Broadway Green Alliance Celebrates 15th Anniversary This Fall

 This fall, the Broadway Green Alliance (BGA) celebrates its 15th year as an industry-wide initiative that educates, motivates, and inspires the entire theatre community and its patrons to adopt environmentally friendlier practices on Broadway and beyond. Theatre-makers and theatre-lovers have made substantial progress in building a sustainable theatre movement and working toward a healthier, cleaner, and brighter future for all. 

To mark this milestone, the BGA will host a free celebratory “bike-powered” concert and birthday bash on Monday, October 23rd in the New Amsterdam Room at the New Amsterdam Theatre (214 W 42nd Street) which will be streamed live on Stars in the House. The in-person event begins at 5:00pm ET with limited tickets available, and the live-stream concert begins at 6:30pm ET on the Stars in the House YouTube channel at youtube.com/starsinthehouse.

Broadway performers and hosts joining the event include Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley (Stars in the House), Tony Award Nominee Kerry Butler (Beetlejuice), Tony Award Nominee Anika Larsen (Almost Famous), Tony Award Nominee Kenita R. Miller (For Colored Girls…), Tony Award Nominee Adam Pascal (Rent), Mara Davi (A Chorus Line), Jenn Gambatese (Mrs. Doubtfire), Jackie Hoffman (Xanadu), James T. Lane (Chicago), Patti Murin (Frozen), Rachel Webb (& Juliet), and more to be announced.

The BGA was launched in 2008 as an ad hoc committee of The Broadway League and is a fiscal program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. It was founded in collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Since its inception, the BGA has supported a wide range of programs at the intersection of theatre and sustainability, from recycling collection drives in Times Square that have diverted over 19,000 pounds of textiles and 52,000 pounds of electronic waste from landfills to a nationwide network of 1,200 current and alumni Green Captain volunteers serving as green theatre advocates.

As part of one of the BGA’s first campaigns, Broadway theatres changed their marquees from incandescent bulbs to energy-efficient LED and CFL bulbs. This change has saved over 9,800 tons of carbon to date.

The BGA offers free toolkits, resources, and experts to support the community in climate action. Over 1,200 actors and production personnel have volunteered as Green Captains on Broadway and across the country, over 300 colleges and universities have engaged in our College Green Captain program, and the BGA has awarded 78 NYC Theatre Greening Grants to assist Off- and Off-Off-Broadway venues in making sustainable changes. During the pandemic shutdown, the BGA used the hiatus as a teaching moment and pivoted to online programming, offering 32 sustainable theatre learning sessions. These videos remain available on the BGA website alongside a library of toolkits, case studies, and resources - all available to the community for free. 

As the urgency to address the climate crisis increases, the BGA is focusing ahead to foster positive change and resilience across the industry and ensure that sustainability becomes a fundamental factor in creating theatre.

“Congratulations to The Broadway Green Alliance for 15 years of bringing the theatre community together in implementing and promoting environmentally friendly practices on Broadway and beyond. The strategic efforts of the BGA have resulted in creating initiatives, events, and outreach programs that have and will continue to inspire and keep Broadway greener for years to come,” said Charlotte St. Martin, President of The Broadway League.

“The Broadway Green Alliance is a shining, green example of how a community of artists becomes an army of environmental activists, making a sustainable difference on Broadway and beyond,” said Tom Viola, Executive Director of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. “With sustained determination and creative ingenuity, BGA makes a profound difference in lowering Broadway’s specific carbon footprint in a way that is replicable well beyond Times Square. Broadway Cares is proud to provide a home for the organization that ensures our theatrical workplace leaves the environment well cared for and the earth always beloved.”

“The BGA has been privileged to work with theatre professionals on Broadway and beyond to identify and take action to become greener. These small and large actions have in turn inspired others, amplifying the impact of each better practice. We look forward to working as part of our diverse community of theatre makers, venues, unions, and others operating at the intersection of theatre and sustainability to deepen our impact in the years to come,” said Charlie Deull, Co-Chair of the Broadway Green Alliance.

“Theatre artists and fans have a critical role to play in cultivating courage and community as we address the intersectional challenges faced by our industry and our planet,” said Molly Braverman, Director of the Broadway Green Alliance. “I am proud of the positive change that the BGA has stewarded over the past 15 years, and it is a privilege to play my part in an organization focused on building resiliency and empowering each person to take climate action.”

For the anniversary concert, Molly Braverman, Anika Larsen, and Austin Sora serve as the creative directors, David Katz serves as the technical director, Jenna Snyder serves as the bike designer, and Lauren Mandras serves as the graphic and video designer. Event sponsors are Harmony Helper, Royal Waste, Scriptation, and Sweet Hospitality.

While the concert is free, the BGA is only able to sustain its programming thanks to the generous community support. To celebrate its anniversary and ensure its continued success, the BGA has created a birthday wish registry where each item is an example of what your donation can do. Each gift will help power the BGA’s efforts and support the groundswell of theatre-makers and fans working towards a healthier and more sustainable future: https://www.broadwaygreen.com/birthday-bash. 

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