Staff
ANNA EVANS (she/her)
Development Director
Anna first got involved at BAAY in 2006, when her then 7-year old daughter was cast in our very first show. Anna’s been working behind the scenes ever since. Over the years, she’s worn lots of BAAY hats, including Parent Volunteer, Board Member, Board President, Interim ED, and Unofficial Company Historian. Now, she’s both honored and humbled to step into the role of Development Director. Anna believes the world would be a better place if ALL children had the opportunity to develop their creative muscles in a welcoming and supportive environment like the one BAAY provides. She’s excited to help ensure that BAAY has the resources it needs to continue to nurture creativity, confidence, empathy, and joy in another generation of young people.
Avery Wisner (he/him)
Instructor, Stage Manager
Avery graduated from WWU in 2023 with a BA in theatre education and stage management — he is surely putting his degree to good use! While studying at Western, Avery had the chance to volunteer with BAAY as part of the class’ curriculum and he couldn’t stay away. In 2021, Avery joined the BAAY staff and has only grown more fond of BAAY’s mission and the community that it’s brought him.
Throughout his adolescence, Avery was primarily a performer until deeply falling in love with stage management and design! In 2023, Avery was awarded the Region 7 Stage Management Fellowship Award through the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) and traveled to D.C. for the national festival that same year.
Though Avery’s hometown is down south in Issaquah, he’s surely made his roots in Bellingham. When not at BAAY, Avery is likely just down Railroad Avenue either hosting Karaoke or performing in drag at Rumors Cabaret. He feels so lucky to be constantly surrounded by creative minds and young activists all throughout Bellingham.
Daniel Repp (he/him)
Instructor
Daniel Repp is a pacific northwest playwright, performer, and educator. His plays have been published and performed around the country. In 2020, Daniel graduated from Western Washington University with degrees in physics and theatre. Most weeks, you can find him performing and/or teaching improv at Bellingham’s Upfront Theatre. He is a board member with Bellingham TheatreWorks and half the theatrical duo Hanner & Repp, connecting northwest artists to produce lively, community-focused theatre. Daniel has written and taught for Youth Theatre Northwest on Mercer Island and for Bellingham Arts Academy for Youth. When not doing theatre, Daniel enjoys board games, mutual aid work, and climbing fake rocks.
David Wagner (he/him)
Instructor
Dave comes to BAAY with over 50 years experience as a working musician. He shares his passion for making music with students and provides a solid foundation for continued study in the musical arts. His goal is to have fun and make a nice, joyful noise. His classes are hands on with as much individual attention as possible.
Dave holds a BA in Philosophy from the University of Montana and worked as a Counsellor for 20 years in a therapeutic setting with pre-adolescent and adolescent kids. His communication style is open, honest, direct, and gentle.
Dylan Cisneros (he/him)
Instructor
Dylan Cisneros has served as a music and theater educator for several years all across Washington State since graduating with a degree in Music Education. Studying under Dr. Amber Sudduth Bone and Prof. Holly Alcorn, he served as Assistant Director on WWU’s production of Mozart’s Così fan tutte, winning the First Prize in Division 2 of the 2016 Opera Production Competition sponsored by the National Opera Association. He also co-wrote music for WWU’s 2016 production of Shakespeare’s As You Like It, and played roles in various other productions, including Kiss Me Kate, and The Golden Goose (composed by longtime BAAY instructor, Evan Ingalls). Following graduation, Dylan worked as a choir and theater teacher at Evergreen High School in White Center, Seattle. Most recently, he served as Music Director for META’s 2020 production of Fame, which played at the historic Lincoln Theater in his hometown of Mount Vernon. In his spare time, Dylan likes writing and recording music, reading, and spending time with his partner of over a decade, Kelly.
Evan Ingalls (he/him)
Instructor
Evan Ingalls is a music & theatre educator, performing musician, composer, writer and poet, among other things. Born, raised, and educated in Bellingham, WA, he graduated from Western Washington University (2014) with a B.Mus. in Composition and a B.A. in Linguistics. He has worked with BAAY almost constantly since then, with one little break to travel around the world. Through his work at BAAY, he’s discovered the joys of sharing the innumerable benefits of music and theatre with young people, who seem to have an inexhaustible appetite for it! For more information on Evan‘s other endeavors, you can visit www.evaningalls.com.
Hilde Festerling (she/her)
Instructor
Hilde Festerling is a writer and theatrical storyteller for family audiences. She studied theatre at Capilano College in Vancouver, BC, and she is the creator of The Goat American Novel podcast, a barnyard gothic audio-drama. Hilde teaches drama exploration and improv to students in rural North Whatcom County, where she lives. Her teaching work with children invites them to find the place that their creative voice connects with our shared cultural history of theatre and performance art.
