1. Sustainable Theatre Report
Laura Shultz
Problem Statement:
Theatre at Mason is traditionally a one-time use industry, and little is known about the
amount of waste generated during each production. Currently, Mason theatre does not have a
recycling/ re-use program or protocol. There is also the potential for outstanding energy
savings with LED and/or motion-sensor lighting in the theatre space, hallways, and offices in
the department.
Research Question:
To what extent within a 15-week period can various types of waste be reduced within George
Mason University’s theatre spaces through the use of a life cycle analysis done on lights
(energy), production (lumber, paint, etc.), recycling, and cast behavior?
Proposed Plan:
Originally, the plan for this project was to complete a Sustainability Analysis of the
Theatre Space in the Johnson Center at George Mason University. I had heard that there
were wasteful behaviors within the theatre departments, particularly concerning the
disposal of set materials. Though I am not a theatre student, this seemed like an interesting
case study to discover the true level of sustainability and sustainable practices within the
theatre. To begin, the first step was observation. My teammate and I planned to observe the
first small theatre production, take as many notes as we could on behaviors, any wasteful
practices, placement of recycling bins, use of reusable materials, etc. The original plan
tasked us with making as many changes as necessary, then making the same observations
for the second small student production and compare the results between the two to show
a measurable outcome. This is not how the project actually turned out, but the discovered
results are discussed at the end of the report.
Along with this comparison, the plan included making changes in the lighting from
incandescent bulbs to LEDs. Faculty member Autum Casey helped figure out that the stage
lighting wasn’t the problem as much as the “working lights” were. These are the huge
bucket lights that reside on the ceilings and are kept on during meetings, rehearsals, etc.,
and therefore have a much higher impact on energy usage. In order to make changes in this
department, grant or other money would have to be acquired. The plan then was to apply
for a PGF grant, as well as for an Auxiliary Enterprises grant to obtain new LED working
theatre lights.
I had planned on running an energy analysis to determine the amount of potential
energy that could be saved by switching to LED working lights. My idea for an energy
analysis also included the entire theatre space including the computers and other
electronics. This would require speaking to the energy manager on campus, Pat Buchanan,
to discuss the feasibility of this endeavor. I was going to research this task as well, and try
to figure out the best ways to accomplish it.
2. The original plan was to also obtain grant money to perhaps provide the theatre
students with reusable water bottles, and eco-friendly soaps, etc., as well as running a
sustainability workshop to educate students and faculty on recommended sustainable
practices in order to continue the work we have done and see it extend into the future to
create a more sustainable theatre at Mason from this point on.
Action:
In starting this project, the first step was to research to find out if there was any
other similar work out there for us to follow or be inspired from. Upon performing this
research I discovered the Broadway Green Alliance (BGA), who has established an amazing
network of sustainable theatres throughout the U.S. and the world. I established myself as a
College Green Captain in association with them, and was able to connect with the BGA
Coordinator, Rebeckah Sale who offered help when needed, and answered and any
questions I brought up. The BGA included a College Green Captains starter kit that listed
many alternatives to harmful or wasteful materials such as textiles, foam, and plastics, as
well as a Greener Lighting Guide, and a Green Theatre Scorecard.
Before performing any actions within the theatre space, I applied for the PGF grant,
only to find that the money in the fund had already been depleted. This put a damper on
one of the major changes I would have liked to make. Instead, I also applied for two
Auxiliary Enterprises grants- one for the LED working lights (which are $800 each, so this
step likely wouldn’t have happened anyways, without either of the organizations having
future notice), and one for educational materials such as reusable water bottles, binders,
eco-friendly soaps, etc. Neither one of these were accepted, which basically made me
switch gears and try a new tactic to collect measureable data. I was told by Auxiliary
Enterprises that they “have nothing to do with the theatre”, which I knew, but figured I
would try anyways as an educational student project.
I had an initial meeting with some of the theatre faculty including Clayton Austin,
and Autum Casey. I informed them of the project, and they were more than willing to offer
any advice, etc. They gave me a walkthrough of the theatre space, and explained everything
they knew about any sustainable practices at Mason’s theatre, which wasn’t much. This
does not seem to be a priority within the faculty. I met a few students, however, who were
very interested in the topic, and stated that they would be interested in helping me retrieve
the budget for the semester, so we could work together to come up with cheaper, more
sustainable alternatives. I was also informed of the use of a material known as luan that is
prominent in the set designs. This is something I asked the BGA coordinator about, for
informational purposes and to discover any alternatives, which is when I discovered that
luan is a wood product that is often farmed unsustainably and retrieved from rainforests,
and other tropical forests. I was urged to research Donyale Werle, who is a set designer in
NYC that constructs entire sets made out of recycled or reused materials. This was
interesting to find out, but likely not feasible to attempt constructing an entire set of our
own. Upon further research, I later found that George Mason’s theatre does not use luan,
but a cheaper material known as “masonite”, but that is shipped in from China, so is not any
more sustainable in that regard.
