Joe Faifer - Artistic Director
Joe has performed in the Bozeman theatre community for a number of years, principally with Montana Shakespeare in the Parks, Montana Theatreworks, Montana InSite Theatre, and Bozeman Actors Theatre. Based originally out of Chicago, Faifer has made Bozeman his permanent home and is eager to contribute to southwestern Montana’s theatre culture, especially with his contributions as artistic director for Bozeman Actors Theatre.
Board of Directors
Sara Jayne Steen (Board President)
Sara Jayne Steen is president emerita of Plymouth State University (NH) and was a professor of English and dean of the College of Letters and Science at Montana State University. At MSU she taught undergraduate and graduate courses in Shakespeare and other early modern writers, led seminars in playwriting, and for four years co-hosted the Northwest Regional New Plays Conference. She also enjoyed taking Shakespeare into local elementary schools. She has written on the works of numerous playwrights. Her most recent book is a co-edited collection, Authorizing Early Modern European Women (2022), that treats current plays, films, novels, and biographies that re-create the lives of early modern women for contemporary audiences. She has recently taken her first acting class. Other interests include music and travel.
Mercy Simpson (Director)
Mercy Simpson was born, raised, and educated here in beautiful Bozeman Montana. Over the past ten years, she has collaborated with local non-profits and not-for-profit theatres in the Bozeman area. Her most recent work with BAT was as Prop Master, Costume Coordinator, and Assistant Stage Manager for their production of Born With Teeth. She is passionate about elucidating human issues through site-specific storytelling and aims to enrich the people of Bozeman one tale at a time.
Beth Boyson
Beth Boyson is an enthusiastic supporter of the arts who sincerely enjoys contributing to BAT as a worker bee. Bozeman is my adopted home since 1995. It has been a unique experience to watch the local arts and cultural experiences grow exponentially and to be a tiny part of that. The support of the community is also inspiring. With thanks and gratitude.
Michael Beehler
Michael Beehler is Professor Emeritus of English at MSU and a long time supported of the performing arts in Bozeman. He teaches often in the OLLI program, and has appeared on stage as Kreon in Antigone at the Blue Slipper in Livingston, as Doctor Henry in Angels in America, as a Guardian Angel in Bending Toward the Light, as Mr. Bascomb in Carousel, as the Male Chorus leader in Verge’s production of Lysistrata, as Jamison in Verge’s Ladies, Sigh No More, and in numerous chorus roles for Opera Montana. He also directed BAT’s production of Eliot’s Murder in the Cathedral, and has served on numerous arts boards throughout the valley
Chris Mehl
Chris has lived and worked in Bozeman for more than two decades; bringing with him a great enjoyment of live theater and the arts. He also served as the President of the Library Foundation during its successful campaign to raise private funds for the City’s Public Library on East Main Street.
Mehl’s daytime work has focused on public policy and community service; most recently as Mayor and City Commissioner for Bozeman for ten years. He previously was the Policy Director at Headwaters Economics and before then as Communications Director for the Northern Rockies Office of The Wilderness Society. Earlier, he worked in Washington, D.C. as Press Secretary for Members of Congress.
When not enjoying a theater production, Chris is most likely to be found outside—attempting to hike, bike, and ski every known trail in Montana.
Lauren Chavez
Lauren is a writer and grant professional whose work is shaped by a deep reverence for story, place, and community. Born and raised in the foothills of Denver, Colorado, she grew up balancing the energy of city life with the quiet awe of the natural world. These early experiences—paired with an insatiable love for the arts and outdoor adventures—instilled in her a lifelong passion for learning and creativity.
As a grant writer, Lauren specializes in crafting compelling proposals that weave together narrative and data to secure long-term funding for nonprofit organizations. She currently serves as Grant Manager at the Museum of the Rockies, where her love of cultural institutions and storytelling converge.
Lauren’s artistic interests extend beyond the page. A poet and musician at heart, she is fascinated by the vocabularies that emerge from the landscapes she inhabits. She finds joy in Montana’s vibrant creative community and has performed with Montana InSite Theatre, where she blends her love of language, nature, and performance.
She holds a B.A. in English-Writing from Montana State University and an M.A. in Literary and Cultural Studies from the University of Utah, where she focused on the poetics of Irish poet Seamus Heaney. When not writing or working behind the scenes, she can be found watercolor painting, learning languages, birding, or exploring trails with a thermos of tea in hand.
Marc Beaudin
Marc Beaudin has worked in theatre for over 25 years as a director, scenic designer, technical director and educator, with favorite productions including Macbeth, Amadeus, No Exit and BAT’s Northwest premiere of Born with Teeth. He is the author of These Creatures of a Day, Life List: Poems, and the hitchhiking memoir Vagabond Song: Neo-Haibun from the Peregrine Journals (10th anniversary, revised and expanded edition coming in late 2025). He has released two spoken word albums: From Coltrane to Coal Train: An Eco-Jazz Suite, featuring music by members of the band Morphine, and The Sky Too Is Concrete, featuring music by the acclaimed jazz collective, the Northwoods Improvisers. His poetry has appeared in Orion, Cutthroat, Whitefish Review, Deep Wild Journal, among others, and is widely anthologized in publications dedicated to environmental and social justice. He lives in Livingston, where he is co-owner of Elk River Books, and a founding board member of Elk River Arts & Lectures.