Ojai Youth Entertainers Studio

We saw a wonderful rendition of the play The 39 Steps here today. We had seen this play twice over the years in London and thought that this version was every bit as good! This is a delightful little theater that put on a very good show in a cozy atmosphere, GREAT FUN!!!

It’s hard to read how harsh the nice people of Ojai can be towards this struggling non-​profit. If you are a business owner, you know the high price of real estate in our little community, and this can be even more challenging for a non-​profit arts organization. Most of the enrollment fees for classes goes to the exorbitant rent for this wonderful, old, but very expensive building (it may as well be in LA, the rent is that expensive and the theatre company that was renting the building before OYES, couldn’t stay in business any longer). The staff/​instructors give much of their time and talents with the kids, for which those of us who have been involved with the theatre, are endlessly grateful. It is one of the only venues in town that can accommodate a true children’s theatre program. I’m sorry for the 2 bad experiences but I cannot say enough good things in my 3 ½ years in having my once very shy child in this program.

Our family and friends refer to Oyes as the «Oh No Studio». Very expensive for your child to participate in classes. $ 280? Plus costumes, plus tickets, plus a $ 40 dvd… on and on. Incredibly disappointed in the way the director handled missing information. Just find the info and move on. Was it worth loosing a customer because you were trying to prove them wrong in public? Completely unprofessional and lacking in communication skills. Watching preschool children roam out of the building and then having to be lured back to class with a bucket of candy isn’t what I want to pay for. Speaking to other parents made it clear that this is the norm and not an off event. Not what I would expect from this lovely and art driven community. Complete disappointment.

Let’s get this straight. If you bill yourself as a community organization that supports the arts, and conducts fundraisers for their cause from locals… you need to welcome outside venders/​locals to help the community and reach more children and families in the area. Not only can some families not afford theater classes there, there are a limited amount of scholarships and locations offered for kids who are talented and can’t afford to join a class in this area. I can tell by the amount they charge to rent the theater that they are not giving out any scholarships any time soon.
This theater does not allow locals to rent if they are teaching any type of theater classes. So, if you are donating to any of OYES for any of their fundraisers, please be aware that they are not a «community» theater and turn down local residents who want to rent their room that looks like a messy storage room for $ 30 per hour and/​or their tiny theater for no less then $ 450 per day. After all it is not the best venue in town, but easy to find since it is the only actual theater with a stage here. I will not be attending any shows at this theater or telling others to do so and I have been a local here for over ten years and both of my children have attended various private and public schools in the Ojai area. The previous owners of the theater were all about «community.» I despise organizations like this one that lace their own pockets instead of serving the community. They should not have .org after their name.