3. The next step in action was observing the first production. We mainly wanted to
observe the “strike”, which is the deconstruction of the set. During observation, things were
extremely hectic, and it was difficult to stay focused and organized while collecting data.
Luckily I caught up with the scene shop manager, Tim Cooke, who explained each step to
me in detail. It was here that I discovered another major obstacle, in that the theatre
department does not have a huge budget, and they are in fact, very thrifty, saving as much
of their materials for reuse as possible. Besides this fact, it was difficult for me to collect
hard data, as I found that people aren’t always willing to invite you in to see their “dirty
habits”. I found that as soon as I brought up that I was doing a “sustainability analysis”, the
professors wanted to rush me away, and felt uneasy of my presence- as though I was going
to label them as insultingly “unsustainable”. So my major plan was to be able to record
wasteful behaviors, make changes, and see a measureable difference, but without many
wasteful behaviors to record, I was again going to have to change my course of action, and
come up with a new tactic. However, I was able to mention that is they used screws in the
making of their sets; they will be easier to deconstruct in order to reuse the lumber, and
recycle the screws.
Tim explained to me that the department orders only as much lumber as is needed,
and only minimal scraps are left for waste at the end of construction. However, there are
often pieces that have been constructed for a very specific use in a production, and cannot
be turned into a new piece, or used for a new design. These entire pieces are often thrown
away, as there is not enough storage space for them to keep it until it may be used again,
which may not be for four or five years down the road. There are no recycling facilities
around the area that will accept painted lumber for composting or mulch. Paints usually
contain harmful chemicals or substances that cannot be used in a compost or mulch. I also
discovered that their lumber is not delivered by weight, so there was no way for me to
measure the amount used and saved vs. thrown away. This semester specifically, the
second set was created entirely from materials they already had, leaving me with nothing
to compare between the first and second productions.
This lead me to contact the head faculty scene shop member, Ethan Osborne to
inquire about viewing the master list of materials purchased for the semester so that I
could do an analysis. However, he informed me that he does not keep a master list, but
instead orders materials as he needs them. This is especially true for small scene shop
needs such as paintbrushes, batteries, etc. This presented another difficulty for me, as there
was no record of materials purchased, or the weight of lumber, as I had suspected there
would be. Osborne was able introduce me to other aspects of sustainability though, that I
was previously unaware of, such as the recycling of batteries, both after one short use, and
when they are completely drained of energy. During theatre production, the use of
backstage walkie-talkies is essential, and for this, they must ensure proper usage without
fail throughout the entire night of productions. For this reason, they only use brand new
batteries each time, and then empty them into a large bucket to be re-used in the future
wherever necessary. I was able to inform them of the recycling bin for batteries in the
Johnson Center, which is where they will now dispose of small, everyday batteries. In
addition, Osborne returns used drill batteries to the local home depot for recycling. As was
mentioned earlier, after my initial meeting with Mr. Cooke, the theatre began recycling all
of their metal screws, along with all the scrap metal they recycle to Mason’s metal recycling
program.
4. This shifted my focus again to energy usage. First I set up an appointment to speak
with the energy manager on campus, Pat Buchanan, to find out about running an energy
audit and any other information he may be able to portray about the energy use in the
theatre. I hoped to be able to analyze the utility bills for the theatre space in the Johnson
Center so that I could determine what the potential energy savings would be if the theatre
switched to all LED lighting fixtures. I would examine the current utility bills, and calculate
the kilowatt-hours and usage of both the current incandescent/halogen lighting and
compare this data to online findings of the energy usage from LED theatre working lights.
However, the problem was that it is impossible to analyze any energy usage from one
particular space in the large building of the Johnson Center. The bills come as a package
deal and it is impossible to isolate usage of a single space.
