Theatre Green Book UK announces
ambitious future plans
Theatre Green Book UK has announced details of its future structure and plans for anew edition to support theatres in their journey towards sustainability. Created during
lockdown, Theatre Green Book UK is a grassroots initiative that sets common
standards for sustainable theatre across all areas of theatre practice and operation. It
has already been widely adopted across the sector, being used by all the major UK
subsidised theatres, the UK’s three national theatres, all UK opera houses, and won theStage Award for Innovation in 2022.
The ambition for Theatre Green Book UK is for all theatres in the UK to achieve Theatre
Green Book baseline standards across buildings operations and productions by the endof 2026. To help achieve this ambitious goal, several of the UK’s leading theatreorganisations have come together in a unique partnership to establish Theatre Green
Book UK as an unincorporated association, giving the project more stability andresources. Built around many of the individuals and organisations that initiated theproject and its early rapid progress, it brings together a Steering Group comprising thethree national theatres, with membership organisations Association of British TheatreTechnicians (ABTT), and Society of London Theatre/UK Theatre, authors Paddy Dillon
and Lisa Burger, structural engineers and sustainability specialists, Buro Happold, andTheatres Trust, the national advisory body for theatres, which is also acting as
Secretariat for the project.
The Steering Group is now working on the creation of the Theatre Green Book UK
second edition, which will be published in summer 2024. The new edition will continue
to draw on best practice from theatre makers and sustainability experts, incorporating
feedback from the first edition. It will remain free to use, and will incorporate abenchmarking and self-certification system to enable theatres to track their ownprogress. A range of prototype support tools including a Production Calculator,
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Buildings Home Survey Tool and Operations Tracker will also be developed to help
theatres track and accelerate their progress.
Alongside this, the Theatre Green Book UK website will be revamped to make Theatre
Green Book UK even easier to use, and offer further support to theatres and theatremakers with powerful tools and inspiring case studies to help them take their next steps
to improved sustainability.
The success of the Theatre Green Book UK in delivering change in theatre relies on it
being rooted in the sector and drawing on the expertise of theatre-makers from aroundthe UK and around the world. This will continue through three committees drawn frompractitioners across all disciplines covering Productions, Buildings and Operations,which will engage with the wider sector and support the work of the Steering Group.
Additionally, the Theatre Green Book has already been translated into 10 languages
and with growing connections to Theatre Green Book networks across Europe, andworldwide, Theatre Green Book UK will be at the heart of an international theatre
movement for sustainability.
Lisa Burger and Paddy Dillon, co-authors, say, We’re excited that the Theatre Green
Book UK is now permanently rooted in Britain’s theatre community. Alongside thedramatic progress of sustainable working with the Green Book across the world, theatre
is making real progress towards net zero.
Liam Sinclair, Executive Director and Joint Chief Executive Officer, Dundee Rep andScottish Dance Theatre, says, At Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre we arereally encouraged to hear of the new management structure for the Theatre GreenBook. As an organisation we are deeply committed to playing our part in achieving aclimate just world, and draw on all three Theatre Green Books to help us achieve this.
It is incredibly heartening to continually hear stories of how these resources support oursector in moving forward with achieving theatre and dance production and presentation
in a net zero world, and this announcement feels an important part in this journey.
Stephanie Sirr MBE, Chief Executive, Nottingham Playhouse says, Theatre Green Book
UK is an essential resource and commitment for anybody who produces theatre in the21st century. It has been a delight to see such passion and tenacity from all of ourNottingham Playhouse teams – really diving into this way of working. Without excuse
or exception, we must all commit to this as a sector.
Rachael O-Sullivan, Environmental Manager, Royal Opera House, says, The Royal
Opera House is thrilled to continue to support the development of the Theatre GreenBook UK. We hope that the new structure will provide easier access to theatres thatPage | 2

are using the Theatre Green Book for the first time, and help those already working withthe Theatre Green Book to strengthen their understanding. The Royal Opera House
uses the Theatre Green Book as a tool to guide our action plans and help to identify thekey areas of focus.
Igor, freelance Production Manager says, There has been a lot of good energy andgood intentions in the industry around sustainability for years. Theatre Green Book UK
harnesses that energy and sets out a clear but flexible pathway for all aspects oftheatre to deliver concrete results. I've been incorporating the principles of theProductions volume into my work for the past two years, but I'm currently doing my firstformally Theatre Green Book production at the Donmar Warehouse. Declaring that you
are producing a production to Theatre Green Book baseline seems to bring a more
focussed approach among the show team.
Justin Audibert, Artistic Director, and Kathy Bourne, Executive Director, Chichester
Festival Theatre say, Since 2014 we’ve been embracing sustainable technologies
across both our theatres and are committed to transitioning to carbon neutrality.
Theatre Green Book UK has been an invaluable resource for us, and we’ve beentrialling productions under the baseline standard since 2021, building environmental
considerations as an essential agenda. It’s a journey to which everyone at Chichester
Festival Theatre is wholeheartedly committed.

Notes to Editors
Theatre Green Book UK
Theatre Green Book UK has brought together theatre-makers and sustainability experts
to create a common standard for making theatre sustainably. In three volumes it sets
standards for making productions sustainably, for making theatre buildings sustainable,
and for improving operations like catering and front of house. It is a free resource foreveryone in the UK theatre sector.
https://theatregreenbook.com/

All enquiries, high res images and further information:
Isobel Jaffray, Chloé Nelkin Consulting
E: isobel@chloenelkinconsulting.com, M: 07772 643 959
W: www.chloenelkinconsulting.com
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