The Backpack Ensemble

  • Home
  • The Backpack Ensemble

The Backpack Ensemble The Backpack Ensemble are a theatre company, who devise stories built from their own experiences.

With authenticity and charm, infused with metatheacricality they embrace their status as performers on stage. We performed our debut production The Search for a Black-browed Albatross in May 2017. A show which attempts to come to terms with feelings that the ensemble feel but can't necessarily explain in words: leaving the safe structure of education, losing childhood to the responsibilities of ad

ulthood, the loss of parental care. Since then we have performed the show in Edinburgh & Lincoln and are now looking to tour it further in 2018. In our short time as a company we have had a huge amount of support from some incredible people and we will shout all about them when our website goes live.

2018 is set to be a fantastic year for us a company.

18/02/2019

Great weekend of rehearsals Lincoln Performing Arts Centre. After an exhaustive search, we can confirm that the albatross is not in Lincoln.

Nottingham, we heard it was making tracks in your direction, and we're on our way. Shows tonight & tomorrow, http://newtheatre.org.uk/whats-on/. 🎒

05/02/2019

BACKPACK’s BACK 🎒

February isn’t just the month for gorging on pancakes, it’s also the month we bring our backpacks out of storage!

We’ve got some exciting things coming up this year, we might even have a new show in the works... (SPOILER: we definitely will.)

BUT FIRST...

Rising like a phoenix from the ashes, our albatross is spreading its wings again and soaring on to golden horizons... Nottingham to be precise!
Tickets can be booked here for the 18th or 19th February: http://newtheatre.org.uk/whats-on/

Let’s hope we can still all fit on the train... it’s been a heavy Christmas.

31/12/2018

ROLL UP ROLL UP ITS THE END OF YEAR ROUND UP!

NSDF kickstarted our year and lead us on to Pulse festival, Incoming festival and all the way to the Edinburgh Fringe. Its been an incredible journey, and one we hope you’ll continue to follow us on as we boogie into the new year.

We’d like to give a very special shout out to those who have supported us on our backpacking adventure: New Diorama Theatre National Student Drama Festival Pulse Festival Ipswich Incoming Festival Pleasance Theatre
And who could forget the place we were birthed and reared, Lincoln Performing Arts Centre 🐣❤️

12/10/2018

Lovely show at Pleasance Theatre tonight. Thank you to everyone who came!

Be sure to keep an eye on our social media for all updates on the future of Albatross & any other projects we get up to!

🎒☔️

11/10/2018

TOMORROW NIGHT LONDON!

Spread the word! 🎒☔️

This Friday, we join The Backpack Ensemble on their 'Search for a Black-Browed Albatross'. A beautiful, joyous, handmade adventure with puppetry, music and a girl that just really wants to see a bird.

This Edinburgh hit is here for one show only - limited £8 tickets available when you quote FRIEND8.

Winner of The Sunday Times Playwriting Award, Buzz Goodbody Director Award and NSDF Festgoer's Award.

""Delicate, inventive work from a talented company" - Lyn Gardner

"Moving, inventive show about love, loss and letting go" - ⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Stage

21/08/2018

Last night we were part of an Edinburgh Festival Fringe feature on BBC Look North.

The opportunity to appear at the festival with The Search for a Black-browed Albatross wouldn’t of been possible without the unwavering support of Lincoln Performing Arts Centre, New Diorama Theatre, New Wolsey Theatre & The Lincoln Company. We can’t say thank you enough.

Catch us next at Lincoln Performing Arts Centre on 21st September or New Wolsey Theatre on 25th September.

🎒

13/08/2018
The Search for a Black-Browed Albatross review at Pleasance, Edinburgh – 'Moving show about love and loss'

We had a brilliant Adventure with The Search for a Black-browed Albatross receiving some lovely reviews in recent months.

★★★★ - The Stage
★★★★ - The 730 Review
★★★★ - The Reviews Hub
★★★★★ - North West End

“Delicate, inventive work from a talented company” - Lyn Gardner.

“Minimalist, Imaginative & Wonderful’’
- Exeunt Magazine.

“Exceptional” - The Sunday Times.

