Westside Studio of Performing Arts

Sheila Bailey founded Westside Studio of Performing Arts in 1992, and for more than thirty years she has been the organizational constant behind what is now one of Southern Utah's most credentialed independent dance institutions. Bailey spent twenty-one years in the Chicago dance community before returning to St. George and building a studio that draws faculty from Houston Ballet, Boston Ballet, and regional professional companies alongside locally rooted instructors like Amber Shakespeare, who has twenty-four years of teaching and choreography experience. The facility at 170 N 400 E spans over 15,000 square feet across four studios — sprung wood floors, Marley dance surface, live piano accompaniment, and an observation deck. Classes run from age eighteen months through adult across ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop, lyrical, modern, musical theater, and Broadway. The studio has produced the Nutcracker Ballet for thirty consecutive Christmas seasons — a commitment to live theatrical production that distinguishes it from studios focused purely on recital formats.

**Verification notes** Website live; 1992 founding confirmed via site and multiple directory sources; Sheila Bailey confirmed as founder and director; address 170 N 400 E confirmed on Yelp; faculty backgrounds confirmed on About page; Nutcracker production confirmed in St. George Utah News coverage.