Going out into nature was a family tradition in Janet’s early life in Idaho. She would canoe on Jenny Lake and visit Jackson Hole back before the streets were paved. Her father was a geologist working in remote locations across the country, where she learned to love the land.

She also loved art. “It was my sanctuary when I was a little kid. My grandmother had an amazing collection of illustrated books, including [Robert Louis Stevenson’s] Treasure Island illustrated by
N. C. Wyeth. I was fascinated by his artwork, and so as early as I can remember I would just draw.”

From the age of 14 until she graduated from college, she worked in a nature center in Connecticut where they would raise baby raccoons and foxes–and she would draw them. The naturalists at the preserve were a huge influence on her. She continued to build a life that would meld her art with her love for the outdoors and passion for protecting the environment.

With a degree in outdoor recreation, Janet landed a job with the US Forest Service managing the Ski and Snow Ranger program. She was part of the environmental and cultural education program in Big and Little Cottonwood canyons’ ski areas, where she also directed about 20 volunteers who led skiing groups from the four ski resorts on tours to learn about the outdoors and environment. The program still exists today, now in partnership with Cottonwood Canyons Foundation. In her free time, she painted.

In the quiet hours of early morning or dusk, Janet would venture into nature, hiking until she found a scene that sparked inspiration. Carrying a small canvas and paints, she created her plein air works—a French term for painting outdoors, where artists capture the ever-changing light, atmosphere, and character of the landscape in real time. “You can’t mess around too long,” Janet says when searching for a spot, “because you want to catch the light at just the right time.” Her paintings were done in one sitting for about twenty minutes to an hour in each location, both for the light and because “you have oil paint and it’s messy, and you get it on you, and I’m picking flies out of it,” Janet says with a laugh.

But her goal was never perfection. “My goal was to really capture the natural colors out there rather than get a finished piece because you can’t, from a photograph, really get accurate color. The camera only has [about] 254 colors, so you lose so much. It’ll take the colors in a shadow and just make them flat, when there are so many beautiful colors in a shadow.”

During her time with the US Forest Service, Janet connected with amazing individuals who allowed her to create art for signs and resources at the National Parks, National Forests, and State and local natural recreation areas. Tourists who visit noteworthy sites like the Hoover Dam, Pawnee National Grassland, and multiple National Forests across the western United States will see Janet’s work on the informational signs that teach them about the area.

As years passed, though, her inspiration for landscape art waned. “I had some work in a local gallery, and a super cool older woman came in, and she goes, ‘These are just pretty paintings. This is not art.’ And I knew exactly what she meant. . . and said, ‘You know, you’re right.’”

She took a step to stretch her skills: figure drawing. “I’ve always wanted to do figures, but they’re intimidating. They’re very hard. If you can draw and paint the figure, you can paint and draw anything, because if something’s off on the figure, anybody can pick it out. You can just tell, and so I said, ‘It’s time.’”

Beginning with open studios like DRAW Inc. and Visual Arts Institute in Salt Lake City, she would show up and sketch multiple models in 20-minute chunks, building up her skills. She discovered a supportive community in these groups and, a year ago, she was invited to join a group of artists, hosted by well-known artist Booker Tueller, who gather once a week for two and a half hours and use the same model in the same pose for a month. These figures are a part of her newest collection of paintings in her studio.

Some are still just figures, but in others she has begun adding in backgrounds that hail back to her love for landscapes, animals, and the natural world. Shadowy foliage and creatures take shape behind her female figures.

“I’m trying to get the figure to morph in and out of the space and blend with the landscape. . . . What I’d like to do is get this concept of duality and non-duality and how we morph in and out of our memories and our space.” The creatures represent the parts of you that you feel you can’t talk about–imagination, experience, and spirituality. Though still works in progress, the paintings radiate a depth of emotion that is impossible to miss.

