Bags Made From Retired Theatre Backdrops Are a Hit Among the Broadway Community

A peak on the inside: each bag has a tag that tells you the show and what number bag you have out of how many the drop made! #scenerybags

A post shared by S C E N E R Y (@scenerybags) on Jul 6, 2017 at 11:07am PDT

Have you ever wondered what happens to retired theatre backdrops?

Broadway stage manager Jen Kahn thought the same thing, and was inspired to answer that question in 2015 when she wandered into a shop that sold bags made from old sails from sailboats. And Scenery Bags was born.

The theatre drops Kahn uses to make the bags come from all over the United States. These retired drops can come from closed shows, storage spaces, or are just damaged and no longer of use. Instead of a theater just throwing them away, they are graciously donated to Kahn, letting the stories live on in a new form.

A portion of the proceeds from each bag are donated to TDF's Stage Doors program, which provides middle and high school students an introduction to theatre. Not only do these bags let old shows live on, they give a new generation a chance to experience meaningful live theatre.

Inside each Scenery Bag, which are all handmade in the USA, is a tag that tells you the show it is from and the number you have out of that collection, and a card with more information about the drop's history.

The bags are already a hit in the Broadway community, including with Krista Rodriguez and Rachel Bloom who have both gushed about them on their Instagrams.

According to their website, there is currently a waitlist for the next batch of bags. To learn more about Scenery Bags, visit www.scenerybags.com.