Next up is Lincoln Performing Arts Centre on 21 September & New Wolsey Theatre on 25 September. 🎒

Inventive show about love, loss and letting go from a promising young company the Backpack Ensemble, an emerging company from the University of Lincoln

28/07/2018
Backpack's Edinburgh Crib!

Welcome to Backpack's Edinburgh Crib! We're settling in pretty nicely in this sweet pad so Elliot thought he'd give you an EXCLUSIVE look around.
On a completely unrelated note, Simon has just discovered how to work iMovie.

26/07/2018

What’s better than doing a show with your best friends? Doing a show with your FAMILY.
All we need now is a white picket fence and a small but sturdy dog.

In 5 days time we head up to Edinburgh to perform The Search for a Black-browed Albatross at Pleasance King Dome, 3:30pm every day from the 1st - 9th August! ☔️

25/07/2018

7 DAYS 🎒

This time next week we will be entering and starting our Search for a Black-browed Albatross.

If you’re interested in devised work, new writing, puppetry & live music then grab a ticket! 1-9 August. 3.30pm.

Print Design: Helen Panayi.

🎟 https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/search-black-browed-albatross

17/07/2018

Check out this blog post written by Samantha Miles about taking a show to National Student Drama Festival.

'NSDF doesn't just provide you with a treasure trove of work, it provides a platform for young artists to share thoughts and feelings on the work they're creating in a supportive environment.'

Thinking of entering a show for ? We asked Samantha Miles from The Backpack Ensemble to talk a little bit about her experiences of what it's like to take a show up!

https://www.nsdf.org.uk/news-blogs/picture-this

06/07/2018
The Search for a Black-Browed Albatross - HOME, Manchester

★★★★★! “A fantastical journey of charm and magic, using imagination to full potential”.

We are absolutely blown away by this glowing five star review, our inner albatross is squawking with delight ✨

Next up for us is Edinburgh Festival Fringe at Pleasance Theatre from 1-9 August. We would love to see you there! Grab tickets here: https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/search-black-browed-albatross

http://northwestend.co.uk/index.php/professional-reviews/manchester/3245-the-search-for-a-black-browed-albatross-home-manchester

I’m at Home Manchester, for a performance of the intriguingly titled The Search for a Black-Browed Albatross by the also intriguingly titled Backpack Ensemble, a company of actors from Lincoln.

05/07/2018
The Search For The Black-Browed Albatross – HOME, Manchester

★★★★ "playful, inventive and charmingly low-tech theatre”.

What better way to finish off our run at Incoming Festival than a fantastic review with not 1, not 2, not even 3, but 4 stars!! We are absolutely beaming.

Image Credit: Giulia Delprato

https://www.thereviewshub.com/the-search-for-the-black-browed-albatross-home-manchester/

Writer: Samantha Miles Director: Simon Panayi Reviewer: Jo Beggs Charlie’s only twenty when her Dad dies. She hasn’t seen him for the past couple of years. Life has just been too busy. In her Dad’s…

04/07/2018
Review: The Search for a Black-browed Albatross at Incoming Festival 2018 - Exeunt Magazine

‘Minimalist, Imaginative & Wonderful’

Lovely review from Exeunt Magazine for The Search for a Black-browed Albatross. Catch the show at HOMEmcr tonight before it heads to Pleasance Theatre 1-9 August .

£5 TICKETS. 8.30PM START.

http://exeuntmagazine.com/reviews/review-search-black-browed-albatross-incoming-festival-2018/

Ed Nightingale reviews The Search for a Black-browed Albatross at Incoming Festival 2018.

02/07/2018

We had a great time at today. Beautiful venue, brilliant team & lovely audience. We’re looking forward to part two of our journey at on Wednesday! 🎒

25/06/2018
Silent Faces Theatre

We spoke to the gang over at Silent Faces Theatre about the beginnings of The Backpack Ensemble and how limitations can inspire creativity!

The Search for a Black-browed Albatross will be at New Diorama, London on 2 July and Home, Manchester on 4 July. Tickets still available for both dates. ONLY £5!

