Broadway Green Alliance

Job: Broadway Green Alliance – Assistant Director

Broadway Green Alliance, Job Posting

The Broadway Green Alliance is seeking a full-time Assistant Director to play a pivotal role in advancing the future of sustainability in the theatre community. The BGA operates at the intersection of theatre and the environment, and we are looking for someone with passion for both. Experience in each area is valuable but not required.

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION:

The Broadway Green Alliance (BGA) is an industry-wide initiative that educates, motivates, and inspires the entire theatre community and its patrons to implement environmentally-friendlier practices.

The BGA, launched in 2008 in collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council, is an ad hoc committee of The Broadway League and a fiscal program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

Core Principles:

  • It is impossible to be 100% “green” – we can only be greener. Each of us can begin by doing something to benefit our environment today, no matter the size of the action.
  • The climate crisis is the result of millions of decisions and it demands action – big andsmall – from each of us. Change results from the cumulative effect of our actions.
  • Climate neutrality is insufficient. In order to lessen the damage caused by climatechange and restore our climate to historically safe levels of atmospheric CO2, the BGAworks to promote climate positive action and commitments.
  • We must build an equitable and just climate movement and address the disproportionateeffect of environmental degradation on poor and BIPOC communities. There is no climate justice without racial justice.

OVERVIEW:

We are seeking a full-time Assistant Director to play a pivotal role in advancing the future of sustainability in the theatre community. The BGA operates at the intersection of theatre and the environment, and we are looking for someone with passion for both. Experience in each area is valuable but not required.

The Assistant Director will report to the Director. They will work closely together in a small team environment. Assistant Director responsibilities include maintaining day-to-day operations, planning and executing virtual and in-person events, managing our in-office recycling collections and Green Captain programs, developing social media content and email communications, and serving as a primary point of contact for queries from the community. To be successful in this role, you should excel in workflow management, project coordination, and people management skills.

All BGA staff and volunteers are expected to understand and embrace our mission statement and core principles, and share our commitment to justice and anti-racism in our operations and practices.

If you are a passionate self-starter who values friendliness, teamwork, diligence, tenacity, and humor – and is excited to join this growing organization at a critical moment for our planet – we’d love to hear from you.

More information

TO APPLY: 

Please send a cover letter and resume in PDF form to: jobs@broadwaygreen.com. Please include “BGA Assistant Director_Your Name” in the subject line.  

The BGA is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to creating an equitable, inclusive, and accessible environment for all staff and members.  We are dedicated to building a culturally diverse work environment – women, non-gender-binary/trans individuals,  BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color), individuals with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged to apply. 

Application Deadline: July 12, 2021 

Application Process: Applications will be reviewed as they are received. All applicants will receive confirmation of receipt and will be notified if they are selected for an interview. There will be 2-3 rounds of interviews. The first interview will be conducted by Zoom with subsequent interviews either conducted in-person at our Times Square office or remotely.

2019 College Green Captain Prize Now Open for Submissions

Broadway Green Alliance, Open Calls

The Broadway Green Alliance is pleased to once again offer the College Green Captain Prize to an outstanding college student who has helped his or her campus theatre department become greener. The deadline for all applications is March 4, 2019.

Winners will have brought innovative, creative, and/or widely-applied greening and energy-efficiency methods into the design and/or production of theatre to their campuses. Entries from this year’s finalists will be displayed at the BGA booth at the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, Inc. (USITT) Annual Conference & Stage Expo, which runs from March 20-23, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. 

The winner will be selected by a panel composed of members of the Broadway Green Alliance and will be announced at the USITT Expo. He or she will receive tickets to the Broadway production of Hadestown and, subject to availability, a professional backstage tour of the production or a meeting with a current Broadway Green Captain.

For more information on how to apply, please visit the BGA website by clicking here. Entries can be sent to green@broadway.org. Students or faculty/staff members interested in helping to green their theatre departments are encouraged to sign up to be a College Green Captain.P

Last Call: BGA College Green Captain Prize in Final Week of Submission

Announcements, Broadway Green Alliance, Open Calls

 

 

 

 

The Broadway Green Alliance College Green Captain Prize was created to reward College Green Captains for their greening efforts on campus productions. This years winners will be announced by Hamilton’s Seth Green at the 2017 United States Institute for Theatre Technology, Inc. (USITT) Annual Conference & Stage Expo, March 8-11 in St. Louis, Missouri.