Jill Peterson (she/her)
Custodian
Jill grew up on beautiful Whidbey Island, WA and has lived many places, including 17 years in Alaska. Her passion for teaching led her to homeschool her three children (a son, and identical twin daughters) through the 9th grade. She moved back to WA in 2013 and settled in Bellingham to attend WWU. Earning her BA in 2016, she graduated with concentrations in somatic psychology and social justice. She started her own small artist business in 2016 and added cleaning services in 2023. Jill strongly believes in BAAY’s mission and the magic it brings to the lives of children. She loves to keep the theater clean, safe, and organized! Playing a small, behind the scenes role is the perfect fit for this stage in her life. Being part of the team at BAAY brings her joy and a sense of community! When Jill’s not working, she loves to take long walks around town with her husband Rand and their dogs, Juneau and Vienne. She also enjoys reading, sewing, spending time outdoors, exploring new places, snuggling with her hubby to watch a good movie, and spending time with her adult children.
Juliette Machado (she/her)
Executive Director
Juliette began working for BAAY in 2014 as School Program Coordinator. During her time running the program, she grew the after-school program from its humble beginnings to a sustainable source of arts education averaging 50 classes per year in over 10 elementary schools in Whatcom County. Juliette earned her BA in Communications and BFA in Dance from WWU. Since 2016, she has also worked as BAAY’s Marketing Director and, in 2021, assumed the role of Operations Director and one-half of BAAY’s post-pandemic leadership team. She is committed to fostering sustainable and equitable systems for art-making and arts education in our community, and is excited to continue her story with BAAY as Executive Director.
Kaleb Van Rijswijck (he/they)
Artistic Director
Kaleb was introduced to BAAY in 2006 when it was still in the early stages of development. The experience was so formative that they swore to themselves wherever life takes them, they are going to make a point to return to Bellingham and invest the same creative energy back into the community. Kaleb was fortunate enough to go on and continue their collegiate career at the Chicago College of Performing Arts, perform on stages all over the country, collaborate with some of the most inspiring individuals and utilize their experiences to develop a strong creative identity. When the world shut down, it became apparent that they were needed back in Bellingham to focus on their priority needs but in doing so they were given the opportunity to rekindle the connection with BAAY that lit the creative flame in them all those years ago. Over the last year Kaleb has been working with BAAY as their technical director, but when the opportunity for Artistic Director arose it felt like kismet. It feels like a full circle moment and stepping into the position of Artistic Director leaves Kaleb without words.
“Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.“
Lisa Markowitz (she/her)
Program Director
Lisa grew up dancing, with most of her training from Anna Marie Dance Studio in Wilmington, Delaware. After high school, she spent four years dancing with The Young Americans, whose goal is to enrich the lives of kids and foster understanding and goodwill through the Performing Arts. With this group, she went on three National Music Outreach Tours (designed to bring music and dance back into the schools and to help students discover their potential) and fell in love with teaching. She has 25 years of experience teaching dance and theatre to young artists in Bellingham, and taught dance for 11 years at camps in Southern California (where she was awarded Specialist of the Year three times at Camp James), Maine (Camp Vega), New York (running the Dance Department at Camp Pontiac), and Switzerland (where she started and ran a dance camp for five years at Village Camps-Leysin). Lisa has also choreographed for the Bellingham Theatre Guild, where she won two Bentley Awards for Best Choreography. She spent a semester teaching Creative Writing for Urban Scholars at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, a program for gifted inner-city high school students; a semester in South Korea, teaching English to kids (K-8); and two years teaching English and Creative Writing at Wellspring Community School in Bellingham. Lisa has a B.A. in English from Cal. State, Long Beach, and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing-Poetry from UNLV. She loves using her writing experience to adapt/write scripts for BAAY. Her poems have been published in a number of journals. In her spare time, she loves doing hot yoga and Pilates and spending time with her dog Lucy (R.I.P. Zoey, forever).
Logan Hyer-Long (they/he)
Instructor
Logan is a Bellingham based teaching artist who has been with BAAY since Spring 2022. Born and raised in Olympia, Washington, Logan has a passion for arts communities in the PNW. Previously they have worked with Taproot Theatre in Seattle, as well as appearing in productions for the University of Northern Colorado and Western Washington University (latest credits include: Blue -TYA, Book of Will, Shakespeare’s Other Women, and Richard III). They have a strong belief that the arts create community, cultivate empathy, and empower underrepresented voices in a way that can uniquely approach the problems facing our modern society. Outside of the theatre, you can find them playing guitar at farmer’s markets, wandering local trails, playing soccer, and caring for a small jungle of plants at home!
