Winter Lecture Series will return to in person gatherings at the Dyck Arboretum of the Plains Prairie Pavilion on February 28 with Public Land Manager Jason Black presenting on “McPherson Valley Wetlands: Past, Present and Future” and conclude on March 28 with Dr. Jackie Augustine, executive director of Audubon of Kansas presenting on “Home on the Range: Breeding Biology of Prairie Chickens.”

In addition, arboretum staff will host a Native Plant School beginning February 9, including a variety of classes about landscaping with native plants. Classes are $5 each.

The Barefoot Movement Comes to Dyck Arboretum on January 29

On Sunday, January 29, 2023, at 4 p.m. in Hesston, The Barefoot Movement will play for the first time at the Dyck Arboretum of the Plains Prairie Window Concert Series. The concert will take place in the Prairie Pavilion at the arboretum overlooking the lake.

Tickets are by reservation at https://dyckarboretum.org/arboretum-event/the-barefoot-movement or by calling 620-327-8127. Cost of tickets is $30 for adults and $20 for children, plus tax. Proceeds benefit the arboretum’s mission to cultivate transformative relationships between people and the land.

Acclaimed Americana group, The Barefoot Movement, is the brainchild of founding members Noah Wall and Tommy Norris. Emerging on the acoustic scene in 2011, they have continually navigated the alt-bluegrass waters through the years while refining that which gives them their particular sound. Invigorating and infused with a captivating honesty, The Barefoot Movement transports audiences to a place of complete enthrallment.

In North Carolina, 2006, front woman Noah Wall met mandolinist Tommy Norris in high school and discovered a convergence of aligned passions. That initial crackle of intensity never waned and instead became the force catalyzing the band through its various iterations. Today, The Barefoot Movement is comprised of Noah Wall —whose powerhouse vocals, songwriting and fiddle playing serve as the backbone of the band — mandolinist, composer and author Tommy Norris and touring guitarist Ben Howington, rounding out their unique blend of charming, modern roots music.

Their most recent release, 2021’s Pressing Onward, finds them exploring new musical territory while still standing firmly on their barefoot foundation: lush harmonies, thoughtful instrumentation and memorable melodies. Chuck Plotkin, the producer behind albums such as Springsteen’s Born in the U.S.A., and Dylan’s Shot of Love, among many others, emerged from retirement to co-produce the EP with Hank Linderman, whose engineering work has been showcased on the Eagles’ Long Road out of Eden and Linda Ronstadt’s Hummin’ to Myself, to name but a few.

In 2022, they began releasing a series of tunes under the banner “Covers for a Cause.” Recorded during the pandemic and previously released on their YouTube channel, the songs have been given a new life on streaming services, with every stream or download supporting the organization Soles4Souls.

Their energetic, joyous and heartfelt live performances have garnered them fans nationwide and beyond, and earned them the 2014 IBMA Momentum Award for Band of the Year.

The Barefoot Movement creates gloriously addictive, instantly memorable tunes shored up by silky smooth bluegrass and Americana harmonies and laced with tantalizing flecks of bluesy grit.

In addition to high quality acoustic music, this concert will feature delicious savory and sweet food options for sale during intermissions, with a menu provided by Crust and Crumb Company. The menu for January 29 includes sausage gravy Danish, spinach artichoke hand pie, date-stuffed Kouign Amann and pistachio orange eclairs. All menu items are $5 each.

Dyck Arboretum of the Plains is a 29-acre public garden and arboretum located in Hesston, Kansas, and operates under the auspices of Hesston College. Its mission is to cultivate transformative relationships between people and the land.

College Announces Fall 2022 Academic Honors

Hesston College Registrar Megan Leary announced the names of full-time students whose Fall 2022 semester grades earned them a place on the Dean’s List (3.90 to 4.00 GPA) and Honor Roll (3.50 to 3.89 GPA).