This very nearly halted my grand idea of an energy analysis. However, in order to be
flexible as is always necessary in sustainability actions, my plan shifted yet again, and I
decided to manually calculate the current usage of the theatre space. This was a difficult
and immense project, so I decided to simplify and only do an analysis of the working
theatre lights, of which I had proposed a change earlier in the semester. This way, any
future student will be able to use this data in order to apply for grants, showing current,
obtained data from the theatre.
First, I planned on using the watt meters that I had been told existed on campus, but
were actually no where to be found, and no one in either the Office of Sustainability or
Energy Management could locate. Instead, Tyler Orton lent me his personal kilowatt meter.
However, upon visiting the theatre to collect data, it was discovered that the wattmeter had
only a standard plug, while the theatre lights operated with three side-by-side prongs, and I
was unable to take my measurements. (I only recently found out that there are apparently
converters, but I had already moved on.) I was forced, in this situation to do the
calculations manually, but thankfully Google provides most necessary information for
calculations. Autum Casey provided me with type and wattage of each of the working
theatre lights (1000 watts each), which I multiplied by twelve since there are twelve
working lights in the Black Box (performance space). I then found a watt to kilowatt-hour
converter online, which gave me the calculation kWh= (Watt) x (Hours) / 1000. I estimate
that each light is left on for the duration of the day (8 hours) since I never once visited the
theatre and observed the lights off, which left me with 96 kWh ((12,000) x (8) / 1000).
Figure1: Kilowatt-Hour Calculation Formula
How to Convert Watts to kWh. (2014). . Retrieved May 4, 2014, fromRapidTables.com - Engineering
Resources
5. From this information, the calculated energy usage from the working theatre lights
is 96 kWh per day, 480 kWh per week, 1,920 kWh per month, and/or 23,040 kWh per year.
I then wanted to calculate the cost of this energy usage. I used the U.S. Energy
Information Association’s (2014) website to gather this information, which informed me
that the average kilowatt-hour in Virginia costs 8.86 cents. With this data, I calculate that
George Mason pays $170.11 per month, or $2,041 per year solely on running those
incandescent/halogen working theatre lights.
Their LED alternative, found at the Stage Lighting Store (2014) website, informed
me that the LED working lights only use 100 watts, compared to the 1,000 used with the
current bulbs. This is ten times less energy, which will equate to ten times less cost. Using
the same calculations, I found that the LED alternatives would use only 9.6 kWh per day, 48
kWh per week, 192 kWh per month, and/or 2,304 kWh per year, costing George Mason
only $17.01 per month, or $204.13 per year. This data is the cost and energy usage for the
12 working theatre lights for the duration of one month, and one year respectively.
Each of these lights cost $800, and in order to buy twelve it would cost $9,600.
Though this may seem like a daunting amount, by saving $1,837 per year, George Mason
would make this money back in approximately 5.23 years. This figure isn’t terrific or
terrible, and I am unsure how feasible this number will be when arguing for this purchase,
but I believe that the energy savings are worth the investment.
To make this argument even stronger, the EPA (2014) website relayed the savings
in more personable terms, with visuals, and relatable savings amounts. For instance,
23,040 kWh per year is equated to 35,025 pounds of carbon, 37,827 miles driven in an
average passenger vehicle, the CO2 emissions from 1,788 gallons of gasoline, or 17,065
pounds of coal burned per year (EPA, 2014).
The LED alternative working lights would use 2,304 kWh per year, equating to only
3,503 pounds of carbon, 3,783 miles driven in an average passenger vehicle, the CO2
emissions from 179 gallons of gasoline, or 1,706 pounds of coal burned per year (EPA,
2014). This would be a savings of 20,736 kWh, and equal to 31,533 pounds of carbon, the
annual carbon emissions from 3 passenger vehicles, and 34,044 miles driven in the average
passenger vehicle, as well as the CO2 emissions from 1,609 gallons of gasoline, and 15,358
pounds of coal burned in a year (EPA, 2014).
Other Observations/Actions:
George Mason’s theatre created one entire set this semester made 100% from
reused, or already-owned materials. Though this is admittedly a rare occurrence, I believe
it is important to make note of, and to acknowledge. The level of perhaps accidental
sustainability was probably the hardest obstacle to overcome. Because of a low budget, the
theatre department already saves as many of its purchased materials as possible. All the
leftover bits of paint are combined into one giant bucket, and used as “back paint” to paint
floors, and any other miscellaneous pieces.