We are LOVING these interviews! We chatted to The Backpack Ensemble about their Incoming Festival show, and how limitations inspire creativity. Read the interview here:

26/05/2018

‪It's one year since we first set off in Search for a Black-browed Albatross.‬

‪This show has gone further than we could ever have imagined.‬ We're really proud of where it's been and we're very excited for its future!‬

‪Over the last year we have performed the show with Underbelly Festival, Lincoln Performing Arts Centre, Camden People's Theatre & National Student Drama Festival.‬ Each brilliant experiences with amazing audiences. ‬In the last month we have also become a New Diorama Theatre Emerging Graduate Company for 2018/19. A brilliant opportunity! ‬
‪
But the Search doesn't stop there! ‬

‪We've got a bunch of performances lined up with New Diorama Theatre & HOMEmcr as part of Incoming Festival, at Pleasance Theatre and hopefully a few more things in the pipeline. ‬

Thank you for all your support!

24/05/2018

We are going to be performing The Search for a Black-browed Albatross at Incoming Festival!

We’ll be performing in London at New Diorama Theatre on Monday 2 July and in Manchester at HOMEmcr on Wednesday 4 July.

London: newdiorama.com/whats-on/these…

Manchester: homemcr.org/production/sea…

There are some great people performing at the festival including our Lincoln friends over at Stand By Theatre Company and our National Student Drama Festival pals over at Poltergeist Theatre. Check out the full line up, we can’t wait!

incomingfestival.com/lineup.html

17/05/2018
The Search for a Black-Browed Albatross | Pleasance Theatre Trust

The Search continues...

We’re delighted to announce that we will be taking The Search for a Black-browed Albatross to Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2018 in association with The Lincoln Company!

Limited run. 1 - 9 August. Pleasance Theatre King Dome. 15.30 daily!

🎟 > https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/search-black-browed-albatross

Pleasance Theatre Trust Ltd is a registered Charity in England and Wales (Charity No. 1050944) and in Scotland (Charity No. SC043237)

16/05/2018

Hello!
We have a whole shed load of news that we can't wait to tell you about.
Well, Maybe not a whole shed, like half a shed... at least a few wheelbarrows worth of news!

Over the next few days we're going to be updating you with all the things we have been bursting to let you know for a little while now!

Firstly, we have began work on a second show! The Light Bulb Man was first developed the 2018 Newvolutions Festival Lincoln Performing Arts Centre. It is a look at ideas, inspiration and how we find them, and what we do when they escape us.

We are very excited to announce that we will be performing a work-in-progress extract of the show as part of New Wolsey Theatre's Pulse Festival Ipswich as part of the Suitcase Day alongside some amazing theatre makers. The Suitcase Prize promotes environmentally and economically sustainable means of theatre making - something we built our company around.

We're very pleased to be part of Pulse Festival and excited to be working on this new project, we hope to see a few of you there!

https://www.wolseytheatre.co.uk/shows/pulse17-suitcase-day/

09/05/2018

Backpack Catch Up!

We’ve been quiet on the Facebook front (apologies) but behind the scenes we’ve been working away and have some exciting news coming very soon! Be sure to follow our twitter account for more regular updates!

- Sam is going to be directing new play THE WORLD AT HER FEET at Lincoln Drill Hall in the autumn. See poster below for how you can get involved.

- Sam, Elliot and Laura are going to be starring in a production of Jane Austen’s Sense & Sensibility at Lincoln Drill Hall next week.

- Jordan recently performed in a production of Guys and Dolls at Lincoln Performing Arts Centre as Nathan Detroit. He is also in the latter stages of studying for an MA in Contemporary British Theatre. Good luck Jordan!

- James and Simon are both a few months into their new positions at Sheffield Theatres and New Wolsey Theatre.

- And last but by no means least, we are super pleased to say we are one of New Diorama Theatre Graduate Emerging Companies for 2018/2019!

Stay tuned for more news in the coming weeks! X

14/04/2018

The Backpack Ensemble's cover photo

08/04/2018

Brilliant write up on National Student Drama Festival in today’s The Times and The Sunday Times featuring a short review on The Search for a Black-browed Albatross.

1 week on, still in awe over the love & support our show received!

04/04/2018

Here are some lovely photos from The Search for a Black-browed Albatross at National Student Drama Festival. Thank you to everyone who joined us last week.

