Oconee Youth School of Performance

★★★★★Steven Nugent

I love Broadway. I love the acting and the raw emotion of live on stage work. One of my favorite plays on Broadway is Matilda. The storyline is great. Tonight Janna and I were invited to OYSP to watch our friends Lina & Logan’s daughter perform as Matilda. Needless to say, when she told me about it at Easter brunch, I was excited to see her perform. What I wasn’t ready for, was the Broadwayesque delivery by local youth players. Now mind you, I’ve never seen an OYSP performance up to now. Nothing to gauge my expectations. To say I was blown away would be an understatement. The singing, the blocking, movement, monologues (and there are many), and the direction of over a 100 young performers was without a doubt, REMARKABLE!!! Funny thing is I’ve been to so many gatherings with Terra and Shane, have many friends whose kids have spent countless hours training at OYSP, but have just never had the time to see a performance. For some of you reading this, it may be old news. To this guy, I’m now a fan. I may even go back next week for an encore. If you could have seen the attention to detail and passion these young people put into their craft, you would be inspired. I sure was! And having seen Matilda performed twice by Broadway players, I can say without hesitation, this group killed it! Thank you Lina & Logan for the invite. Thank you OYSP for creating a special place for young performers with talent. A place of expression. Everyone shined bright tonight. If you’re looking to smile, laugh, and maybe even cry….go see Matilda at OYSP tomorrow or next week! You won’t regret it.

★★★★★Kim Arenas

All three of my girls have been a part of OYSP and OYP for over 15 years. We have had the best experience and love all that they have to offer: classes, camps, shows, competition dance ... we have been a part of it all!!! My 9 year old spends about 12 hours a week there and she still wishes she could be there more! The teachers are so loving and so talented and so gifted in the way they teach and interact with all the children.

★★★★★Suzanne Voyles

Our daughter loved/loves being a member of the OYSP/OYP family! Moving to a new area as a middle schooler came with its challenges so we were so happy to be welcomed into the OYSP/OYP community. As a former student and now as a staff member, the studio will always be the place where our daughter feels she belongs, the place where she had so much fun singing, dancing and acting with friends and where the directors and teachers genuinely cared for her as an individual.

★★★★★Sharron Hannon

For 20+ years, I've watched my son and daughter-in-law pour their hearts and souls into sharing the performing arts with young people in the surrounding area through OYSP and its sister organization, Oconee Youth Playhouse. It has been so amazing to watch them pursue their passion and to see the magic they work with the hundreds of kids who have come through the doors of their studio every year over those two decades! And now I get to see my grandsons take part in classes, dance and musical theater company and shows with OYP...they love every minute of it and so do I!!

★★★★★Melinda DeMaria

As our daughter is about to begin her senior year of high school it seems like a perfect opportunity to reflect on her time in school and her activities. Her primary activity outside of school has been dancing with OYSP and doing the shows since she was in kindergarten! When it came time for our second daughter to find her path she truly wanted to have the opportunities afforded by OYSP/OYP! Both of our girls have grown as dancers, singers and performers but also learned tremendous time management skills, loyalty, how to receive feedback and how to be a friend. Their scope of friends spans many counties who each bring many experiences to the table to help our girls grow. The staff at OYSP/OYP have been compassionate, caring and most willing to meet the girls where they were with their skill and push them appropriately to grow to the levels where they can be successful and proud of the work they present on the stage. For our family, this has been a wonderful place to be!