To apply for the prize, College Green Captains should submit a one-page summary statement explaining their greening efforts and a pdf of a 18″x 24″ cardboard poster showing off the best elements of their greening program. Additional documentation can include a 3-5 minute video or up to 10 pages of written reports or spreadsheets documenting the greening.  Photographs with captions explaining the greening program are encouraged.  Winners will have brought innovative, creative, and/or widely-applied greening and energy-efficiency methods into the design and/or production of theatre at their campus.  The posters of finalists will be displayed at the BGA booth at the USITT Expo in March.

Greener practices can involve – but are not limited to – designing theatrical productions in a greener manner (e.g. alternate materials, energy, lighting, costumes or set pieces); running the show in a greener manner (e.g. energy-efficient lighting, rechargeable batteries, or educating the cast and crew about better practices); striking the production in a way that reduces waste (e.g. re-use, recycling, or composting); or changing front-of-house operations to reduce waste and encourage greener audience practices (e.g. alternative advertising, programs, or tickets).

Entries are due by March 1, 2017 and a winner will be announced at the USITT conference in St. Louis.
Entries can be sent to green@broadwaygreen.com. The winner of the BGA College Green Captain award will receive, subject to availability, tickets to the Broadway production of HAMILTON along with a professional backstage tour of the production and a meeting with a current Broadway Green Captain. Though groups can apply, only two tickets are available.  The entire group will receive a certificate commemorating their win.  Any student or faculty/staff member interested in helping to green their theatre department is encouraged to volunteer to be a College Green Captain and to sign up at  BroadwayGreen.com/college-green-captains.

All prize applicants must be College Green Captains.

More information about the BGA and the Prize for Achievement in Greener Theatre

 

JANUARY 2017 E-WASTE DRIVE!

Broadway Green Alliance

This post comes to you from the Broadway Green Alliance

2017-january-e-waste-drive-poster

The Broadway Green Alliance was founded in 2008 in collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council. The Broadway Green Alliance (BGA) is an ad hoc committee of The Broadway League and a fiscal program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids. Along with Julie’s Bicycle in the UK, the BGA is a founding member of the International Green Theatre Alliance. The BGA has reached tens of thousands of fans through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other media.

At the BGA, we recognize that it is impossible to be 100% “green” while continuing activity and – as there is no litmus test for green activity – we ask instead that our members commit to being greener and doing better each day. As climate change does not result from one large negative action, but rather from the cumulative effect of billions of small actions, progress comes from millions of us doing a bit better each day. To become a member of the Broadway Green Alliance we ask only that you commit to becoming greener, that you name a point person to be our liaison, and that you will tell us about your green-er journey.

The BGA is co-chaired by Susan Sampliner, Company Manager of the Broadway company of WICKED, and Charlie Deull, Executive Vice President at Clark Transfer

Go to the Broadway Green Alliance

Powered by WPeMatico

BGALogo-600

Hamilton’s Seth Stewart to Announce BGA’s College Green Captain Prize

Broadway Green Alliance

Seth Stewart, an original cast member of Broadway’s HAMILTON, currently playing Marquis de Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson, has been added to the stellar lineup of participants at the 2017 United States Institute for Theatre Technology, Inc. (USITT) Annual Conference & Stage Expo, March 8-11 in St. Louis, Missouri.

The BGA College Green Captain program is modeled after the successful Broadway version, in which a cast or crew member of every Broadway show volunteers to serve as a BGA liaison of the production for all things environmentally friendly. College Green Captains are self-selected members of a college or university theatre department who are committed to greening one or more of the department’s productions. College Green Captains are encouraged to find a faculty or staff Green Captain to partner in greening efforts.

As the Broadway Green Captain for HAMILTON, Stewart will be speaking on one of the conference’s green panels, “Green Captains – On Broadway & On Campus.” He will also be presenting one college Green Captain with the College Green Captain prize, along with, subject to availability, two tickets to see HAMILTON on Broadway and a backstage tour.

This award recognizes outstanding BGA College Green Captains for introducing environmental changes to their department’s theatre productions. Some examples of greener practices include energy-efficient lighting, rechargeable batteries, educating the cast and crew about better environmental practices, recycling or composting on the set, and more. Information about the prize can be found at http://www.broadwaygreen.com/collegeprize/.

