Lovell Studios

Upstage Theatre for Youth is an organization that is totally dedicated to the youth of Payson (where Afton is from peeps)and its surrounding areas. The board members are not paid and everything is run entirely by volunteers.

I was involved with several productions in the early developing stages (music director) and I cannot believe how totally AWESOME Upstage has become over the years!! The plays are so well done, you can't help but sit back and say to yourself...

"These are just little kids!? They totally ROCK!!!"

Every part of Upstage Theatre is a way for kids to learn and grow (participating youth are between the ages of 5-18 years old). The directors are often youth who started as cast members. When the kids are 18, they are encouraged to try directing or assist in directing. The backstage is also run by the youth. The crew behind the scenes, including those in charge of props consist of youth who learned the ropes from the crew before them. They are given opportunities to help in the building, designing and painting of the sets under the supervision of the directors. Costumes are usually provided by parent volunteers of the cast, but the youth have often been employed to help with this task as well. Cast and crew members are responsible for tickets sales and also help with concessions during intermission.

At present, there is only one aspect of Upstage Theatre that they must hire someone to do and that is SOUND. For several years, Upstage has been trying to purchase their own sound equipment but because they don’t make enough profit off of their productions (and with the economy the way it has been) they have been unable to reach this goal.

Chad Hymas