Several of these paintings will soon be on display in a December art show featuring the talented artists from Booker Tueller’s group.

janetjohnsonartist.com

Sausha has raised and trained 29 wolves in her lifetime, continuing a legacy that began with her parents, Doug and Lynne Seus. One of the most famous animals trained by her parents—on the property directly next to Sausha’s current home—was Bart the Bear, a 1,500-pound, 9.5-foot-tall Kodiak bear who starred in notable films including Legends of the Fall, The Bear, and The Edge. Sausha was “literally raised with bear cubs in the kitchen.”

Her first taste of wolf training started when she was fourteen years old. “My dad was on a movie set in the Uintas, and it was waist-deep snow. One of his assistants got sick […] so he didn’t have enough manpower to do the job. He handed me two wolves and said, ‘Whatever you do, don’t let go.’ And that was literally my training.” Sausha smiled as she continued, “He came back ten minutes later, and I was face down in the snow. But I didn’t let go! He said, ‘Good job!’ So that was my initiation.” By her 20s and 30s, she had helped her parents raise two packs of 12 wolves that were also involved in the film industry.

Norma and Pam may not have grown up with wolves, but their life journeys led them both to Sausha and the Wolves of Wasatch. Drawing on a background in leadership development, Norma spent years helping corporate teams discover their strengths and work more effectively together. Along the way, she discovered the value and power of guided experiences that gently push people beyond their comfort zones, creating new neural pathways that expand learning, resilience, and creative thinking.

For Pam, those new pathways became deeply personal. After overcoming a heroin addiction 14 years ago through Native American medicine, sweat lodges, prayer, and a renewed connection to the earth, she later found herself battling Lyme disease and slipping back into a place of exhaustion and despair. Nothing seemed to help until Sausha invited her to meet the wolves. Pam described the heaviness in her body that plagued her daily existence. But as she walked with the wolves, they would curl around her legs, walk away, and shake off. She was emotional and had chills as she explained how the wolves looked into her eyes, and it felt as though they had recognized her pain, took it, and literally shook it off of her. “Every time I made eye contact, every time I was able to touch this animal, healing traveled through my hands and into my heart,” she said. “It was one of the most beautiful moments of my life because it gave me hope.” Her Lyme disease didn’t disappear, but the encounter gave her something equally powerful: hope and a memory of healing she continues to draw strength from.

Like humans, wolves are deeply social animals that draw strength from the structure of a pack. For the two timber wolves in Sausha’s care, Apollo and Wizard, that pack includes Sausha, her dogs, and Norma and Pam. Their familiar presence helps the wolves feel secure during encounters, while their calm guidance also puts first-time visitors at ease, creating an environment where meaningful connections can unfold.

For some visitors, arriving at Sausha’s property can be an intimidating experience—and understandably so. Wolves are wild animals and predators, but as Sausha pointed out, they are the opposite of how we have portrayed them in our myths and legends like the big, bad wolf in The Three Little Pigs or Little Red Riding Hood. Wolves are naturally shy, sensitive creatures. Still, safety remains Sausha’s top priority. Decades of experience working with wolves have given her a rare ability to recognize the smallest changes in their behavior and understand each animal’s unique personality.

Sausha reads people as naturally as she reads wolves. From the moment she welcomed me, I felt her rare ability to put others at ease and form genuine connections. That gift is strengthened by her training as a chaplain, allowing her to connect with people from all spiritual backgrounds. Deeply rooted in her own spirituality, Sausha believes one of the greatest challenges of modern life is our disconnection from our divine nature, the land, and the natural world. Helping people rediscover those connections is at the heart of her work with Wolves of Wasatch.

Her passion and emotion were palpable when she shared, “I don’t want to be perceived like I’m this ‘wolf guru girl.’ I’m not, you know, I’m a human being that has been trained by my life experiences to combine these passions. I don’t consider myself a guru in any respect, but this world is so in need of it today, to come back to who we are, and our spirits, and our connection with the Divine Source–whatever your philosophy or your heart deems that to be. That’s the big thing. If we can find the Divine in each other, we have some ability to get past what’s happening in the world today.”

