‘Thriller’ producer tries his talent at ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’

The Odyssey Dance Theatre, the same company that brought the Halloween dance production “Thriller” to Utah State University in October, is now taking on another holiday project: Christmas.

December 16-24 the Odyssey Dance Theatre will present an original holiday production, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” based on the classic film with James Stewart. The story follows a man, George Bailey, driven by circumstance to the point of no return who gets the chance to see the world as it would have been without him and eventually realizes his ordinary life is really extraordinary.

Conceived, directed and choreographed by Derryl Yeager with original score by Sam Cardon, “It’s a wonderful life will be a world-premiere event for the whole family to enjoy.”

In a press release from Odyssey Dance, Yeager explains how the whole production began as dream and became a reality.

“I’ve been thinking about and planning this project for nearly 10 years and with Kingsbury Hall coming on board as a co-producer, it’s finally going to become reality. It will have the look of a Broadway show but the story will be told through dance and the use of voice-overs very much like the film.” Yeager said.

With the entertaining creative vision of Derryl Yeager and the many dance styles typical of Odyssey. This unique portrayal of this classic heart-warming story will likely draw a number of viewers this holiday tradition.

“It’s our first chance to create a production with a story line that goes from the beginning to the end instead of a series of vignettes such as highly successful Thriller,” Yeager said. “I’ve got an amazing team of people on board for the production. Come and see how we bring this heart-warming story to life.”

Tickets can be purchased online at www.odysseydance.com or at the Kingsbury Hall ticket office. Prices range from $15-35 with a special two for one deal offered to students with I.D. This offer makes it possible for students to purchase two tickets for the price of one four hours prior to a performance.

-nnaylor@cc.usu.edu