Neporina Basaraba (she/her)
Costume Director
Neporina started volunteering for BAAY as a teenager in 2014. A theater kid new to Bellingham and looking for community, she reached out to BAAY and essentially said “I’ll do anything. I don’t want to act, but I can sew if that’s helpful.” She got sent upstairs to help the, then new, costumer, Dana Crediford. That was the start of a long and loving mentorship. After high school, Neporina got her Wilderness First Responders Certification and spent a year as an Americorps Volunteer in the Ferndale School District, which set her on a path of education. With a passion for the outdoors, children, and community, Neporina moved to Seattle in 2019 to work as a backpacking instructor and assistant in an outdoor preschool. She also took on occasional work as a dresser and stitcher for the Wardrobe Union. When the pandemic hit, she moved back to Bellingham and landed a job at the YMCA in their daycare where she fell deeper in love with early education.
Neporina spent two years working at the YMCA, learning all she could about child psychology and development. She also worked as a house mother for a group home in Ferndale. In 2022, she took over running the YMCA preschool full-time. She is now thrilled to return to BAAY as its Costume Director to carry on and evolve the wonderful program started by her own mentor, Dana.
Rachael Chapman (she/her)
Instructor
Rachael has been a professional Teaching Artist for several years. She graduated from Western with a BA in Performing Arts and has her MFA in Theatre from the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa. For four years, she worked as a full-time Teaching Artist for the Honolulu Theatre for Youth. Rachael worked for two years as a Master Teaching Arist for Tacoma Arts Live. She was then invited to be a guest Teaching Artist for Doorstep Arts in the UK. For the last two years, Rachael has worked as an Instructor for BAAY. Rachael has knowledge and experience in developing and facilitating in-school residencies, after-school programs, weekend courses, summer camps, and small to large scale productions with children. Rachael’s teaching philosophy is process-oriented as opposed to product-oriented. She hands the power of creative choice over to her students and guides them through a series of scaffolded exercises and reflective questions. She has performed in several children’s shows and outreach programs. Rachael specializes in Arts Integration, Puppetry, Asian Theatre, and Devising. Above all else, Rachael enjoys sharing knowledge about the Performing Arts with others and admires the curiosity and creativity of young minds.
Sarah Schermer (she/her)
Instructor, Office Manager
Sarah brings to BAAY a lifetime of passion for the Performing Arts. She began dancing at the age of three and spent a good portion of her childhood directing elaborate plays with her sisters, cousins and neighbors. As a teen she took every dance class available, thriving in the enriching environment created by her beloved teacher. She also played a wide variety of instruments – piano, cello, piccolo, and double bass – and joined every music ensemble available. For the fun of it! Arts Education is foundational to who Sarah is.
She holds a BFA in Modern Dance Performance and Choreography from WWU where she was also able to explore her love of costuming. After graduating 15 years ago, she continued to perform locally with Bellingham Repertory Dance and Kuntz & Company, as well as maintaining a full client base as a Pilates & Functional Movement Instructor. In 2014, she began a short but impactful career in the Community Food Coop’s Wellness Department, moving quickly into a Management role. During this consuming time of honing leadership skills and learning the cooperative business model, Sarah’s artistic focus shifted towards fiber arts and developing a relationship with her singing voice in her spare time. In 2019, she had her first child, which has both deepened her understanding of the creative process and revealed how little she knows about anything.
When not at BAAY, you will usually find Sarah playing with her two young children, spending 5 precious minutes with her loving husband, scraping oatmeal off of everything, or challenging traditional ideas of what it means to be an Artist. When she’s not doing that, she loves singing old ballads, writing new ones in the forest, transforming tablecloths into dresses, and performing weird and beautiful things after bedtime.
Semilla Sanchez (she/her)
Instructor
Semilla has been creating in some form or another her whole life and experiences art and creativity as tools for how life moves through her. She has been a Teaching Artist since 2022 with Allied Arts, and with BAAY since the spring of 2024. Originally from Bellingham, she was raised on Maui, and returned to the area as an adult. Semilla is a bit of a trailblazer having explored multiple career opportunities such as auto mechanics, modeling, road construction, and now teaching art and graphic design. She is driven to push possibility and believes everything has the potential to be art. She uses art as a healing modality to help others find self-actualization and empowerment. Socio-emotional learning (SEL) is a healing salve when applied through the arts. Children and adults thrive when given tools to express themselves freely. Semilla is most at home when expressing herself through dance, drawing, painting, mixed media, photography, creative writing/poetry, and time in the garden.
Additional Program Staff
Buck Brigham, John Sullivan, Lexi Donnelly, Willow Gebhard