Utah Odyssey Dance Theatre to close after 28 years

DRAPER, Utah — The well-known, local Odyssey Dance Theatre will be closing this fall after 28 years.

A release from the theater states, “After a 28-year mission of providing a space for talented dancers to stay in their home state of Utah and perform, as well as attracting talent from all over the world to Utah, Odyssey Founder and Artistic Director Derryl Yeager and his wife, Costume Designer/Costume Production Director Cheryl Yeager, will be onto the next ‘mission’ in their lives, serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”

According to their website, Odyssey employs 24 dancers, more than half of whom are Utah born, and are proficient in every style of dance, including ballet; tap; jazz; modern; Irish; ballroom; and funk/hip-hop.

They are most known for their “Thriller” dance performance every October, which has become a tradition for many Utahns each Halloween season.

Derryl Yeager, Odyssey founder and artistic director, spoke to KSL NewsRadio about the closure.

“We’ve been doing this for 28 years, and my wife works with me she does all the costumes and things like that,” Yeager said. “We’ve always wanted to go and serve a mission for the Church and so we…we’ve decided to close down the company here after we finish Thriller this fall and move on into another chapter of our lives.”

They’re not planning to return to the business, but Yeager said anything is possible.

“We’re ready to move on and let other people fill the void if they’d like to,” he said.

So for those interested in seeing the Halloween classic, Thriller, this fall will be the last chance.

“This will be our final Thriller… People have been so supportive of this show for all these years, it’s been the show that’s really has made the company possible, and so we’re very thankful for this show and we hope people will take the time to come out and see it one last time,” Yeager said.

He said working with his wife, Cheryl Yeager, has been a wonderful ride.

“We enjoy working together, we’re kind of one of those very rare couples that really enjoy working together.”

Due to the closure, Odyssey Dance Theatre is selling costumes from 28 years of performances.

“We’re having, this Saturday, a big sale of all of our costumes,” Derryl Yeager said.

The sale will be Saturday from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. More information on that sale can be found here.

For a full list of costumes and to claim one in advance, click here.