Broadway Green Alliance Celebrates 5th Year

The Broadway Green Alliance (BGA) has announced the celebration of its fifth year and the launch of a new online Theatre Greening Advisor. The BGA is an industry-wide initiative focused on enhancing Broadway's environmental profile by adopting preferable practices and promoting awareness in the creation and presentation of Broadway shows.

In collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the BGA's early goal was to assess theatre production and disseminate information about environmentally preferable options to the Broadway theatre community including producers, theatre owners, designers, managers, design shops and others. Collectively, the Broadway community has achieved meaningful accomplishments during the first five years of this long-term initiative, including the shift to energy efficient lighting throughout the Great White Way. As a result of this work, Broadway is now a leader in environmental sustainability in the global theatre industry.

Taking this good environmental work to the rest of the country, the BGA and NRDC are now launching the NRDC Theatre Greening Advisor-an online guide to help theatres across the country implement environmentally intelligent practices. More than two years of work has gone into the creation of this unique online environmental resource for the theatre community, and it is arguably the most comprehensive theatre greening information database in existence. The BGA and NRDC are making the NRDC Theatre Greening Advisor available at no cost to all theatre production worldwide.

The new BGA Greener Lighting Guide, designed to help compare greener stage lighting instruments, will be linked to the NRDC Theatre Greening Advisor and both are scheduled to launch today, January 27th, 2014.

Broadway theatres have replaced all their marquee and outside lighting with energy-efficient bulbs (over 10,000 bulbs!), saving approximately 700 tons of carbon emissions per year; switched to more environmentally preferable cleaning products and appliances; and established recycling, water filtration and energy efficiency programs.

Broadway shows now have a BGA liaison, or Green Captain, at nearly all shows, bringing greener practices backstage. Green Captains come from all aspects of productions, and sometimes even the star of the show participates in this important role. Bryan Cranston, Alan Cumming, Hugh Dancy, Montego Glover, Harriet Harris and Carol Kane have all served as BGA Green Captains.

Running shows are saving money through reduced waste. Many shows now use rechargeable batteries in microphones and flashlights, keeping thousands of toxic disposable batteries from the waste stream every month. Wicked went from using 38 batteries every performance to using only 96 rechargeable batteries in a year! Many shows also print their own cast-change stuffers -- on recycled paper -- saving reams of paper as well as money.

Events and initiatives held by the BGA are now part of the fabric of Broadway, including semi-annual electronic-waste and textile recycling events in Times Square and a free binder exchange (operated in partnership with Actors' Equity Association) where anyone can pick-up or drop-off binders for use in readings and rehearsals. This keeps binders out of the waste stream and encourages re-use. Over the last five years, the BGA has collected over 15 tons (31,000 pounds!) of e-waste, and nearly 10,000 pounds of textiles.

Outreach programs have brought the BGA to theatres throughout the United States, at colleges, off-Broadway and regional and touring venues. Internationally, the BGA is a founding member of the InternationAl Green Theatre Alliance. The BGA reaches theatre professionals and audiences through its website filled with information and resources, and through social media such as Facebook and Twitter. Today, the BGA also launched the BGA Greener Lighting Guide, in partnership with PLASA.