Meet Dan Blick

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dan Blick. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Dan, appreciate you making time for us and sharing your wisdom with the community. So many of us go through similar pain points throughout our journeys and so hearing about how others overcame obstacles can be helpful. One of those struggles is keeping creativity alive despite all the stresses, challenges and problems we might be dealing with. How do you keep your creativity alive?

I’ll go through periods where perhaps I’m feeling slightly creatively depleted and, when these strike, I’ll tend to attempt to ‘fill my cup’ by surrounding myself with creative acts or works. I’ll take myself to a museum or the movie theatre, a gallery or a show, and I’ll always keep a journal or notebook by my side to jot down ideas and thoughts as and when they come. I’m of the belief that it’s part of the discipline as a creative to to turn up each and every day for yourself, whether it be writing a certain piece, working on a piece of text or sitting in front of the blank page; even if creative inspiration isn’t hitting on that specific day, it’s my duty to be there so that when it does arrive, I can attempt to capture it. Some days can definitely be frustrating and it feels like the creativity that you once knew has somehow abandoned you, but it returns – you just have to allow it the opportunity to do so.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I grew up in Oxford in the United Kingdom, obtaining a BA in Theology and Religious Studies from St John’s College, Cambridge University. I was acting and writing during my time at Cambridge, alongside playing rugby for the University team, and I knew that I wanted to train further in acting, more specifically at the William Esper Studio in New York City. I was fortunate enough to gain a place at the Studio and I spent two years studying under the tutelage of Suzanne Esper, which was an incredible experience and one that I’m extremely grateful to have had.

After graduating from the Esper Studio I co-founded the NYC-based theatre company ‘Telos Ensemble’ with fellow Esper alum Mitchell Pope. We’re a nonprofit theatre company who are focused on developing original works, most recently debuting work in London at the Omnibus Theatre. Two of my plays, ‘Telos’ and ‘Lake George’ have been produced through Telos Ensemble at the Chain Theatre, as well as my play ‘Concupiscence’ which was selected for the Chain Theatre One Act Festival 2025. We also launched and run the Purgatory reading series, a bi-monthly reading series based in NYC and London. Telos Ensemble has allowed me to develop my own work as a playwright, actor and director, particularly within New York, whilst building on and continuing the methods established through my time at the Esper Studio.

We have some really exciting projects coming up later in 2025 and early 2026 that I can’t wait to share with people!

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

I think the three most important qualities or skills that have been the most impactful in my journey so far are: discipline, patience and the ability to listen. I was going to mention preparation, but I feel that’s entailed in discipline – you show up for yourself and for the community of like-minded people that every artist hopefully discovers, particularly in a city like New York. Patience is probably the most important of those three for me; knowing that certain things do not, and most likely will never, make sense at moments in your life and that you really have to practice patience, knowing that one day perhaps the answers will reveal themselves to you. I think a lot of artists get wrapped up in this impatience and frustration of the need for creation, to put themselves out there in some way, but then it can risk becoming a conveyor belt of commerce for the sake of creating, with little meaning or truth behind the work itself. I think it can often be traced to social media and this need for instant gratification, to stay ‘relevant’ in some manner out of a fear of being forgotten or lost amongst the masses – and there are a lot of creatives! For me, patience reminds me that I’ve made a lifelong pact with the pursuit of this work and, as such, there really is no rush. Do I wish certain things happened faster for me at times? Absolutely! But I’ve learnt – as horribly cliche as it sounds – to trust in the timing of it all.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

Absolutely! We’re always looking to meet like-minded creatives at Telos Ensemble. The best way to get in touch with us is to either follow us on Instagram and drop us a message, where it’s @telos_ensemble or you can go on our website telosensemble.com and send us an email! Both Mitchell and I receive messages through our personal Instagrams too, so feel free to reach out to one of us through there if you wish – our information is in Telos Ensemble’s bio and website. We’re particularly looking for emerging writers and directors at the moment for some of our upcoming projects! If you’re based outside of New York please don’t let that discourage you from reaching out either, as after our London launch in early April we’re hopeful that there’ll be more international events to come.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.danblick.net/about
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dblick7/
• Other: Telos Ensemble:

  https://www.telosensemble.com/
  https://www.instagram.com/telos_ensemble/

Image Credits

Teague Shoup
Nick Dove
Skyler Adams