USITT has supported greener theatre and productions through education, and has worked with the BGA on a slate of panels each year. Stewart’s panel is one of five green panels that the BGA is presenting at the conference this spring. The other panels will be: Closing Green, a Greener Model Building Workshop, Evaluating Sustainable Lighting Fixtures, and Green Theatre Around the World. The other panelists include Richard Cadena, Charlie Deull, Ian Garrett, Justin Miller, Ellen Jones, and Tony Award winning designer Donyale Werle.

For more information on the sessions and exhibitors who are already a part of USITT’s 2017 Conference & Stage Expo, visit http://www.usittshow.com/

ABOUT THE BGA
The Broadway Green Alliance (BGA) is an industry-wide initiative that educates, motivates, and inspires the entire theatre community and its patrons to implement environmentally friendlier practices. The BGA, launched in 2008 in collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council, is an ad hoc committee of the Broadway League and a fiscal program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. The BGA brings together all segments of the theatre community, including producers, theatres in New York and around the country, theatrical unions and their members, and related businesses. The BGA identifies and disseminates better practices for theatre professionals and reaches out to theatre fans throughout the country. For more information, visit www.broadwaygreen.com.

Broadway Up-cycled

Broadway Green Alliance

This post comes to you from the Broadway Green Alliance

Broadway Up-cycled

By Joseph Napolitano

The magic of Broadway turns guitar strings into bracelets, playbills into flowers, and trash into Tony Award-winning set designs. With roots in folk art, the use of salvaged materials deliberately raises the intrinsic and monetary value of recycled objects. It gives items a second life, and transforms the mundane into the extraordinary. Through the manipulation of forms, mass and surfaces, individuals craft waste into functional products and works of art.

Popping up at events like BroadwayCon, and selling out at the Broadway Flea Market and Grand Auction, Crafters are now coloring the Great-White-Way green with special up-cycled novelties unique to the theatre Industry. Theatre enthusiast & librarian, Ronni Krasnow creates “collage art with a theatrical twist” from Playbills, flyers and magazines (Facebook.com/broadwayglue). Ms. Krasnow started upcycling when she wanted to create a gift for her dear friends, songwriters Lynn Ahrens & Stephen Flaherty. She enjoyed the experience so much that she continued working on pieces that focus on particular shows, composers, themes, and sometimes just based on a color alone. “I love that all my materials are upcycled. It’s fun to create something new and different from something familiar”

Screen Shot 2016-03-08 at 2.45.49 PM

Ronni Krasnow, Broadway Blues, 2014, 11×14 inches, mixed media collage

“It’s a little like doing a jigsaw puzzle, just figuring out where the various pieces fit,” Ms Krasnow says. Her two cats fancy her work as well, and love interfering with her layouts from time to time.

Screen Shot 2016-03-08 at 2.46.04 PM

Ronni Krasnow, Some of Sondheim, 2014, 11×14 inches, mixed media collage

Recycling breaks consumer materials down so that their base materials can be used in new consumer products. Items that are up-cycled become refashioned, but still maintain their characteristics. “I am a librarian,” Ms. Krasnow says, ”so I am always looking at the various materials we discard to see if there is anything I can (re)use.” When looking at a book or magazine now, I am much more focused on typeface, color, and word size than on the actual articles!”

While quite beautiful, the nature of up-cycled work is inherently a political statement. For BGA member & communications guru Sasha Pensanti, it’s a lot of both. Sasha began up-cycling While working on multiple Broadway productions. Show after show, she watched as Playbills were continually thrown away. ”I kept asking why we couldn’t do something,” she said. “The answer always had to do with union rules. I didn’t like that answer.” Sasha decided to take it upon herself to make paper flowers from the discarded playbills. From there Ms. Pensanti developed a whole line of products: frames, jars for the flowers, canvases, hair clips/headbands… (https://www.etsy.com/shop/SomeOtherMe).

Screen Shot 2016-03-08 at 2.50.25 PM

Color Playbill Bouquets by Sasha Pensanti

“I’ve become conscious of a lot more waste than before. I’m also really careful to use recycled boxes when shipping my flowers, and instead of buying bubble wrap I use the extra playbill pieces, crumble them up and they make great packing materials! 100% recycled!” Ms. Pensanti said. Similar circumstances precipitated collage artist Stephen Winterhalter (The Art of Broadway: https://www.etsy.com/shop/theartofbroadway) to begin up-cycling playbills into works of art. Stephen’s work emerged when he wanted to do something with his enormous Playbill collection so they wouldn’t end up in the trash. “It started out as a small idea that just kept growing. By time the holidays rolled in I had over 100 orders,” Stephen said.

