Odyssey Dance Theatre to near after 28 years
Estimated learn time: 4-5 mins
DRAPER — The preferred Odyssey Dance Theatre is making ready to mention good-bye to Utah’s arts group after 28 years of industrial.
When Derryl Yeager, a former Ballet West essential artist, based the dance corporate in 1994 and started his function as its director, he had desires of what it might transform.
“It was once my dream that it might transform what it has transform,” he mentioned. “There is loads of issues I wanted we may have achieved extra of, however while you take a look at the totality — overall quantity of labor that we have achieved and items that we have created, the artwork that we have been part of — it is been a super journey. It is been a ravishing Odyssey.”
The dance corporate has produced a wide selection of presentations all through the years together with the once a year Halloween hit “Mystery,” a number of Christmas presentations, “Romeo and Juliet” and “It is a Superb Lifestyles.”
“We’ve got had an overly, very robust fortify from the group in the case of coming to look our productions. ‘Mystery’ is the massive display. I simply have no idea what it’s about Utahns, however they love their Halloween,” mentioned Yeager.
The price ticket gross sales from “Mystery” each and every yr account for about 90{99d7ae7a5c00217be62b3db137681dcc1ccd464bfc98e9018458a9e2362afbc0} of the dance corporate’s finances, he added.
“No one does that, no artwork group comes on the subject of that. And to be able to me, I am maximum happy with that — that we did not must continue to exist the dole or by means of the kindness of a few stranger to come back in and provides us finances to do what we do, as a result of it is roughly pricey,” mentioned Yeager.
There is loads of issues I wanted we may have achieved extra of, however while you take a look at the totality — overall quantity of labor that we have achieved and items that we have created, the artwork that we have been part of — it is been a super journey. It is been a ravishing Odyssey.
–Derryl Yeager, Odyssey Dance Theatre
The Odyssey Dance Theatre employs 24 dancers, with greater than part of them being Utah-born, in line with its website online. The corporate has carved an area within the dance group that has allowed skilled dancers to stay in Utah.
“We simply discovered that we most likely had over 400 dancers that experience come in the course of the corporate, had been concerned within the corporate through the years,” mentioned Yeager. “We are very happy with the legacy, of what we delivered to the desk … as a result of we had been a qualified corporate with no need to visit New York or LA.”
But some dancers produced by means of Odyssey Dance Theatre would practice the highlight on different phases out of doors of the state, with a number of showing on the preferred display “So You Suppose You Can Dance.”
Odyssey dancer Hailee Payne made into the highest 4 in Season 12. Marcquet Hill and Tanisha Belnap seemed within the most sensible 20 in Season 11. Tadd Gadduang was once 3rd runner-up in Season 8. Brandon Bryant got here in 2d in Season 5. Thayne Jasperson, Gev Manoukian and Matt Dorame, all made it to the finals of Season 4.
Following Bryant’s 2d position in Season 5, Gov. Gary Herbert declared Aug. 20, 2009, as Brandon Bryant Day. The governor recommended Odyssey Dance Theatre on its good fortune and famous that it had “been the most important and viable a part of the humanities and tradition of the good state of Utah.”
The dance corporate has additionally expanded past Utah phases and launched into excursions to Europe for 16 consecutive years. The Ecu excursion incorporated more than one stops and spotlighted a number of dance paperwork in what Yeager known as a “very American smorgasbord.”
Whilst the closure of the Odyssey Dance Theatre would possibly come as a surprise for lots of, Yeager and his spouse, Cheryl, have thought to be the verdict for a number of years. The couple has opted to near the “ma-and-pop store” and retire, deciding to move on a undertaking for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Cheryl Yeager was once Odyssey’s dress clothier and manufacturing director.
“We’ve got appeared round and we have not met or labored with any one who in point of fact has the choice, the power, the fervour, the skill-set to do what we have been doing a lot of these years. That is in point of fact a tall order and, truthfully, if any individual desires to practice in our footsteps it isn’t that onerous to do their very own factor,” mentioned Yeager.
And whilst the legacy of the Odyssey Dance Theatre is coming to an in depth, a few of it is going to continue to exist in its masses of costumes. The dance corporate is web hosting a “storage sale” on the Utah COPA Draper, 352 W. 12300 South, from 9 a.m. to five p.m. on Saturday. The sale will come with the corporate’s selection of costumes and props.
“Each and every a type of costumes has a bit of tale in the back of it,” mentioned Yeager. “We really feel excellent that it might move on and proceed that legacy for any individual else.”
The theatre’s Halloween hit, “Mystery,” shall be carried out for the ultimate time from Sept. 23 to Oct. 31. Places and dates come with:
- Park Town’s Egyptian Theatre — Sept. 23 to Oct. 9
- Logan’s Ellen Eccles Theatre — Sept. 26 and Sept. 27
- Ogden’s Peery’s Egyptian Theater — Oct. 3 and Oct. 4
- Salt Lake Town’s Kingsbury Corridor — Oct. 10 to Oct. 22
- St. George’s Tuacahn Amphitheatre— Oct. 25 to Oct. 29, with one Halloween efficiency on Oct. 31.
For more info referring to dates or tickets consult with oddesydance.com.