6. I have created a sustainability information graphic to highlight the sustainable
practices in the theatre, which has been sent to the Scene Shop manager Ethan Osborne, as
well as the web designer, who may or may not decide use the graphic under the resources
section of the GMU Theatre website (Figure 4). This includes their use of only non-VOC
paints, as well as their technique of combining all unused paint in order to reuse it as “back
paint”, the battery recycling, scrap metal recycling, and the LED replacements that have
been made in the Harris Theatre. (I did not include this energy analysis in the report, as it
was a more difficult comparison. The Harris Theatre utility bills are for the entire building,
including heat, making it an unfair comparison to mine of just the lights only.)
In addition to the graphic, I completed the BGA Green Theatre Score Card and
returned it to the BGA Coordinator who may or may not add this to the list of all scored
theatres around the country. The BGA asks anyone who ever goes to a theatre to try and fill
one of these out, so they can compare and contrast the various levels of sustainability in
theaters around the U.S. I am delighted to have George Mason’s theatre potentially added
to this list, as I believe we engage in many sustainable practices that would make any
Patriot proud. There is always room for improvement of course, but some of our current
actions are definitely noteworthy.
I definitely observed some student interest in the project, giving me hope for the
continuation of improvement in the theatre’s sustainability behaviors. One student
specifically, had met the aforementioned Donyale Werle, was amazingly inspired, and has
dreams of building an entire set made of out cardboard, and all reusable materials.
Conclusions/ Lessons Learned:
I conclude that Mason’s theatre has accidentally managed to engage in some very
sustainable practices. I say accidentally because the theatre department simply does not
have enough money to continually purchase new materials for each new production. This
was the reason I was unable to collect a necessary amount of measureable data in terms of
the materials. My research question’s answer would be, “A Small Extent”, because of these
difficulties. Luckily, I still collected the energy data, and was able to measure the data from
that sector, answering a part of my original question. However, I do not believe that
Mason’s theatre practices sustainable behavior because of their commitment to
sustainability, but largely because of the lack of funds. Hopefully in the future, the student
interest will grow, and sustainability will be at the forefront of the theatre’s goals. Though I
collected the majority of my measureable data on the energy usage from the lights, I believe
that the behaviors and student/faculty interest is what will really change the priorities of
the theatre, and make the most measureable difference. This may take a few years of data
collection to really notice changes, however.
By the end of this project, I wished that I had done more preliminary research into
my START project. As a lesson learned, I would suggest having baseline data before a
project is even begun, as I went through so many trials and errors of trying to collect data,
and ended up with not nearly as much information as had been anticipated. This would
have greatly improved the extent to which I was able to measure the materials such as
paint, lumber, etc.
7. I also learned that not everyone is as open to, or aware of sustainability information.
I realized when I would walk in to speak to faculty members, that at first, they seemed
weary of me, as if I was a “dirty hippie” planning to tell them everything they are doing
wrong and how to fix it. Though I do admit that I was intending to make changes at the
beginning, I learned that in order to gain support and trust, it is important to make sure the
“client” or “associate” knows you are on their side- that you are just there to make them
look good, and to find new ways that they can be better. Not to seem as if you are implying,
“This is what you’re doing wrong, and I am here to fix it for you”.
This next lesson could be seen as a recommendation as well. By the final few weeks
of my project, I realized that I really should have been more involved with the students
instead of relying on faculty and staff. The students have the ability to alter any simple
practices, as they are often tasks with planning budgets and purchasing necessary items. It
is hard though, especially as an outsider who is unaware of theatre culture, to jump in and
gain important information from the student group. However, I say overcome your fears
and start from the bottom up! Often this technique is what makes a difference, rather than
trying to make changes starting at the top. I may have been able to convince the student
body that it makes sense, and is more environmentally friendly to use eco-friendly soaps,
and wash with only cold water. However, I focused my project on materials and energy
usage, which is important, too, but if I could re-do everything I would include the student
aspect exponentially more than I did. This would also improve the final answer to my
research question through the behaviors aspect.
I learned another lesson by not having a strict enough timeline for the objectives to
be completed. Because of this, I eventually separated from my original partner, who slipped
behind in time, probably because we had not created a plan from the beginning. We had
plenty of ideas, but there was no timeline, or contract for objectives to be crossed off the
list. In the future, I will have time sensitive objectives, and team consequences for inaction
or missed assignments. It is always better to find out sooner than later if you are going to
have to complete a project on your own.
Recommendations:
If a future student is willing to take on this project, the first recommended next step
would be to use the collected data on energy usage to apply for at least a preliminary PGF
grant. People often do not make decisions toward large purchases if they do not have
evidence of savings, monetary or not. My data show the immediate savings in carbon for
the environment, and the eventual savings in the checkbook.