Screen Shot 2016-03-08 at 2.53.08 PM

Custom Broadway Playbill Art Collage by Stephen Winterhalter, 12×12 inches

Stephen has also been working with WICKED on Broadway since 2005, and calls the Gershwin Theatre his second home. As of late, people have taken to his collages. “People buy them to commemorate a trip they took to NYC, all the shows from their favorite composer, or as a gift for a Broadway fan,” Stephen says. “I also get a lot of theatre educators contacting me about pieces for their school.”

Screen Shot 2016-03-08 at 2.53.18 PM

Custom Broadway Playbill Art Collage by Stephen Winterhalter, 12×12 inches

“The idea of giving a second or third life to Playbills is what ultimately propels these projects,” Stephen says. “People get a Playbill at a show, and sometimes they just leave them on the floor afterwards. This is the perfect opportunity to take those Playbills and turn them into something new. Another example is when a show closes or there’s a major cast change that renders a batch of Playbills unusable at the theatre. I can use those!” Stephen’s idea of getting multiple uses out of a single Playbill is sustainable thinking.  His friends contact him when they are discarding their playbills, sometimes by the bin, and he always collects them. All of Stephen’s work is crafted by hand. He creates the frames, and uses the excess paper from inside the frames as gluing mats so nothing is wasted. Stephen also relishes in the idea of the puzzle. “It’s really satisfying when you finish a piece and think, man, these all look great together!” Check out Stephen’s instagram for more of his work @Art_of_Broadway

You can also find products where function influences form, and familiar every-day items and accessories are fabricated from waste material. There are chairs made from street signs, dresses made from candy wrappers, and homes made out shipping containers; the list goes on, and the possibilities are endless. Bagitude, a company based out of Chicago, creates handbags from playbills. Now it’s your turn! If you or someone you know is a Broadway fan and creative up-cycler, share your work with us on twitter: @broadwaygreen, facebook.com/BroadwayGreenAlliance, & instagram: broadwaygreenalliance.

———-

The Broadway Green Alliance was founded in 2008 in collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council. The Broadway Green Alliance (BGA) is an ad hoc committee of The Broadway League and a fiscal program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids. Along with Julie’s Bicycle in the UK, the BGA is a founding member of the International Green Theatre Alliance. The BGA has reached tens of thousands of fans through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other media.

At the BGA, we recognize that it is impossible to be 100% “green” while continuing activity and – as there is no litmus test for green activity – we ask instead that our members commit to being greener and doing better each day. As climate change does not result from one large negative action, but rather from the cumulative effect of billions of small actions, progress comes from millions of us doing a bit better each day. To become a member of the Broadway Green Alliance we ask only that you commit to becoming greener, that you name a point person to be our liaison, and that you will tell us about your green-er journey.

The BGA is co-chaired by Susan Sampliner, Company Manager of the Broadway company of WICKED, and Charlie Deull, Executive Vice President at Clark Transfer<. Rebekah Sale is the BGA’s full-time Coordinator.

Go to the Broadway Green Alliance

Powered by WPeMatico

An Oh-Yes-We-Can in Paris

Broadway Green Alliance

This post comes to you from the Broadway Green Alliance

An Oh-Yes-We-Can in Paris
COP21 and what it means for the arts

By Stan Friedman

This past December, representatives of 195 nations came together in Paris to forge a landmark agreement designed to rein in global warming. The gathering, known as COP21, or, for the long winded, the 21st Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, put in place a series of regulations meant to save the planet from rising sea levels, destructive storms, droughts, floods and, you know, extinction.

In short, the COP21 delegates agreed to:

Lower pollution levels so that the rise in global temperatures is limited to no more than 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit, that being the point at which scientists believe serious devastation would kick in.

Limit greenhouse gases emitted by humans to the same level that nature can absorb naturally, beginning at some point between 2050 and 2100.

Review each country’s contribution to cutting emissions every five years.

Establish “climate financing,” wherein the wealthier countries provide funding to help poorer nations adapt to climate change and switch to renewable energy.

You can read the full 31-page agreement here.

