Theatre and Climate Change

Time for a meaningful response

By Dan de la motte

The most environmentally friendly thing that theatres could do is turn off the lights, shut their doors, and never put on a show again. But, thankfully, this isn’t going to happen. What is happening however is that theatres are slowly waking up to the fact that much more action needs to be taken to combat and avert climate disaster, and this action needs to be bold and decisive if it is to have any meaningful affect.

Theatre productions have always been transient; a show lives on in the collective memory of the audience and cast and company; apart from digitally, this is the only place where there is permanence. In a sense there is a beauty in this; the fragility, delicacy and nuances of art existing only for a short time before work begins once again on a new production. The growing prevalence of filmed productions, then broadcast in cinemas nationwide, such as the NT Live franchise, helps to maintain a performance, but the point still stands: individual shows, like butterflies, last for a brief time, and then they are gone. 

Whatever the poetic or artistic merit of this model, it is fundamentally unsustainable. The work and effort put into making a show is then scrapped as work begins on the next thing; sets are taken to landfill and more raw materials are used for the upcoming production. Some materials may be stored or reused, but when this occurs it is seen as a bonus, ‘a green point’, something to brag about rather than simply matter of course. 

From my time as a creative practitioner and producer, first for a major producing theatre and post-Covid freelance, here are my key takeaways for embedding sustainability and climate justice meaningfully into theatre production:

Trust the Audience.

Theatre audiences do not need high-carbon sets in order to enjoy or appreciate a production. Elements that are representative of a time or place can be more effective, especially when a designer is working within the parameters of sustainable design.

Value a Green Champion.

Theatres should look into the idea of installing a member of staff (or, if budget permits, an external consultant) as a Green Champion on all productions, there to ensure that time and space are given to making theatre in the most sustainable way as possible, rather than the quickest or cheapest decision being seen as the right one, as is sometimes the case within the industry. 

Take your time.

Factoring enough preparation time into the production and rehearsal process that allows for the most sustainable and ethical decisions to be made, in terms of sourcing props, costume and materials, as well as all design elements is key. This timeframe can also allow for the show to be seen within a run of other productions, that can repurpose or reuse all or elements of the same set, thereby eliminating the need to use more of the planet’s primary resources, as well as the emissions created through the travel and transport of set. 

In many ways this can be seen as the most radical piece of learning as it is fundamentally anti-capitalist and goes against the status quo of the industry for generations. We live in a society where time = money, and where more time taken to make a decision is seen as a weakness, a negative, and a waste. Instead, theatres should embrace what is known as ‘the slow economy’, whereby the goal is to focus on coming up with the most ethical and sustainable solution to a question, rather than the time taken to reach that decision. 

Working in an anti-capitalist way such as this has other intersectional benefits. Capitalism is a structure that survives by oppressing particular groups, who, for one reason or another, are left behind by its immediacy. Capitalism can perpetuate toxic masculinity and in this regard is anti-feminist. All of these things prove harmful for the planet. By making work in a slower and more planned way, theatres can be considerate of those with caring responsibilities, such as parents of young children, or creatives or theatre staff with physical or hidden disabilities. By having more diverse teams, which are more reflective of the rich tapestry of society, theatre will not be able to simply operate the ‘business as usual’ model – and the excuse that unsustainable ways of working are in place because ‘that’s the way it’s always been’ will become null and void and unjustifiable.

Taking more time is also hugely beneficial to the physical and mental health of theatre staff – this is an industry where, unfortunately, burn-out is often seen as a badge of honour, and producers and production teams can become martyrs to shows, working incredibly long hours squeezed into a short timeframe. By drastically rethinking this way of working, creative teams and staff more generally will have the mental and physical energy to fully focus on making work in a more environmentally conscious way.

Chiara Badiali, Music Lead at arts sustainability charity Julie’s Bicycle, believes it important to state just how radical a response taking time is in ‘disrupting the hamster wheel’. Badiali compares this to the work of the ‘Pleasure Activist’ Ama Josephine Budge, who states that:

In a culture that valorises busyness, productivity, pace and “progress”, stillness can be radical. Refusing, ignoring, omitting, not doing; sometimes the most political actions look like doing nothing at all. 

Yet, ‘the art of doing nothing’ can play a major role in shifting the narrative around ‘busyness’ within the arts, especially as we attempt to shift away from a society that measure GDP output as the pinnacle of success, and move towards one that measures public wellbeing as the most important indicator of how society is functioning. It is a no-brainer that theatre and the arts can contribute substantially to public wellbeing. Telling and sharing stories is what separates human beings from other lifeforms. 

Dan de la Motte is a London-based performer, producer, curator and activist, and is a Creative Climate Leader with Julie’s Bicycle, supported by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union. @Dandelamotte