Touched by her words, I took a deep breath, laughed a little, and then it was time for me to meet the wolf. While Sausha retrieved Wizard, I sat next to a fire pit, where they host drum circles with the wolves, the foothills of Heber sweeping up behind me. Apollo, getting up in age, has hip issues and wasn’t doing well that day, so he stayed in the compound, accompanied by one of Sausha’s dogs so he wouldn’t get lonely. I watched as Sausha and Wizard emerged from the barn, noticing Wizard’s excitement to see some of his pack. Keeping in mind the instructions Sausha gave me, I let go of thinking about my article or to-do list, and let myself be fully present in the moment. As she and Wizard entered our little space of the yard, Wizard came around to everyone in my group to say hello, licking our hands enthusiastically. The first thing that struck me about him was his size and strength.

Wizard’s next order of business was to roll around in a pile of some unfortunate bird’s feathers under a large tree, comically twisting his body around like some goofy Disney animal sidekick. He played with Sausha as she lay on the ground; it’s an awe-inspiring sight to see an animal with jaws that can snap bones playing with a human like he’s a puppy.

As we walked around the property, he splashed into the pond, bounded through the tall grass, leaned up against Sausha’s teenage daughters, and frequently said hello to all of us. We laughed at his antics, while Sausha pointed out the subtle cues in his body language and alertness, signs that he was noticing things long before we were even aware of them.

Bringing out a treat, Sausha then encouraged Wizard to look up into my face. While some of his behaviors reminded me of an enthusiastic dog, his eyes weren’t dog-like at all. Large and fiercely yellow, there’s something spine-tingling there–what Sausha’s mother calls fire.

As we made our way out to the large field where many Wolves of Wasatch events take place, Sausha asked me if I would like to sit down. Suddenly feeling vulnerable, I sat cross-legged on the grass with Sausha and her daughters as Wizard wove between us, and I felt his large presence in a new way, getting a closer look at his great paws. My nervousness soon gave way to delight at being on his level beside him. He playfully but gently played with Sausha’s arm in his mouth, but never tried it with me, opting instead to lean on or lick me.

I felt a longing to stay in that feeling of delight for hours, and was disappointed when it came time to walk back to the house. While my own troubles coming into this experience weren’t as great as Pam’s when she first met the wolves, spending a couple of hours with these remarkable women and Wizard truly lifted a burden from me. It brought out a sense of childlike wonder, and my first thought was–I want to do this again. And again. And again.

Exciting things are on the horizon—watch for details about their first-ever overnight retreat coming in October 2026.

wolvesofwasatch.com

The idea of Alchemy Art was something Shanoa often dreamed about, and she finally brought it to life in 2024, shortly after moving to Heber. Growing up in Mapleton, she was drawn to art from an early age, beginning lessons at just eight years old and discovering her passion during an oil painting class. Her love for art never waned—she went on to study art education at Utah State University and spent 23 years teaching art in public schools across the Western United States.

The landscapes of the West inspired her art. During summer breaks from school, she spent her time hiking and painting with her children, inspired and drawn to the simplicity of nature. The influences of nature can be seen around the walls of her studio and leaning against artists’ easels around the room. Some depict recognizable landscapes, while others are abstract and non-objective. Over the years, as she has grown as an artist, Shanoa has drawn inspiration from nature, often distilling it into its purest forms—swirls, shapes, and movements that are both beautiful and enhance the creative energy of her studio.

On a table beside the nature-inspired gallery wall of Shanoa’s art, the well-loved tools of her artistic medium sit under a shelf made from an old Coca-Cola bottle crate. The shelf is filled with, not paint tubes, but colorful sticks of wax. When she married her husband, Kit, and their lives started in Heber, Shanoa dove into an art form she’d experimented with in college: encaustic art. Finding an artist in Park City who was selling all her tools for this specific medium, Shanoa felt like it was a call from the universe.

Encaustic art is an ancient form of painting dating back to the early Greeks in the 4th century. “If you could imagine painting with candles? That’s kind of it.” Using a hot plate, Shanoa heats the pigmented wax and paints with it in its molten state. She referenced how many people as kids would dip a finger into candle wax to watch it dry–just like that, the wax dries quickly, so she fuses it with a butane torch. “It’s all about transparency layers. It’s additive and subtractive.” The encaustic paintings on her gallery wall showcase the versatile ways she can manipulate the wax: carving, scraping, layering, and mixing of both texture and smooth sheen across the surface.