Clearly, these are mega-initiatives with a global scope and a century-wide timeframe, so, how should we, as a community of theatre professionals, react in the here and now? How might COP21 affect the performing arts, both from the practical aspect of producing a show, and from the standpoint of providing creative inspiration for new works of environmental theater? We reached out for advice and examples from some experts. And, since this is a worldwide initiative, we cast our net internationally.  The responses have been intriguing and we will be sharing them with you in blog posts over the coming months. First up, a call to arms from Brussels and from London:

Ilse Joliet

Ilse is based in Brussels and is the Coordinator for IMAGINE 2020. She points to the usefulness of cooperation among arts groups, and the importance of making your message heard: “We believe it is important to share with the audience our concerns about what is going on in the world and how we can make things change.” Her organization has certainly done just that. They began, in 2007, as a group of six European theaters, gathered under the name Thin Ice, with the aim of spreading environmental responsibility in the theater world. Today, IMAGINE 2020 is made up of 11 arts organizations spread across nine European countries. From 2007 until 2013 they mainly commissioned and presented works of environmental theater and encouraged sustainable practices in theaters and cities. The last few years their focus has been more on “communication about the future of our planet through art, imagination and debating.” As explained on their website, they want to “engage the European cultural sector and use its creative potential to raise awareness, involving the general public both as audience and as participants. Art should provide a physical and imaginary space where people can take a step back, away from the corporate, the commercial and the educational, to exchange and engage with each other.”

Lucy Wood

Lucy is Program Director for Cape Farewell, a London-based non-profit. Working internationally, they bring artists, performers, educators, journalists and scientists together to “communicate on a human scale the urgency of the global climate challenge.”

Last September, Cape Farewell and French partner COAL launched a global arts festival calledArtCop21. Lucy explains, “ArtCop21 sought to engage with hundreds of thousands of members of the public in a more human, visceral way. Climate change is too often viewed through a policy or scientific lens. ArtCop21 aimed to challenge this trope, arguing that climate is very much a people problem – not one to be left to solely the politicians. Indeed it is the biggest ‘people’ problem we’ve ever faced. But the biggest challenge is to move people to care in the first place because denial is a powerful thing, particularly when faced with what feels like an impossible task.

“ArtCop21 exceeded expectations and built up an enormous cultural momentum – numbering a total 551 events in 54 countries. The festival brought a huge and inventive array of offerings, from a concert in the Arctic Circle featuring Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones to a street art exhibition in Benin, Africa.

“The festival sought out work that uses creativity to reframe the catastrophic, negative language of the climate battle into an opportunity for positive change. The thousands of voices involved in ArtCop21 argued that we need is a major cultural shift in the way we produce energy, consume, exchange and work and ultimately define ourselves and our culture. We need to move to a post-carbon culture and economy; and fast.”

———-

The Broadway Green Alliance was founded in 2008 in collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council. The Broadway Green Alliance (BGA) is an ad hoc committee of The Broadway League and a fiscal program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids. Along with Julie’s Bicycle in the UK, the BGA is a founding member of the International Green Theatre Alliance. The BGA has reached tens of thousands of fans through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other media.

At the BGA, we recognize that it is impossible to be 100% “green” while continuing activity and – as there is no litmus test for green activity – we ask instead that our members commit to being greener and doing better each day. As climate change does not result from one large negative action, but rather from the cumulative effect of billions of small actions, progress comes from millions of us doing a bit better each day. To become a member of the Broadway Green Alliance we ask only that you commit to becoming greener, that you name a point person to be our liaison, and that you will tell us about your green-er journey.

The BGA is co-chaired by Susan Sampliner, Company Manager of the Broadway company of WICKED, and Charlie Deull, Executive Vice President at Clark Transfer<. Rebekah Sale is the BGA’s full-time Coordinator.

Go to the Broadway Green Alliance

Powered by WPeMatico

BGALogo-600

Updates from the Broadway Green Alliance

Broadway Green Alliance, Open Calls

We are pleased to once again offer the College Green Captain prize to an outstanding student Green Captain who has helped their campus theatre department get meaningfully greener. Please go here for more information. The deadline is March 1, 2016. 

Chapter Report: Chicago Green Theatre Alliance

On October 2 and 3, 2015 the Chicago Green Theatre Alliance (CGTA) collected cast-off costumes from several large theatres including Steppenwolf, Northlight and Writers Theatre. This collection of costumes and textiles was offered to member companies of the League of Chicago Theatres and local designers. Many happy people left with armloads of costumes, delighted that they had some beautiful and useful pieces that would help them immensely in their upcoming seasons. After all the exchanging was done, the leftover costumes and textiles were bagged up and taken away to be recycled through Chicago Textile Recycling. 45% of donated items are worn as second hand clothing. 30% of donated items are recycled into wiping cloths. 15% of donated items are reprocessed into fibers. More than one full gaylord of e-waste was also collected at the event. This was the CGTA’s second drive of the year. Last May, CGTA collected 2.5 tons of electronic waste from theatres all over Chicago. Not only did this e-waste get recycled responsibly, but was done at no cost to theatres and freed up space for them! CGTA is committed to bringing Chicago theatres these drives every year with the goal of providing free, responsible recycling and reuse options to theatres.