Dean’s List – first-year students

Connor Bear, Sequim, Washington
Celia Bontrager, Milford, Nebraska
Dawson Duerksen, Goessel, Kansas
Mahdi Essawi, Jaljulia, Israel
Tana Hayworth, Lincoln, Kansas
Akana Nakamura, Hachinohe, Japan
Kylee Ohman, Claremore, Oklahoma
Lauren Payne, Geuda Springs, Kansas
Elias Stoll, Harrisonburg, Virginia
My Tran, Buon Ma Thuot, Vietnam
Kolby Wallace, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Eyael Woldeyes, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Dean’s List – sophomores

Kezia Angeline, Semarang, Indonesia
Trenton Canaan, Cheney, Kansas
Alexis Driscoll, Moundridge, Kansas
David Duncan, Wichita, Kan.
Jesse Kanagy, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Suzannah Karako, Galena, Missouri
Haydon Mead, Eureka, Kansas
Ginny Miller, Rockingham, Virginia
Loribeth Miller, Chouteau, Oklahoma
Sadie Oesch, Caldwell, Idaho
Reese Peterson, Omaha, Nebraska
Lisa Schmidt, Moundridge, Kansas
Samuel Wiese, Omaha, Nebraska
Fikir Yemane, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Dean’s List – juniors

Shelby Bontrager, McPherson, Kansas
Maria Gerber, Garland, Texas
Fortesa Hysenaj, Istog, Kosovo
Trey Lasseter, Valley Center, Kansas
Kelly Miller, Archbold, Ohio
Jessica Raharjo, Semarang, Indonesia
Katherine Robeck, Sweet Home, Oregon
Aidan Swartzendruber, Henderson, Nebraska
Isaac Troyer, Millersburg, Ohio

Dean’s List – seniors

Jennifer Komarek, Sedgwick, Kansas
Kara Longenecker, Rockingham, Virginia
Tobie Plett, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Jara Strickland, El Dorado, Kansas
Isabelle Wortz, Hutchinson, Kansas

Honor Roll – first-year students

Hikari Babasaki, Osaka, Japan
Ashlyn Baker, Krum, Texas
Olvin Duron Rivera, San Fransisco do Yojoa, Honduras
Anna Friesen, Halstead, Kansas
Nicolee Friesen, Halstead, Kansas
José Guzman, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Jordan Johnston, Wichita, Kansas
Emma Killingsworth, Liberty Hill, Texas
Deklan Kulaski, Missoula, Montana
Kira Kumada, Hadano, Japan
Pariss Lloyd, Clearwater, Kansas
Luke McGinnis, Andover, Kansas
Andrew Miller, Millersburg, Ohio
Destiny Nuñez, Topeka, Kansas
Larry Ruffin, Choctaw, Oklahoma
Hayden Shepherd, West Jordan, Utah
Rachelle Smith, Moundridge, Kansas
Tengisbold Sukhbaatar, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Skyler Syverson, Grand Forks, North Dakota
Addison Turner, Hutchinson, Kansas
Marinocean Widjaja, Bintaro, Indonesia

Honor Roll – sophomores

Brody Burnette, Richmond, Missouri
Makinzy Cain, Rose Hill, Kansas
Olivier Cruz Camilo, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Samantha Espinoza, Lincolnville, Kansas
Derick Fonseca, San Pedro Sula, Honduras
Mackenzie Grove, Murphy, North Carolina
Luke Huyard, Harrisonburg, Virginia
Malachi Lind, Goshen, Indiana
Kaylee Manning, El Dorado, Kansas
Madelyn Mullet, Milford, Nebraska
Ryan Wilder, San Marcos, Texas
Catryna Winzer, Augusta, Kansas

Honor Roll – juniors

Tahj Burrows, Nassau, Bahamas
Billy Cuesto, Plantation, Florida
Alisha Dorsing, Othello, Washington
Ayden Everett, Clovis, New Mexico
Macy LeGrange, Guymon, Oklahoma
James Peters, Hesston, Kansas

Honor Roll – seniors

Luke Allison, Hurley, South Dakota
Romina Xhari, Lezhe, Albania

Lindsay Lou Returns to the Prairie Window Concert Series January 15

On Sunday, January 15, 2023, at 4 p.m. in Hesston, Lindsay Lou returns to the Dyck Arboretum of the Plains, launching the second half of the Prairie Window Concert Series (PWCS) 2022-23 season. The concert will take place in the Prairie Pavilion at the arboretum overlooking the lake.