As Shanoa dove into encaustic art, even winning first place at the International Encaustic Competition in Santa Fe, NM, Shanoa’s creative energy didn’t end with her own art. By day, she teaches art to students at Heber Valley Elementary, and in the evenings, she continues to share her love of art with the community at large at her studio, Alchemy Art. “[Art has] been this constant strength throughout my life that’s given me joy, strength, insight. And I feel so lucky to have that, that I want to share with other people. So that’s part of the mission. . . give as many people as I can that gift.”

Whether the class is a deep dive into a specific medium, like watercolor or oil painting, or a more casual paint night with friends, Shanoa always strives to offer her students skills that help them progress. Her goal is never a one-and-done painting, but to understand the why and how of certain techniques so they can go home with confidence and create on their own.

Going above and beyond technique, though, Shanoa is passionate about the transformational power of art–the alchemy in Alchemy Art. Which is why she also offers art therapy classes, where that transformational work can shine.

Shanoa strives to cultivate a safe, nurturing space that reflects her mission of fostering community and connection. In art therapy class, she directs students in guided meditations and encourages them to work toward being in a “flow state” instead of structuring the class to have artists follow step-by-step instructions. “I try to get people to enjoy the process and be present with the process and become less attached to the results. The results don’t matter.” Often, it’s much easier for children to get into that flow state, whereas adults can be more timid and overthink things. Shanoa’s seen some touching transformations take place when people open themselves up to
the process.

At the end of each art therapy class, if students are comfortable, they can share their art and what it means to them with the group. In self-portrait exercises—where she encourages students to embrace more abstract, non-objective art—Shanoa has witnessed people who struggled with elusive feelings finally experience breakthroughs in self-reflection. When painting a portrait of a loved one, a woman processed and released some of the grief of losing her husband as she painted him. Often, Shanoa notes, the breakthroughs in her classes are about strengthening relationships, connection, and love.

Shanoa sees this as a process of using art as a visual language. “We all have that visual language, but we don’t access it a lot of times, and there are those things that we know, but we don’t know that we know them. They just kind of reside there. And so, I try to get down to that level.”

Alchemy Art’s class offerings are as creative as Shanoa is, as she rotates through various classes throughout the year, including art therapy, watercolor, art foundations for children and teens, oil painting, acrylics, and fun paint nights. She even offers private lessons and at-home paint parties. “I just have so much respect and appreciation for art… I think it contributes to people’s lives: making it, sharing it, teaching it.”

Book your next class
Artbyshanoa.com
@artbyshanoa

The Small Town Girl

There’s a favorite fictional trope many of us have read before: A small town girl dreams of getting out of her hometown and making her way in the big, wide world, never to return. Tragedy strikes, and she’s forced back to her hometown, where, eventually, she learns valuable life lessons and appreciates the town that raised her. Fiction isn’t always aligned with real life, but that’s almost the story of Lindsay Flanagan.

Lindsay grew up a Clyde, part of one of Heber City’s founding families, raised on stories of her grandfather and father riding into the mountains to run cattle like “Wild West” cowboys. But she dreamed of seeing the world and becoming a writer. At eighteen, she left Heber—never planning to return. She stayed close, attending college in Utah County, yet it felt far from her mountain home. After marrying her husband, Shawn Flanagan, she planned to pursue a PhD at Penn State to become a literary professor. Instead, life led her to pursue studies in English and Creative Writing, earning a Bachelor of Arts in English and Literature and a Master of Arts in English and Creative Writing, where she realized fiction and beautiful prose had always been her true love.

While working for Eschler Editing, a Utah-based editing firm, Lindsay’s father was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a terminal diagnosis. Her plan to never return to Heber melted away, and Lindsay, Shawn, and their two young girls moved back to the mountains, and to have four more years with her dad.

As it turned out, she didn’t have to leave Heber to be a writer. After her dad’s passing, her family stayed, and in 2020, Lindsay signed on with a literary agent who led her to Roan & Weatherford Publishing and its founder, Casey Cowan.