The Broadway Green Alliance is happy to announce a new program with lcon Parking providing free valet bike parking at two midtown locations.

lcon, the largest parking company in NYC, is now working to be the most environmentally friendly parking company as well. They are working on a large initiative to become a paperless parking provider and working on programs for car sharing, electric car charging stations, mobile valet services, parking reservations and, of particular interest to BGA members, bike parking. lcon will provide any BGA member with FREE BIKE PARKING at the two locations below if you return the claim ticket with a BGA sticker on it.

For free bike parking your claim ticket must be validated with a BGA sticker on the back. Stickers are available in advance from the BGA office (165 West 46th St., Suite 1312 M-F 10-6) or from a Broadway show’s Green Captain.

Participating Icon locations:
lcon – Mercury Parking LLC
350 West 50th Street
Between 8th & 9th
Entrances at 350 West 50th or 355 West 49th St.

lcon – Matinee 52 LLC
810 7th Avenue
Between Broadway & 7th Ave
Entrances at 207 West 52nd St. or 1676 Broadway

                            Go toBroadwayGreen.com/Icon for FAQs and more information.

BGA gives out first ever Off-Off Broadway Greening Grants

The Broadway Green Alliance awarded $2,500 to fund greening projects in the Off-Off Broadway or Independent theater community. The goal is to support environmentally friendly projects and activities, and to communicate about those programs to a broader audience. We received an outstanding group of proposals and are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2015 Off-Off Broadway/Independent greening grants.

These grants are designed to encourage an independent venue, company, or producer to initiate a specific greener change.The theaters received the grants for projects including LED lighting upgrades, bathroom upgrades, and switches to digital from paper.

The recipients of the 2015 Independent greening grants are: Superhero Clubhouse, Access Theater, Page 73, Movement Theater, and Theatre for a New City. Congratulations!

And speaking of biking…

Bike the 5 Boroughs with the BGA!

We are happy to announce that the BGA has once again been picked as a Charity Partner for the 2016 TD Five Boro Bike Ride run by non-profit Bike NY. We have ten spots for this popular 40-mile ride, on Sunday, May 1st, that goes through each borough. The money we raise from this event funds many of our events and projects, including our Off-Broadway and independent theater greening grants. Email rsale@broadwaygreen.com if you’d like to join our team.

BroadwayCon is coming!

BroadwayCon is the first-ever convention for fans of Broadway and theater,
scheduled for January 22-24, 2016 at the New York Hilton Midtown. BroadwayCon will feature workshops, panels, performances, sing-alongs and interviews. We are organizing a session on Broadway Going Green. Several of our Broadway Green Captains will participate in a panel on how they keep it green on the great white way. We will also be selling BGA green merchandise at the event.  You can find more information at broadwaycon.com

Designing & Sourcing Green:

The Greenhouse Ensemble’s “Danny and the Deep Blue Sea”The Greenhouse Ensemble’s production of John Patrick Shanley’s “Danny and the Deep Blue Sea” comes to the Upper West Side this week. Directed by Drama Desk and Obie Award winning and Broadway alum Austin Pendleton, the production features a greener approach to its set design.

The Greenhouse ensemble’s experimental nature lent itself to conceptualizing the show in a sustainable manner, and the artistic staff took a risk visually with BGA member & set designer Joseph Napolitano’s ideas. “The main challenge is sourcing specific materials,” Napolitano says. “Once you create a design and it’s on paper, you’ve made a commitment to it. You and your team have to find the salvaged pieces to make it work.” The pieces for this show have all had a former life. The design calls for swaths of material which were sourced from a non-Equity tour, and cut and dyed to the appropriate sizes and color. Metallic Mylar finishes that are applied to portions of the set were collected from theaters and universities on the east coast and brought to the city for use. Finally, the team came to the idea of installing clotheslines above the set, filling the space’s height with familiar imagery of a densely populated, derelict metropolis. The lines are filled with garments and fabric selected within a specific color palette. These clothes will be given to local thrift shops after the show closes. Once the show finishes up in NYC, it tours with dates starting as early as late December in Michigan. For tickets, go here  and take advantage of the Greenhouse Ensemble’s commitment to greener and affordable theater.