Tickets are by reservation at https://dyckarboretum.org/arboretum-event/lindsay-lou-2/ or by calling 620-327-8127. Cost of tickets is $35 for adults and $25 for children, plus tax. Proceeds benefit the arboretum’s mission to cultivate transformative relationships between people and the land.

Lindsay Lou has been making soulful, poignant music for the last decade. An undeniable powerhouse, Lou’s remarkable gifts as a singer, songwriter, musician and performer demand the listener’s attention. Her singing floats over the masterful playing and deep groove of her band with both a fierce intensity and a tender intimacy.

The daughter of a coal miner and the granddaughter of a Rainbow Gathering healer, Lindsay Lou grew up with room in her heart for both blue collar grit and mystical mind expansion. She describes her family as a group of close knit creatives, their lives influenced heavily by her maternal grandmother’s radical ideals and zest for life. Surrounded by the Great Lakes and her musical family, she naturally rooted herself in the Michigan music community.

Raised with this sense of community, Lou recalls always being surrounded by music. So when the time came for her to join a band, for Lou, it felt like finding a home away from home. Her career, like her life, has been full of great moments of kismet. Growing up, Lou built her repertoire by practicing her vocals, and she picked up the guitar so she could play with her Uncle Stuckey. The skills she honed during the days of learning to sing and play with her family led to a wide variety of musical opportunities, singing in choir in high school, attending an elite summer program at Interlochen on scholarship and winning awards for her talents. Before long Lou began to tour the world with a band of her own, The Flatbellys, and later The Sweet Water Warblers. The siren songbird and her band flew down South to take their place among friends in Nashville, Tenn.

The move prompted Lindsay Lou’s fourth album, Southland (released April 2018), which is a transformative and heart-wrenching ten-song stunner. Lou’s voice and its unique ability to create an expansive, almost physically tangible soundscape carries each song on Southland forward. Produced by Sam Kassirer (Josh Ritter, Lake Street Dive, Elephant Revival), Southland expanded on her 2015 crossover album, Ionia, which had staked her unique sound apart from the more bluegrass stylings of her earlier releases.

Today, touring nationally and internationally year round, Lindsay Lou and her band continue to collect a mass of friends and fans along the way. Notable U.S. festival plays include Telluride Bluegrass festival, Merlefest, Stagecoach, Redwing, ROMP, GreyFox and a slew of others. Abroad, they have appeared at Scotland’s Shetland Island Folk Fest and the Celtic Connections tour, Australia’s National Folk Festival and others. Of the live show, Roots Magazine reviewed “…(Lindsay Lou is) the most affectingly expressive singer since Amy Winehouse, backed by the new Punch Brothers.” The Boot, who featured Lindsay Lou Band as a “Can’t Miss Act” at AmericanaFest 2018, says “…Lou brings introspection and masterful vocal work to her live show.”

A trailblazer in the music community, Lou’s recent set of singles, The Suite Sweets, make it clear that she can’t be pigeon-holed into any prefabricated formula.

In addition to high quality acoustic music, this concert will feature delicious savory and sweet food options for sale during intermission, with a menu provided by Crust and Crumb Company. The menu for January 15 includes sweet options – galette des rois, lemon drop kouign amann – as well as savory – chicken salad on croissant and brie and mango on walnut wheatberry sourdough. All menu items are $5 each.