The Western-at-Heart Boy

Casey Cowan knew he wanted to be a writer from the moment his parents put a Hardy Boys book in his hands at age seven. Unfortunately, they also told him to stop dreaming and “go do something real—you’re never going to get published.” Fiction became something he did in the closet, shared with no one until, in the aftermath of a devastating divorce, he joined the Northwest Arkansas Writers’ Workshop. Founded in the 1980s and run by legendary Western author Dusty Richards and his writing partner, Velda Brotherton, it became the place where Casey found a supportive community and learned the craft of writing.

He also learned more about the business of publishing, including what wasn’t working in the industry—particularly for talented but “small-name” authors. The life of a real author didn’t look like the Hollywood Stephen King version. Most authors saw very little support. In the workshop, Casey, a voracious reader all his life, sat alongside some of the best writers he’d ever encountered, yet they struggled to find the resources needed to get their books into the world.

Joining with other members of the workshop, Casey formed a group to solve those problems and lift up other authors. What began as a marketing group—helping with branding, editing, and cover design—quickly grew into a publishing company. One of their first authors was Dusty Richards from the workshop, and Western historical novels became their bread-and-butter genre. As they grew, they added new imprints, remained as author-centric as possible, and became what Casey proudly called a “scrappy community alternative” to the larger New York publishing houses: small-town in spirit, but an international press.

The Professional Meet-Cute

Roan & Weatherford Publishing took on Lindsay’s debut novel, Anna Grey and the Constellation, a middle-grade fantasy about a girl and her horse, and invited Lindsay to attend an author-publisher retreat in Arkansas. At the retreat, in an overwhelmingly personal approach to publishing, not typical for the industry, Lindsay met Casey, the president of Roan & Weatherford.

Upon hearing that Lindsay was an editor at Eschler Editing, he invited her to edit for Roan & Weatherford. She declined, but Casey didn’t give up. The next time he saw her in person, he tweaked his offer: What about being a publisher instead?

This time, Lindsay said yes. She partnered with her fellow Eschler Editing editor, Sabine Berlin, as co-publisher, and together they took on the young adult imprint Mad Cat, along with Radiance, which focuses on romance and women-centric fiction.

The Hometown and the Western Roots

Bringing on Lindsay and Sabine made the company’s growth–and its ability to expand enough to open the satellite office in Heber–possible. “Lindsay and Sabine are willing to take the bull by the horns and actually go out and do their part of ownership in running the business,” Casey said, which gives him the ability to turn his attention to other parts of the business, leaving their work in their capable hands.

With Lindsay as a partner and Vice President, and the Utah team growing, it made sense to open a satellite office in Heber City. Announced in January 2026, the Heber City office currently includes Lindsay, Sabine, and Janay Thornton as publisher for Dragonbrae, the science fiction and fantasy imprint, and two members of their marketing team, Alan Smith and Staci Gonzalez. The Heber team will launch a YouTube channel this spring, called West of the Page, where they’ll share the stories behind the stories they publish.

Lindsay stands a bit in awe of her story, which is almost like fiction. She’s now been back in Heber for a decade. “I’m kind of going back to my Western upbringing, and I’m with this publisher who has Western roots as well. . . I really feel like it almost couldn’t have happened in a better way.”

In April, Roan & Weatherford will release two Western crime anthologies—Rough Country and Hard Country—each featuring twelve New York Times bestselling authors. Proceeds from both volumes will benefit the U.S. Marshals Survivors Benefit Fund. The company plans to follow them in 2027 with another charity-focused anthology, one especially close to Lindsay’s heart. That volume will support the Heber City–based Horse of Many Colors Cancer Foundation, which helped her father during his battle with cancer. “I wanted to honor what they’re doing—honor my dad, honor my childhood—and also… tell some good stories.”

