Managing Director

Hello and welcome to Side Quest Stage! You might know me as a current member of The Edge Improv at Bainbridge Performing Arts, a founding member of Bainbridge Improv Collective, a co-director of InD Theatre or maybe a very long time ago I was your tour guide at Universal Studios Hollywood.

In my non-performing life, I have a background in arts management, most recently as the Membership & Volunteer Manager at Bainbridge Artisan Resource Network (BARN) and formerly as Events Manager at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art (BIMA).

I also love games. Board games, video games, role-playing games – give me a controller or some dice and let’s go! I’m so excited about Side Quest’s Improvisational Gaming program – role playing games for everyone!

With my experience in cultivating community engagement and supporting creative endeavors, I’m excited to shape Side Quest Stage into an accessible, engaging hub for both artists and audiences.

Technical Director

Eli Backer is an artist, composer, and engineer who works in a wide range of media and is constantly making. A Bainbridge native, she holds a master’s degree in glass from the Rhode Island School of Design, and a bachelor’s in computer engineering from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. Her work can be found in the Cynthia Sears Artist’s Books Collection at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art, at the Center for Book Arts in NYC, and at the Fleet Library in Providence, R.I. She finds setting type and working with the presses quite meditative.

House Manager

Annika Nordleaf-Nelson is a versatile artist with a diverse skill set. They hold three Bachelor of Arts degrees from Pacific Lutheran University in Theatre, Art History, and Gender, Sexuality, and Race Studies. Rather than focusing on a specific area within theatre, Annika chose to explore and practice a wide range of trades, including stage management, intimacy coordination, dramaturgy, and set construction.

Before joining Side Quest Stage, they served as an assistant director for the after-school theatre program at West Sound Academy, their alma mater in Poulsbo, Washington. As a self-proclaimed “vibe curator,” Annika ensures that all productions at Side Quest Stage run smoothly, creating an enjoyable experience for both actors and audience members. If they’re not at the theater, they’re probably somewhere with a horse.