I recommend focusing either on energy, materials, and/or the student body. Trying
to focus on all aspects at once was overwhelming, and though the ideas made it seem as
though I was making progress, I was stretched too thin, and didn’t collect a sufficient
amount of data to thoroughly answer my research question. Maybe a new research
question could be “to what extent are the students interested and willing to make change?”
8. That being said, the following step I would suggest is to create an interest group
within the theater students for sustainability. Since the energy savings data has already
been collected, this could act as a motivator for the students to perhaps try to raise money
for new lights, or other products to “green the theatre”. They could help to influence
purchases, enforce recycling rules both in the theatre rehearsals, and in set design, and run
future sustainability workshops to educate new and existing members of the theatre.
Another future student could take a step further by completing the comparison
between the two buildings (Harris Theatre and the JC). Now that it is clear that it is
impossible to isolate energy usage in the JC, I recommend using creative techniques to find
out total energy usage. Though some energy is likely to be overlooked, it may be minimal
enough to not matter. I suggest using my data on lights, and combining that with the office
energy usage (which can be calculated with the kilowatt meters), as well as the hallway
lighting, if possible. I personally could not figure that one out, but if someone can, I would
recommend it. To continue the energy aspect, I recommend doing calculations on what
difference motion hallway lighting would make. I am positive there are potential energy
savings by switching to motion lighting in the hallways at least, and perhaps in the dressing
and rehearsal rooms, as well.
I would also recommend contacting the scene shop manager, Ethan Cooke as early
as possible to coordinate with him on obtaining data on all materials purchased. I did not
contact him soon enough, and he does not keep record of all of the purchases made. If this
data could be collected, then another part of the research question could be answered in
full.
Another step toward resolving the problem statement would be to create a
sustainability agreement within the theatre’s faculty and staff. This may come a few years
down the road, but would enhance the possibilities for more sustainable behaviors in the
future. If this step was completed, this could create a contract to abide by within the
theatre, and would establish the new protocol for waste reduction, in both materials and
behaviors.
I recommend publicizing the project as soon as possible, or spreading the word, and
getting involved. It is terribly difficult to get people to cooperate if they do not know you
personally, or are in no way affiliated with your cause. Unfortunately, this may have been a
reason I was not awarded any grant money from either fund. This was a brand new
mission, and no one was familiar with the task, but if a future student were to continue this
work, all parties involved will have some recollection, and may be more likely to accept and
offer help, or funding. Reaching out to all stakeholders early in the game is likely to grant
you more access in the future, and may help the cause tremendously.
If all of these steps and recommendations are followed, these problem statement
and research questions will be on their way to being 100% solved and completed! I would
be excited to see future students complete this task, and succeed in making Mason’s theatre
space a remarkably sustainable environment.
9. Figure2: Kilowatt-Hour and CostComparison Chart
Month
kWh
Year
kWh
Cost
Dollars/Yr (@
8.86
Cents/kWh)
Equivalent
To Carbon
Emissions
From:
Current Incandescent
Bulbs
1,920 23,040 $2,041.34 37,827 Miles
driven in avg.
car.
Replacement LEDs 192 2,304 $204.13 3,783 Miles
driven in avg.
car.
Savings 1,728 20,736 $1,836.87 34,044 Miles
driven in avg.
car.
TOTAL
Annual Greenhouse Gas Emissions from (the savings of) 20,736 kWh by switching to LEDs.
Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator. (2014, April 16). . Retrieved May 4, 2014, from
http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-resources/calculator.html#results
11. Figure 4: Web Graphic created to fit the design for the theatre.gmu.edu website. It is waiting approval from
the scene shop manager and the web designer.
12. Sources Cited/ References
EIA Average Retail Price of Electricity to Ultimate Customers by End-Use Sector. (2014, April 22). . Retrieved
May 7, 2014, from http://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.cfm?t=epmt_5_6_a
EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator. (2014, April 16). . Retrieved May 7, 2014, from
http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-resources/calculator.html#results
How to Convert Watts to kWh. (2014). Retrieved May 4, 2014, from RapidTables.com - Engineering Resources
Stage Lighting: LED Work Lights. (2014). Retrieved May 4, 2014, from http://www.stagelightingstore.com/Light-
Source-LED-100-Watt-6-Inch-Work-Light-Black-Anodized-Cool-White?sc=25&category=833827
