‘One galaxy, one goal’: Star Wars lovers unite in Southern Utah to fight for a good cause

ST. GEORGE — From live-action lightsaber duels to movie-quality costumes, this group is bringing together Star Wars lovers from across Southern Utah. And there’s room for you, too.

Members of the Saber Guild of Southern Utah practice choreographed lightsaber fighting, location and date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Connor Malcolm, St. George News

“It’s a little escape from your daily life,” Connor Malcolm, the man behind Saber Guild Southern Utah, told St. George News. “That’s the main basis – we do it for charity. It’s a lot of fun. And everything is volunteer. We don’t get anything except for the joy of doing it.”

The Saber Guild is a not-for-profit, LucasFilm-recognized Star Wars costuming group that specializes in choreographed lightsaber shows. They perform at charity and community events, as well as comic book and sci-fi conventions, all to raise money for charity and share their love of Star Wars with fans around the world.

It all began in 2006 when members of established costuming organizations and unofficial lightsaber choreography groups came together in California. They joined forces to have fun, serve the community and represent the Star Wars brand in a way that hadn’t been done before. 

Ten years later, the Saber Guild has over 700 members in 35 temples and eight countries. Malcolm took the initiative to start Saber Guild Southern Utah in November 2023. He and his wife have been costuming with Star Wars groups since 2015.

Connor Malcolm represents Saber Guild Southern Utah at Shop with a Cop in Washington City, Utah, date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Connor Malcolm, St. George News

“One galaxy, one goal, is what we say,” Malcolm said. “We are a Lucasfilm-recognized costume club, which means they know we exist and are willing to let us perform on their behalf at events, but are not directly affiliated with Lucasfilm.”

Malcolm said they aren’t technically a Saber Guild temple yet. The worldwide group doesn’t recognize them until they have five members in costume — but not just any costume. 

Members must make their costumes while following an extensive rule book. Once the costumes are completed, they submit them to the costume consular for review. 

“Every costume you see that’s part of our group is movie quality,” Malcolm said. “They actually had them out in L.A. when they were filming Mandalorian. They had guys from our group help shoot because they didn’t have enough costumes.”

Currently, they are a subsidiary of the Vegas temple Nar Shaddaa.

Alan O’Bryan, a member of Saber Guild Southern Utah, said he, his wife and son became involved after seeing Malcolm’s post on Facebook. O’Bryan has a background in martial arts that includes medieval combat, while his wife is a dramaturge for the St. George Musical Theater.

“I’m more excited about the choreography and she’s more excited about the costumes,” O’Bryan said. “ It’s fun because it’s almost like a date night for us every week.”

Members of Saber Guild Southern Utah practice choreographed lightsaber fighting, location and date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Connor Malcolm, St. George News

Saber Guild Southern Utah member JC Alva said when it comes to choreographing a fight, there’s a number system, which helps create the moves and flow.

“Each strike would be a number,” Alva said, wielding a pretend lightsaber. “So then if I attacked here, that would be one. So one, two, three would be on the bottom, four five six.”

Saber Guild Southern Utah plans to put on Youngling Trainings where trainees are given pool noodles and taught how to wield a lightsaber. They hope to have everything for their guild ready by April, just in time for the LVL UP EXPO in Las Vegas.

The minimum age to join Saber Guild Southern Utah is 13. Join the Facebook Group to learn more. The group meets every Friday at 7 p.m. to practice at 1610 N. Dixie Downs Road in St. George.

Photo Gallery

Members of the Saber Guild of Southern Utah practice choreographed lightsaber fighting, location and date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Connor Malcolm, St. George News

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