The History Behind Paper Moon

The story of this theatre company begins in the town of Chico, California, in the summer of 2025.

 

The founder of Paper Moon Playhouse, Nikolas Gephart, had been obsessed with the Tony Award-winning musical, The Outsiders, based on the book by S.E. Hinton, which he’d already read in middle school. A few short months away from heading to the University of Southern California to pursue his BFA in Musical Theatre, he opted to buy a script as a keepsake for his love of the story. In his search for a script, he stumbled upon a website that just so happened to be offering rights to perform the play version of the show. His interest was immediately piqued.

 

Gephart had never produced a show before. He didn’t know what he’d need, who to talk to, or where to start, but he did know one thing. If he was going to produce a show, it was going to be this one.

After some research and confiding in close companions, he got the ball rolling almost immediately.

 

In just 19 days, Gephart gathered his closest circle of theatre friends he’d cultivated over the years to serve as actors, artistic leaders, and countless other roles and responsibilities required to put on a theatrical production. Everyone stepped up to the plate in a major way, and Paper Moon’s debut production was a complete success.

 

Now Paper Moon Playhouse strives to bring high-level theatrical experiences like The Outsiders to the north state with young, passionate artists from all walks of life.