Make Hay While the Sun Shines

Join us Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026 (rain date Sept. 26) as Sauk County farmland emerges as the stage for Make Hay While the Sun Shines, an agri/cultural production featuring Sarah Gordon Butler's Hay Rake Ballet. Tickets are required.

An opening act by Wild Space Dance Company leads the audience past straw sculpture by artist Brian Sobaski to the living stage for the Hay Rake Ballet where choreographed farm machinery, harvest rhythms and live music converge in an unforgettable production. Rooted in the fertile space between culture and agriculture, Make Hay While the Sun Shines invites audiences to celebrate the harvest and our connections to the land.

The ballet frames everyday farming practices within a classical dance aesthetic, and pays homage to the inherent craft and significance of family farm-scale agricultural practices. It represents a rare fusion of contemporary art and lived rural experience, offering a window into the culture embedded in agriculture and space for inspiration, creative exploration, and pride of place.

Be sure to check out the “lobby” field for merchandise, photo opportunities, and hobnobbing with the stars after the show!