Statewide Theatre And Public Dialogue Tour Visits Dillon

Aug 21
3 min read

The University of Montana’s Co-Lab for Civic Imagination brings its exciting theatre event "State of Mind" to Dillon on September 15th. State of Mind is a unique and engaging performance and public dialogue event that is touring to over forty Montana communities from September 2024 to May 2026.

The project consists of a free theatre performance for the general public, and workshops for local students, school faculty & staff, mental & behavioral health professionals, public health staff, and law enforcement. The performance will take place at 7pm on September 15th at Frontier Events Center, with workshops taking place earlier in the day at the high school. The workshops will inspire a portion of the performance, ensuring that Dillon’s residents’ voices and ideas are a part of the performance, thereby providing a unique experience for each community that State of Mind visits. The Dillon residency closes out the following morning, September 16th with a community coffee meeting at 9am at the Bank of Commerce meeting room. This will be an opportunity for people to reflect on the workshops and performances, and to discuss potential action and engagement around mental health in Dillon.

State of Mind was developed by a group of professional Montana artists, facilitators, and mental & behavioral health professionals in response to the troubling trends in Montana’s behavioral and mental health outcomes. 35% of adult Montanans report symptoms of anxiety or depression, and Montana ranks in the top five states for highest rates of suicide across all age groups. With so many Montanans living in rural areas, it can be challenging to connect with professionals like psychiatrists, psychologists, therapists, or addiction counselors in times of crisis or just for regular counseling support.

Health providers and policy experts believe that in addition to having more professionals around the state, we also need to change how we talk about mental health with one another – neighbor to neighbor, Montanan to Montanan. And that’s where State of Mind comes in.

State of Mind director Michael Rohd says, “The arts are a powerful way to not just share stories, but to gather and imagine the futures we want to see and build together. State of Mind’s goals include tackling stigmas around seeking help, making local resources more visible and contributing to local capacity for community care. We aim to bring diverse Montana voices into health policy & resource conversations across our state, and to make opportunities for those with local knowledge to lead the way as Montana continues to battle our behavioral health crisis.”

In the 2024-25 school year, State of Mind toured to 17 communities around the state, sparking important, positive conversations among over 2000 participants. The impact is felt in both rural communities, and bigger towns. Conrad DeBruycker, the principal of Conrad H.S. says that “State of Mind stands out as one of the best conversations I’ve had with both students and staff.”

In Butte, community advocate Cassie Weightman, emphasizes “It’s a stunning blend of storytelling – they leave communities stronger, more open, and more connected.”

Here in Dillon, Miranda Zent, a local prevention specialist, and one of the lead organizers of the local event says, “State of Mind tackles the mental health crisis in Montana through cultural imagination—engaging audiences, sparking creativity, and amplifying the voices and stories of local communities. Our Beaverhead County coalition is proud to welcome this energetic team of artists and educators to Dillon, and we look forward to joining the transformative conversations that have made State of Mind a catalyst for reimagining mental health in Montana.”

After the Dillon engagement, State of Mind will be heading to Forsyth, Miles City, Billings, Boulder, and Harrison among many others. See the full tour calendar here: https://www.umcivicimagination.com/tour-calendar

For more information about State of Mind and the people involved, visit: https://www.umcivicimagination.com/ or follow them on Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556751081311

Local support for State of Mind’s residency has been provided by:

Southwest Montana Prevention – https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089208395519 Beaverhead County Public Health – https://beaverheadcountymt.gov/public-health-2/ Beaverhead County High School – https://www.bchsmt.com/ Beaverhead County Mental Health Local Advisory Council https://beaverheadcountymt.gov/mental-health-local-advisory-council/ The Women’s Resource Center – https://www.wrcmt.org/ Dillon Bank of Commerce – https://www.bofc.bank/