Playbill: Broadway Green Alliance will celebrate its 15th anniversary with a special "bike-powered" concert October 23 at 5 PM in the New Amsterdam Room at the New Amsterdam Theatre. Limited, free tickets will be available for the in-person event, which will also stream live via Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley's Stars in the House series.
4 comments:
I am very, very passionate about sustainability, particularly within theatre. Something that appalled me when I first began working in theaters with a budget is how much waste theatre produces. I have never heard of the Broadway Green Alliance, and it absolutely fascinates me. Sometime this weekend, I intend to read more about it and how it actually works. I appreciate their recycling efforts, and I love the idea of having a bicycle-powered concert. How fun! I am curious to know if there is anything like this for regional theaters/theaters not located in New York. When thinking about how to make a true difference in sustainability efforts in theatres across the globe/ not all in one city, I think what needs to change is the industry standards. For example, finding an alternate base instead of using foam core for hang cards in lighting. Over my time at CMU I would like to find a recyclable alternative with the same qualities.
As long as I can remember, I have always been a staunch advocate for greener energy and the amount of waste in this industry is really absurd. Until now I didn’t know that there was a Broadway Green Alliance but I really quite enjoyed hearing about it. It seems like people are starting to care more about the environment, even if for most people it’s just because they realize it’ll affect them if they don’t care. I think this concert is a great opportunity to both raise some money and also raise more awareness. The more people know about this kind of thing the more people can hold them accountable for it and make sure that no matter what they will stick to their original goal and also to make sure they continue putting in effort and not just to revert to their old habits of spending up far too much of the earth’s resources
I had no idea that the Broadway Green Alliance existed. In an area such as theatre where sets, costumes, etc. are primarily designed and created to be temporary, it is important to consider the waste of it all. I understand that at lower levels, theatres do not necessarily have the time or money to make sustainable efforts, so I think it is very good that this is happening on a Broadway level. Providing power for a performance via bicycles is also a very intriguing idea. I do not know if they plan to do so, but there also could be a performance aspect to the cycling. When I went to the website, they did have the cyclists listed and pictured in their own list in addition to the performers. It is interesting to think about how this could spun in a creative way and also how it helps reduce energy waste.
The Broadway Green Alliance's commitment to sustainability, as illuminated in the Playbill article, strikes a chord with the inherent wastefulness of theater productions. The theater industry often grapples with budget constraints, pushing us to seek cost-effective solutions, even if they contribute to environmental waste. Foam, a commonplace construction material, exemplifies this dilemma. In a current production, the clash between budget constraints and environmental consciousness emerges vividly. The designer envisions a brick wall, and the Technical Direction Shop proposes foam due to its affordability. However, the production team, in a commendable move towards sustainability, opts for cat scratchers or cardboard despite the higher cost and potential time implications. This scenario underscores the challenges of transitioning to a greener approach in theater. It's not a straightforward "no," but rather a nuanced decision highlighting the intricate interplay between economic considerations and environmental responsibility. The shift towards sustainable practices necessitates a recalibration of priorities, acknowledging that a greener stage demands not only intention but also investment in terms of time, effort, and, inevitably, money. The theater community's endeavors toward sustainability, exemplified by the Broadway Green Alliance, are vital steps toward a more conscientious and responsible future for the performing arts.
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