Photos: Aenne Pallasca | Giulia Delprato

30/03/2018

Absolutely thrilled that The Search for a Black-browed Albatross has won 3 awards at tonight’s National Student Drama Festival Awards.

The Festgoers’ award, The Times and The Sunday Times New Writing Award & The Buzz Goodbody Director award. Thank you to New Diorama Theatre, Lincoln Performing Arts Centre & all support on & off the stage! 🎒

29/03/2018

We are having an amazing time in Leicester at National Student Drama Festival. We performed twice on Monday to two lovely audiences. We have been involved in lots of brilliant discussions and workshops and Sam’s face was on the cover of Noises Off!

Thank you to everyone who helped us get here. This festival has got us very excited for the future!

25/03/2018

We have just started tech at National Student Drama Festival. Performances of The Search for a Black-browed Albatross at 12.00 & 16.00 tomorrow.

Sam is ready & raring to go!

22/03/2018
The Backpack Ensemble at National Student Drama Festival | Carl Woodward

We pack up and head to Leicester on Saturday for National Student Drama Festival. We will be performing on Mon 26 at 12.00 and 16.00. Please let us know if you're heading down, it would be great to see you there! Also, a massive thank you again to Lincoln Performing Arts Centre, New Diorama Theatre and everyone who supported our crowdfunding campaign. This is only possible because of you guys!

Check out this NSDF preview >

The Backpack Ensemble are heading to Leicester for the National Student Drama Festival (NSDF) through support from New Diorama Theatre, Lincoln Performing Arts Centre and a successful crowdfunding campaign.

13/03/2018

‪LONDON to LINCOLN. ‬

‪Thank you Camden People's Theatre for having us today. Brilliant audience in a lovely little venue. We've lost track of that pesky bird. Next on the search National Student Drama Festival on 26 March as we look to finally ‬

13/03/2018

LONDON BOUND!

We are currently making our way down the A1 (M) towards Camden People's Theatre. We perform tonight at 7.15pm. Tickets still available on the door, on the website or over the phone.

Spread the word, tell your mates, come and join us!

11/03/2018

We have reached our crowd funding target! A huge thank you to everyone who has supported us, it means an awful lot!!

This money, alongside the support from Lincoln Performing Arts Centre & New Diorama Theatre will enable us to get to National Student Drama Festival to perform on the Monday 26th.

Big love,
Backpack x

Address


Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when The Backpack Ensemble posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to The Backpack Ensemble:

Videos

Last night we were part of an Edinburgh Festival Fringe feature on BBC Look North. The opportunity to appear at the festival with The Search for a Black-browed Albatross wouldn’t of been possible without the unwavering support of Lincoln Performing Arts Centre, New Diorama Theatre, New Wolsey Theatre & The Lincoln Company. We can’t say thank you enough. Catch us next at Lincoln Performing Arts Centre on 21st September or New Wolsey Theatre on 25th September. 🎒

Backpack's Edinburgh Crib!
Backpack's Edinburgh Crib!

Welcome to Backpack's Edinburgh Crib! We're settling in pretty nicely in this sweet pad so Elliot thought he'd give you an EXCLUSIVE look around. On a completely unrelated note, Simon has just discovered how to work iMovie.

LONDON BOUND! We are currently making our way down the A1 (M) towards Camden People's Theatre. We perform tonight at 7.15pm. Tickets still available on the door, on the website or over the phone. Spread the word, tell your mates, come and join us!

Simon Panyai - VLOG!
Simon Panyai - VLOG!

Here is our Sixth VLOG! It's now only four days until our show! Don't forget to buy your tickets from the LPAC website: https://lpac.co.uk/event/the-search-for-a-black-browed-albatross-2/ Say hello to Simon!

Gabe Miles - VLOG!
Gabe Miles - VLOG!

Here is our Fifth VLOG! It's now only six days until our show! Don't forget to buy your tickets from the LPAC website: https://lpac.co.uk/…/the-search-for-a-black-browed-albatro…/ Time to introduce Gabe!

Shortcuts

  • Address
  • Alerts
  • Contact The Business
  • Videos
  • Claim ownership or report listing

  • Want your business to be the top-listed Travel Agency?

Share