If you are interested in greener materials for your next project, check some of these places for sustainable sourcing:

College Green Captain News from the Broadway Green Alliance

Broadway Green Alliance, news

Anyone can volunteer to be a College Green Captain just as anyone from a Broadway production can.  We have nearly 50 Green Captains on Broadway; at every production and at many theatrical unions. Folks volunteer to be a Green Captain because they care about the environment and about helping us spread the word that its easy being green-er. Many of the greener changes are also money-saving and increase efficiency. If you are wondering how to make a greener change at your theater department reach out to us as we would be happy to let you know how we do things greener on Broadway. Write green@broadway.org.

We currently have a BGA Green Captain at every Broadway show!

College Green Captain Prize will again be offered for 2016

The Broadway Green Alliance (BGA) is happy to announce that we will once again be offering a College Green Captain prize for an outstanding College Green Captain.  The award will be presented at USITT in March in Utah and the deadline to apply will be March 1st, 2016. The winner will receive tickets to a Broadway (or touring) show and a meeting with a Broadway Green Captain. For details on how to apply please go here.

Greening College Campuses

One man’s trash is…well, you know how it goes!

And, for a group of students at the University of New Hampshire, this maxim is the cornerstone of their campus program, Trash 2 Treasure, and the national non-profit organization that grew out of it, the Post-Landfill Action Network(PLAN). These are projects that strive to decrease college campus waste and work towards zero-waste campuses. By collecting student goods during spring move-out and selling of them come fall semester, for instance, students are able to reduce waste and offer students dorm appliances and décor at cheap prices. Other colleges even have student-run thrift stores that sell recycled products! Such zero-waste college campus initiatives are great ways to get involved in campus and make a positive impact. Does your school have any end-of-the-year waste reduction programs? If not, now is the perfect time to connect with other students and plan a green event for spring.

Spreading the Word of Sustainable Theatre

e03e3e400873deeda4778d7f862789b1

by Maddie Price
Gettysburg College ‘15
Green Design Intern, Summer ‘15

Never underestimate the power of publicity! College Green Captains, what’s the good of all the great plans you have for greening your school’s theatre if no one knows about them? Spreading the word about your theatre department’s sustainability initiatives, both internally and externally, will help you promote a culture of sustainability with greater participation in eco-friendly practices within the college theatre and across campus!
First, to ensure success of your college theatre going green, you need to get your colleagues on board! Talk to your peers–ask for their input for how to best green your theatre program during your day-to-day activities, whether in the green room or behind the scenes of a show. Talk to faculty about promoting eco-friendly habits, both in the context of theatre classes and rehearsing shows; be sure to talk to staff in all areas of production, from the costume shop to the light booth. Ask the administrative office about creating signage and email blasts with reminders about sustainability policies.

Furthermore, consider sharing the news about your green college theatre to the greater campus community, especially if there are initiatives that audience members should be aware of (such as recycling or bringing reusable water bottles) when they come to see your shows! Are there any cool set pieces/costumes/props made from salvaged materials? Snap a photo and share it on social media! (see below for our tags). Does your campus have a student-run newspaper or radio station? Can you make announcements through student government? Even when making Facebook events for upcoming productions, post reminders about how to go green in your theatre building. Furthermore, if your school has made environmental sustainability a greater priority among higher administration, such as through an Office of Campus Sustainability or a faculty Sustainability Board, see how you can contribute your input. They would probably love to hear about students bringing sustainability to the performing arts–think how it can be pitched as a unique, inspiring story to stakeholders that may even make it into college publications! While many schools today have signed onto the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, many have yet to discover that making strides in environmental sustainability can be found in theatre arts!

Action

Follow the BGA on social media to keep up with news, tips and the latest green happenings on Broadway. Click on the icons at the bottom of this e-mail to do so.

