Founded and directed by Joy French, Bare Bait Dance is a professional, contemporary-modern dance company. BBD is a 501c3 nonprofit that owns and operates Westside Theater in Missoula, MT.
ABOUT
Bare Bait Dance with Westside Theater commits to nurturing the development, education, and presentation of the performing arts in Western Montana, particularly celebrating dance and contemporary performance.
MISSION
Shannon Flanagan | Chair
Katie AmRhein | Treasurer
Kaitlin Dickinson
Charlie Oates
John DeBoer
Katy Brown
Jenny Walker
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Joy French Executive Artistic Director
Kelly Bouma Westside Theater Managing Director
Loni Neilson-Kattell Office Manager
Rachel Oliver Young Programming Support
Ashley Zhinin Box Office Manager & Costume Coordinator
Annica Scheerens Front of House Manager
Travis Yost Accompanist & Music Composer
Lizzie Archer Kinetoscope Programming Assistant
Tiki Preston Social Media Content Creator
STAFF
BARE BAIT DANCE COMPANY
Codi Cole
Hannah Dusek
Tiki Preston
Toree Wilson
Lia Wong
with BBD Apprentices
Lindley Erickson
Genevieve Hedstrom
Betty Wicks
Maeve Fahey Choreographic Associate
We strive to create a safe, welcoming space for artists to create and for audiences to experience arts and culture; the staff, teachers and users of the space will honor the space and the objects within it; to have an open mind and respect all people from all walks of life; to work in community and to encourage thoughtful, respectful and solution/evolution-oriented dialogue.
We do not tolerate an environment of fear, intimidation or disrespect. Violent or abusive speech or actions will not be tolerated under any circumstances, even within the context of performance. No person will be mistreated because of their race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, political affiliation, scientific views, immigration status or religious faith.
The Westside Theater commits to constantly evaluating and re-evaluating our practices and procedures and to hold ourselves accountable.
Please join us in collectively agreeing to these guidelines to ensure safety, respect, and kindness within our community.
CULTURAL STATEMENT
Westside Theater acknowledges we are working on and around the Missoula and Bitterroot valleys which are the homelands of the Salish (Séliš), Kootenai (Ksanka), and Pend d’Oreille (Ql̓ispé) people. This area was also frequently used by other tribes, including the Blackfeet (Niitsitapi), Shoshone (Newe), Crow (Apsáalooke), and Kiowa (Ka’igwu), who had, and continue to have, a crucial presence in the area. We honor this land's original stewards and descendants who continue to face years of colonization and displacement. We are committed to respecting tribal sovereignty and Indigenous cultures by holding ourselves accountable to the needs and perspectives of Indigenous peoples, who, from time immemorial to the present and until the end of time, protect and remain connected with this land on which we gather, live, learn, and work.
If you’re not already familiar with them, we encourage you to seek and support indigenous-led organizations and resources in your community.
You can learn and raise awareness by taking advantage of this digital map resource. To know the name of the Indigenous People who are the traditional caretakers of the land you live in, please visit https://native-land.ca/. This interactive digital map shows which Indigenous groups resided in any given area. This resource is one of many, and we encourage you all to keep learning more.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Bare Bait Dance programming is made possible by the generous support of:
The Susan Scott Heyneman Foundation
Montana Arts Council
WESTAF
The Becky Bailey Foundation & Jeannette French