Emil Lippe
Visual Journalist

Seth Hill prepares a "potion" for a customer at the Tarot Cafe in Watertown on Wednesday, April 8, 2020. The idea for the cafe itself started simple when Mr. Hill was in his early 20’s, he read a series of Korean comics titled The Tarot Cafe. “I was like, I want to have that one day. I just held on to it. And then x amount of years later, I created it.”

Nathaniel McCarten, of Albany, performs as Opal Essence during the Angels and Demons Drag Show Game Night event at the Franklin Building in downtown Watertown on Friday, February 15, 2020. Prior to the pandemic, The Tarot Cafe hosted a number of events such as drag shows, sign language meet ups, yoga classes and more.

Seth Hill hands off an espresso "potion" to his mother, Sandy Hill, outside of the Franklin Building in downtown Watertown on Wednesday, April 8, 2020. Receiving coffee from the seat of her car instead of inside the cozy corners of the cafe in itself was “very sad,” she said, “I like his cafe a lot. And I like the atmosphere. I like to go in and just chat with them and hang out. For him to have to come out to the car with coffee. It was very sad.”

A stone lies on a table amongst other items during a Virtual Drag Show Game Night put on by the owners of the Tarot Cafe in downtown Watertown on Saturday. Mr. Hill is a polytheist, meaning he believes in multiple gods. He and Mr. Reece arrange specific objects in their home to call upon their good favor.

Seth Hill laughs at a play while sitting next to Sexton Reece during the Watertown Wolves home game against the Carolina Thunderbirds at Watertown Municipal Arena on Friday, March 20, 2020.

Sexton Reece takes a sip of his coffee while planning events for the coming months at The Tarot Cafe in Watertown on Thursday, March 5, 2020. “Once the cafe had to be shut down, it gave us some time to just really reflect on the cafe and the business altogether,” Mr. Reece said.

Seth Hill, dressed as “Artemis Fox,” talks to the audience during a Virtual Drag Show Game Night put on by the owners of the Tarot Cafe on Saturday, April 25, 2020. To make a profit, the couple would take song requests during their Facebook Live shows, making sure viewers had constant access to their PayPal information in order to complete transactions. "We can still have fun with one another and embrace social distancing," Mr. Hill said to his viewers as the stream began, "so grab a drink and get ready for the show!"

Sexton Reece, dressed as Berri Wild, dances in his living room as artificial bills flutter to the ground during a Virtual Drag Show at his home in downtown Watertown on Saturday, April 25, 2020. "I haven't done anything like that before," Mr. Reece said, "I figured, maybe three people would buy a song, but literally, we made like $300-$400 off of doing one show."

Shadows of hanging plants are visible in the hallway in the home of the owners of The Tarot Cafe in Watertown on Saturday, April 25, 2020. “No one really knew what was going to happen,” Mr. Reece added. “Getting through the lockdown and everything was scary, but we somehow adapted with it...reaching out to an online audience was definitely something we had in mind. The coronavirus kind of just pushed us in that direction. So it was kind of a good thing.”

From left, Seth Hill follows Sexton Reece, center, as he carries a shelf across the room to install at the Tarot Cafe in Watertown on Friday, June 19, 2020. Since the COVID-19 pandemic reached the North Country in March, the two had to close their cafe and have since decided to turn the business into an apothecary, or pharmacy.

A ouija board lies on top of a miniature grand piano inside the Tarot Cafe in Watertown on Tuesday, February 10, 2020. The owner of the Tarot Cafe, Seth Hill, also known as Psychic Seth, offers psychic readings at his cafe. "I definitely think that I've been a bridge for spirituality in this town," says Mr. Hill, "the cafe has become a hub for spirituality and spiritual guidance."

Seth Hill wraps his arm around Sexton Reece as their peer at their new shelves inside the Tarot Cafe in downtown Watertown on Friday, June 19, 2020. The new name of the business will be the Magick Apothecary, offering natural herbs, teas and tinctures to help cure common ailments. "I want to empower Watertown," Mr. Hill says, "I want to make spirituality and witchcraft not seem scary. I love making Watertown weird one step at a time.” Due to complications with the pandemic, their grand opening was on Monday, October 5, 2020 at the Salmon Run Mall.