She’s proud to tell people that Roan & Weatherford’s satellite office is in her hometown. “This is going to sound super sappy, but I didn’t think my dreams could come true in this town, and all of a sudden, I’m like, ‘Wait a minute. They’re here. I’m making them in my little town.’”

roanweatherford.com
youtube.com/@WestofthePage

For Steve Anderson, owning a historic theater is the culmination of a dream that began in the 1990s when he was a Music, Dance, Theater major at Brigham Young University. Built in 1912, the Uinta Theater, on Provo Center Street, was slated for demolition, and Steve attempted to save it. Unfortunately, he didn’t succeed. To this day, he feels a pang of regret when he drives by the still-empty lot across from the Provo City Center Temple. Back then, it was a dream that would have to wait.

Young Steve changed his major to film and television, which (he jokingly added), he chose so he could have a “more steady day job.” For over two decades, he worked in the corporate film and television world, partnering with major brands, including Disney, Nickelodeon, McDonald’s, and Nintendo, and collaborating with celebrities like Brittney Spears, Kobe Bryant, N’Sync, Matt Damon, and Steven Spielberg. His wife, Karyn, a special education teacher and lawyer, came from a talented musical family. Her grandmother wrote the LDS primary hymns “Book of Mormon Stories” and “Pioneer Children Sang as They Walked.”

Together, they launched Popcorn Media, a company focused on creating entertainment opportunities for children. The venture took them across the country with their seven children as they operated their Movie Star Camp. Later, inspired by one of his heroes, Walt Disney, Steve created Small World Studios. The studio creates audio-visual shows for theme parks and museums. Using special effects such as projection mapping, lasers, smoke, and fire, he and his team created immersive three- and five-dimensional experiences.

Ten years ago, Steve and his family decided to settle in Heber City. “One of the first things I did when I got here was drop off my business card to the current owner of the theaters and said: ‘If you ever decide to sell, this has been a dream of mine to live in a small town with a little theater on Main Street.’” His dream was so close, but it took another eight years to become a reality. Thirty years after Steve first imagined owning a historic theater, his dream came full circle when the chance to revive the Ideal and Avon Theaters, and the adjacent sweet shop, finally presented itself. For Steve and Karyn, it felt like they had “come home.”

Coming from the corporate scene, you might think owning a business in Heber would slow down the pace, but “I’m actually probably working harder than I ever have in my life right now,” Steve said with a laugh. In addition to running the business, Steve has also directed most of the musicals at the Ideal Playhouse, with Karyn at his side as the musical director. While “wearing all the hats” has its challenges, it’s also gratifying and joyful, especially with the support the Andersons have received from family, friends, and the community, some of whom have become regulars as audience members, set builders, and choreographers. All in all, owning a theater was a dream worth waiting for.

Get lost in the story

So, what is the appeal of a small, historic theater? Steve feels like you can get lost in the story in small venues. As a child, he recalled going to see Into the Woods with his mother, also a big fan of theater, in a tiny venue in Phoenix, AZ. “I’ve seen bigger productions of Into the Woods, you know, in grand halls, but there was something about that night where I couldn’t see anybody else. I could just see the show, and it was so enchanting to be in this small little place and have the whole place just transform.”

Immersion is at the heart of every Heber Valley Entertainment venue, and Steve’s background in creating multi-dimensional experiences has made attending the revitalized theaters truly memorable.

Built in 1914, the Ideal Playhouse is one of Utah’s oldest theaters, and stepping through its newly renovated doors feels like the perfect blend of nostalgia and modern comfort. The exterior windows glow with rows of warm marquee bulbs, while inside, the scent of buttery popcorn drifts from a slightly old-school concessions counter. Rich, earthy tones fill the lobby in what Steve calls a “rustic, mountain art deco” style—an aesthetic that deepens the theater’s cozy, old-time charm. Posters and décor inspired by the current musical line the walls, drawing you in before you even reach your seat. It has all the small-town charm a theatergoer could hope for.

