Celeste Barber's Backup Dancer Tour

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (April 10, 2024) – Ensemble Arts Philly, the new presenting brand of the Kimmel Cultural Campus and The Philadelphia Orchestra, in association with Live Nation, is thrilled to announce Australian actress, writer, comedian, and internet sensation, Celeste Barber, on her brand-new Backup Dancer tour at the Miller Theater on May 12, 2024, at 8:00 p.m.

Hailed as the “Australian Queen of Comedy” and known for her hilarious interpretations of “high art” culture, Barber brings a unique blend of comedy and performance art that captures hearts and tickles funny bones. In her latest show, she explores the glamor and absurdities of showbiz life.

“Laughter has the power to unite us across borders and around the world,” said Frances Egler, Vice President of Theatrical Programming and Presentations. "Backup Dancer from the comedic mind of Aussie Celeste Barber, will be the icing on cake of our phenomenal spring lineup of laughter, following Seth Meyers, Franco Escamilla, and more.”

Barber’s original celebrity parody Instagram account has attracted over 9.5 million followers, including Reese Witherspoon, Amy Schumer, Chelsea Handler, Cindy Crawford, and Tom Ford, whom she collaborated with in 2018 on his Boys and Girls beauty campaign. She won the ‘Funniest Lady on Instagram’ Award 2017 on WhoHaha.com, a digital platform co-founded by actor, director, producer, Elizabeth Banks, which showcases women in comedy around the world. In 2019, she was included in Variety Magazine’s prestigious ‘Variety’s 10 Comics to Watch’ Awards.

Celeste Barber Challenge Accepted! premiered in Sydney in June 2017 and has gone on to three sell out seasons in the US. In 2019, Celeste Barber Challenge Accepted! ran at the Just for Laughs Festival in Montreal. Her New York show at The Grammercy was recorded for her first Showtime special before continuing with a sell-out debut season in the UK and Europe. Her show then returned to Australia and New Zealand in September 2019. Barber toured Australia, New Zealand, the US, and Europe in 2022 and 2023 with her stand-up show Celeste Barber: Fine, Thanks. She finished her tour with special filmed performances at the iconic Sydney Opera House, that was released on Netflix in 2023.

Barber’s memoir, Challenge Accepted!, was released in Australia in September 2018, with UK release following shortly after. Challenge Accepted! was shortlisted for the ABIA 2019 Biography Book of The Year. Her US version of the book was released in 2019 with foreign rights following in France, Germany, Russia, and Poland.

Barber starred in the Netflix series Wellmania inspired by Brigid Delaney’s novel Wellmania: Misadventures in the Search for Wellness. Other credits include her comedy series #CelesteChallengeAccepted and The Way We Wore, a documentary series exploring the evolution of Australian fashion for the ABC. She also appeared in the award-winning ABC/Netflix series The Letdown as the straight shooting, no frills, confident mum; Barb. She will be appearing in Binge’s Colin From Account S2 and new Australian features See Pictures’ Runt and Like A Photon’s animation The Last Tiger. 

In early 2020, Barber used her platform to raise $52 million for the NSW RFS during Australia’s most devastating bushfire season. She also hosted the Fire Fight Australia event which raised more funds to help those affected by the fires.

Other featured upcoming performances include PHILADANCO! Roots and Reflections (April 12 – 14, 2024, Perelman Theater); Chloé Arnold’s Syncopated Ladies: LIVE! (April 13, 2024, Miller Theater); Anthony Jeselnik: Bones and All (April 27, 2024, Miller Theater); An Evening with Leslie Odom, Jr. (May 1, 2024, Miller Theater); Andrés Cepeda: Tengo Ganas Tour (May 2, 2024, Miller Theater); and Mark Normand: Ya Don’t Say Tour (June 14, 2024, Miller Theater).

Tickets

Tickets can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999 or online at ensembleartsphilly.org. In-person ticket sales can be conducted daily from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. at the Academy of Music Box Office, located at 240 S. Broad Street. See ensembleartsphilly.org for more information.

Celeste Barber: Backup Dancer

Miller Theater

Sunday, May 12, 2024, at 8:00 p.m.