Top Five Tips for Greener Dorm-Living by Barnard College CGC Samantha Jakuboski

You don’t have to give up a life of luxury or be a tree-hugger to go green in your dorm (although there is nothing wrong with embracing the occasional tree now and then.) Here are some of my favorite ways to “greenify” my dorm living:

  1. Bring a lot of underwear to college. This way, you won’t have to do as many loads of laundry and you can save both water and energy– not to mention time, because, really, who has time to do laundry in college?! And if you are doing laundry wash in cold water with a small amount of earth friendly detergent. 
  2. Plastic water bottles are so last century. Embrace the reusable water bottle. As a college student, proudly sport your bottle around campus. CAUTION: People will envy you and your super cool bottle.
  3. Who says that saving the environment means living without a mini-fridge and giving up those midnight ice cream cravings? Energy Star appliances are your friends. Buy them. See a full list here.
  4. Natural is the new black. So ladies, put down those energy-consuming curling irons, flat irons, and blow dryers and embrace those luscious waves and curls. (OK, so maybe this tip is a bit tree-huggerish, but I still think natural is sexy!) If you’re not up to natural hair then at least write BGA for a t-shirt (made of recycled plastic!) and wear that to show you care about green instead.
  5. Make use of power strips. I like to plug my strings of lights into one powerstrip and all my chargers in another. This way, when I want to shut all the lights off and when I want to decrease my use of vampire power when I am not using my chargers, all I have to do it turn off one switch.

SPECIAL OFFER:  GET A 20% DISCOUNT on “A Practical Guide to Greener Theater” by BGA Education Committee members Ellen Jones with Jessica Pribble and Paul Brunner. Use code FLR40. Go to http://ellenejones.com/ for more info.  

BWAY BIKES – BGA + ICON PARKING

Broadway Green Alliance

This post comes to you from the Broadway Green Alliance

The Broadway Green Alliance is happy to announce a new program with lcon Parking providing free valet bike parking at two midtown locations.

 

lcon, the largest parking company in NYC, is now working to be the most environmentally friendly company as well. They are working on a large initiative to become a paperless parking provider which will not only save precious natural resources but will help expedite the entire parking experience, thus reducing emissions. They are also working on programs for car sharing, electric car charging stations, mobile valet services, parking reservations and, of particular interest to BGA members, bike parking. lcon will provide any BGA member with free bike parking at the two locations below starting October 15, 2015.

For free bike parking your claim ticket must be validated with a BGA sticker on the back.

Stickers are available in advance from the BGA office (165 West 46th St., Suite 1312 M-F 10-6) or from your show’s Green Captain.

Participating Icon locations:                                      

lcon – Mercury Parking LLC

350 West 50th Street

Between 8th & 9th Ave.

Entrances at 350 West 50th or 355 West 49th St.

 

lcon – Matinee 52 LLC

810 7th Avenue

Between Broadway & 7th Ave

Entrances at 207 West 52nd St. or 1676 Broadway

FAQs

Why this program?

This program puts together lcon’s commitment to the environment with members of the Broadway Green Alliance, which encourages energy efficient forms of transportation.

How it works:

Each green captain will have starter kits with stickers and instructions; for frequent users, just come to the BGA office (Equity Building, Suite 1312) and we can give you a few stickers in advance. To use the sticker, just apply it to the back of your claim ticket when you present it to retrieve your bike.

Who?

Any member of the BGA is eligible to participate. Membership is free, and you can sign up easily at BroadwayGreen.com.

When?

This program begins on October 15, 2015 and will continue until further notice.

Spread the word!

Please let us know how the program works for you. Please post pictures and stories about the program on Facebook, twitter, Instagram and other social media. And, tell your friends in the theatre community about this.

For more information write: green@broadway.org.

———-

The Broadway Green Alliance was founded in 2008 in collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council. The Broadway Green Alliance (BGA) is an ad hoc committee of The Broadway League and a fiscal program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids. Along with Julie’s Bicycle in the UK, the BGA is a founding member of the International Green Theatre Alliance. The BGA has reached tens of thousands of fans through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other media.

At the BGA, we recognize that it is impossible to be 100% “green” while continuing activity and – as there is no litmus test for green activity – we ask instead that our members commit to being greener and doing better each day. As climate change does not result from one large negative action, but rather from the cumulative effect of billions of small actions, progress comes from millions of us doing a bit better each day. To become a member of the Broadway Green Alliance we ask only that you commit to becoming greener, that you name a point person to be our liaison, and that you will tell us about your green-er journey.

The BGA is co-chaired by Susan Sampliner, Company Manager of the Broadway company of WICKED, and Charlie Deull, Executive Vice President at Clark Transfer<. Rebekah Sale is the BGA’s full-time Coordinator.

Go to the Broadway Green Alliance

Powered by WPeMatico