The shows themselves spill out into the seats, doing more than just bringing the story to life on the stage. In their production of the musical Little Women, a kite flew out over the audience. Sebastian and Chef Louis chased each other through the aisles in The Little Mermaid. And, in an experience unique to the Ideal Playhouse, images are projected onto the walls, creating the illusion of being right there in the scene with the characters. In their latest production, Big River, Huckleberry Finn and Jim, played by singer, actor, and TV host Yahosh Bonner, paddled their raft on stage, while wall projections moved down the river with them. In another scene, the audience experienced being inside a rainy and rumbling Southern thunderstorm. As an audience member, it was magical, especially for the children.

The Avon Theater, just a block down Main Street from the Ideal, is being spruced up to provide a similar immersive experience, but with a flair that draws on its own history. The Avon, originally the Reel Theater, opened as a movie theater in 1948 and has a claim to fame as being one of the first theaters in the country to have surround sound, a system installed by the “father of surround sound,” Jim Fosgate, himself in 1986. The Andersons’ vision for the Avon is to put it into its heyday in the 1950s by giving it a “neon kind of Drive-In movie theater feel.”

Fences line the theater walls, carpeted walkways mimic gravel paths, and in front of the traditional theater seats lies a patch of faux grass dotted with lawn chairs. With projectors casting scenes onto the walls, moviegoers step into an immersive outdoor cinema—complete with chirping crickets, honking horns, and a canopy of twinkling indoor “stars.” It’s an indoor drive-in experience that blurs the line between nostalgia and innovation. In time, live concerts currently hosted at the Ideal will move to the Avon, where the lawn chairs will be cleared to make room for dancing on the “grass” in front of the stage.

Attached to the lobby of the Avon is a 1950s ice cream shop, rebranded as Kbop’s, named for the nickname Steve gave his wife, Karyn, early on in their relationship. The black and white tiled floor, jukebox, and vintage red-seated soda shop chairs give the impression that one has stepped back in time. Karyn is hard at work creating their own homemade ice cream flavors dubbed with fun local names that will reflect the Heber area.

Going to the Ideal, Avon, or Kbop’s is more than just seeing a great show or getting a tasty treat—it’s an experience.

More Exciting Things to Come

When Steve first got started, he filled three notebooks with thirty years’ worth of ideas he had been saving. He and his team were ready to try them all and see what the community would support. As their current season comes to a close, Steve reflects, “It’s been an exciting year of launching all kinds of entertainment, and we’ve listened closely to the public to see what they enjoy.”

As audiences leave the theater, they often pass feedback along to Steve and Karyn: “Do more of that,” or “I didn’t love that one.” Sometimes, Steve admits, it’s difficult to “kill your darlings”—a phrase from creative circles meaning letting go of (or in this case, postponing) ideas to focus on those that really work. However, community feedback has been invaluable in helping narrow down his notebooks of ideas to the ones audiences truly love. Some of the results include the recent launch of Five-Dollar Tuesdays, offering showings of new blockbuster films, and Throwback Thursdays, featuring classic retro movies.

The 2025 season at the Ideal will close with something entirely new: A Heber Valley Christmas. This inaugural Christmas spectacular is an original production featuring everything “from Santa to Jesus,” with a touch of Heber history woven in. The show will bring to life stories the team has uncovered, combining story and song in a unique stage experience. While some of the music will be traditional, Steve and his collaborator Kevin Kelly—the co-creator of the 2005 off-Broadway musical The Ark with Michael McLean—are also composing original songs for the show’s debut. Steve describes it as “all the things we love about Christmas, wrapped up in a beautiful, inspiring show that will touch the hearts of grandchildren, grandparents, and everyone in between.”

In the future, audiences can expect more original works at the Ideal. The season began in the spring with Michael McLean’s original musical Threads, and will end this winter with A Heber Valley Christmas. The team hopes to continue introducing original musicals over time—further building the distinctive, signature experience they are creating on Main Street.

Ultimately, Steve and Karyn want to create entertainment that feels like home to locals while also attracting a regional audience with experiences that are immersive and unique. “Had I gotten my theater when I was 20, I wouldn’t have had any experience. But now,” Steve reflected, “we can wow some people.”

Tickets to their shows, including A Heber Valley Christmas, and 2026 Season Tickets are available at:

hebervalleyentertainment.com
@hebervalleyentertainment