TELOS ENSEMBLE
Telos (τέλος) - purpose, end, goal
ABOUT US
We create original theatre that examines the moral choices, desires, and contradictions at the heart of human experience: the things we think, but rarely say out loud. Performed by Meisner-trained actors committed to truthful, rigorous work.
Our process begins with the page - developmental readings that put new writing in front of an audience before it reaches the stage. From there, we produce. And increasingly, we film. Our debut feature Black Lake, written and directed by Dan Blick and adapted from his original stage play Lake George, is the first example of what this company is building towards: original work that moves from the reading room, to the stage, to the screen.
OUR STORY
Mitchell Pope and Dan Blick met while studying at the William Esper Studio in New York City, where both trained in the Meisner technique under Suzanne Esper. In September 2023, they founded Telos Ensemble with the world premiere of Telos - an original play by Dan Blick - at the Chain Theatre in New York.
The name is deliberate. Derived from Aristotle's concept of telos, the company is built on the belief that art has a purpose: to hold the private lives of people - their relationships, their contradictions, their moral choices - up to the light. We are drawn to the darker aspects of human experience: the things we do not admit to thinking or feeling, even to ourselves. Romantic relationships and family dynamics are our recurring territory, because they are inescapable, and because they reveal us most honestly.
WHAT WE'VE MADE
Since our first production in 2023, Telos Ensemble has staged seven original works across three countries.
Telos opened to sold-out nights at the Chain Theatre in September 2023, returning for an extended run in May and June 2024. Lake George had its world premiere at the Chain Theatre in November 2024, returning in March 2025. Concupiscence was selected for the Chain Theatre One Act Festival in February 2025. Castles had its world premiere in London in September 2025, before transferring to Stockholm for its Scandinavian premiere in February 2026.
In August 2025, we shot our debut feature film Black Lake on location in Michigan - an adaptation of Lake George, written and directed by Dan Blick, starring Tora Hallström and Mitchell Pope. Post-production was completed in March 2026. The film is currently on the festival circuit.
PURGATORY
Purgatory is our developmental reading series - an intimate evening of new writing, performed by professional actors and followed by open conversation and drinks. Works are in active development; audiences encounter them before they reach the stage or screen.
Launched in December 2024 at PRIV.Y Gallery in Manhattan, Purgatory has since run at the Omnibus Theatre in London, Unit J in Brooklyn, and Pluto's Loft in New York. In July 2026, it makes its California debut with evenings in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
THE FOUNDERS
Dan Blick - Co-founder / Writer / Director
Dan is a British director and writer based in New York. A Cambridge University graduate in Theology and Religious Studies and a recipient of the Sheikh Zayed Prize, he trained under Adrian Noble in Oxford before moving to New York to study at the William Esper Studio. His plays - Telos, Lake George, Concupiscence, and Castles - have run Off-Broadway, Off-West-End, and in Stockholm. Black Lake is his feature film debut.
Mitchell Pope - Co-founder / Actor / Producer
Mitchell is a New York-based actor and producer. A graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design's BFA Performing Arts program and a member of The SCAD 2020 Performing Arts Showcase, he trained under Suzanne Esper at the William Esper Studio. He has appeared in and produced all major Telos Ensemble productions and stars alongside Tora Hallström in Black Lake.