In their final year at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), graduating designers Angelina Daniel and Edison Heartly chatted to APDGreen’s Imogen Ross about their NIDA Spring Season production: a bold, reimagining of Spring Awakening by writer/director Claudia Osborne. With the support of Claudia and key NIDA staff, they kept environmental sustainability at the forefront of their design processes—an approach they are both determined to carry into their careers as emerging artists. Already members of the APDG, these two are poised to enter the industry, designing in ways that are as mindful as they are meaningful.

A SHARED VISION OF SUSTAINABILITY

For both Angelina and Edison, reducing their production’s carbon footprint by employing conscious choices around what materials they specified wasn’t an afterthought; it was central to their design philosophy and training.  “As a designer who prides myself on economical and refined staging, sustainable thinking is a part of my process right from the start,” Angelina said with a smile. Inspired by a video profiling the UK’s National Theatre  engagement with the Theatre Green Books’ sustainable practice guidelines, she saw her work on Spring Awakening as an opportunity to engage meaningfully with an environmentally-conscious process from the outset. Her design and aesthetic choices significantly reduced waste at the conclusion of the production, lowering the carbon emissions associated with unrecyclable waste, and creating valuable reusable resources for future designers to use.

The underlying idea promoted by The Theatre Green Book  is to move from a wasteful linear economy to a more resource-full circular economy in the theatre by following principles including:

– Reducing how much is used across all departments.
– Sourcing what is used sustainably from pre existing stock and/or recycled materials.
– Reusing and recycling materials at the end of the project.

Edison, too, found himself drawn to this ethos. “I quickly realized that Spring Awakening was the perfect design project to explore second-hand materials. Everything for the production costumes was sourced sustainably—either from NIDA’s costume stock or Op shops. The pre-worn textures added a depth to the characters that new materials just can’t replicate.”

A Raw and Unfinished World

The creative team’s vision for Spring Awakening—a playground-style retelling of the 1891 classic—called for a stripped-back, experimental world of potential play. Angelina explains, “Claudia and I embraced the concept of a bau-probe set, a German term for a ‘mock-up’ or rehearsal set. There’s a beauty in the imperfection of these spaces, where everything feels in progress, not polished. That idea shaped our aesthetic and became the backbone of our design.”

This concept translated easily into a resourceful use of materials. Wanting to partially expose the theatrical workings of NIDA’s Reg Grundy Studio, Angelina’s set model specified 25 raw unpainted flats. “Initially, I considered using EcoPly for the flats, but it didn’t align with the “improvised” aesthetic I was going for. Instead, we decided to use standard Luan flats that could be repurposed after the show” explained Angelina. “The set workshop had a large collection of flats in stock that are not particularly useful dimensions. In a conscious effort to improve the stock, we extended/recycled 7 flats and constructed 18 new flats all to the standard dimensions 1200 x 2400, planning that these will be used for many productions to come.”

The wood panels arrived all slightly different in tone and texture, so Angelina intentionally arranged the pieces like giant mosaic tiles, creating an ad-hoc unpainted look that belied the level of design thought that went into it. Even the venue floor became part of Angelina’s decision to reduce chemicals in her design —a roughly rolled first coat of paint saved the need for additional flooring materials and reduced paint usage.

The overall effect created was that of an abandoned child’s playground: one that was devoid of play equipment and colour. The actors and audience imagination worked together to create the many locations, just as children repurpose a cardboard box over and over again. There was an inherent warmth provided by the wood panelling, but also a deep sense of loneliness and abandonment within the void they encased. Small wooden boxes suddenly became entire rooms, a ladder became a tree, then a staircase, then a hiding place while an old, deconstructed piano became representative of ‘home’ as much as a plaything for bored character fingers. The steady arrival of bundles of dark twiggy sticks began to stack in the corner and heralded the arrival of The Stork – a surreal representation of the characters’ internal spring awakening.

“The Stork became an eerie, towering figure that loomed over the actors, like a childhood nightmare.” Edison elaborated. “It stood about three meters tall, with the lower half made of sticks and a sticky beak-like protrusion for the face. The materials we used for The Stork were the same sticks that the children interacted with onstage, as if the creature had emerged from their playful imaginations” The costume made of sticks became an iterative collaborative construction process with 3rd year NIDA Props Maker and supervisor Georgia Raczkowski and was worn as a backpack by cast members.

For Edison, resourceful thinking extended into every seam and twig of his costume designs. “I wanted the clothes to feel lived-in,” he said. “Those imperfections—the fading, the fraying—they gave the characters’ stories so much authenticity. Each piece felt like a hidden gem. It wasn’t just about the obvious sustainability wins; it was about the emotional depth these worn materials brought to the production.”

Challenges Along the Way

Balancing a strong design aesthetic with sustainable material choices wasn’t without its challenges.

For Angelina, the pile of soil used on stage became a dilemma. “The director wanted to use soil on stage as a tactile reminder of the play’s earthy, visceral themes. Organic soil poses biohazard risks, so we switched to a mix of sand and sterilized soil, but it didn’t have the texture I’d envisioned – it looked more like sand. Adding rubber crumb or paint would have compromised its reusability, so I had to compromise on the look to prioritize sustainability, which wasn’t easy but felt like the right call.”

Interestingly, audience members who watched the show from the front row, could not tell that the soil was 80% sand, and were intrigued by how easily it cleaned up when swept away by an actor. “A bonus was that it did not stain the costumes!” chuckled Edison. After the production most of the sandy soil was repurposed—some went to nearby gardens, and the rest was saved in bags for future productions. Nothing on stage went to waste. Even the stick bundles were placed in the organic waste green bins to be turned into compost.

Edison faced his own hurdles. “Time was my biggest limitation. Sourcing second-hand takes longer than buying new, and there were a few pieces we couldn’t find in time, so we had to buy a couple of items new. Sometimes, I had to repair or alter pieces to make them work, which added to the workload. Or negotiate my initial design with what was available.”

Despite challenges, both designers found unexpected joy in working within their limitations and finding innovative solutions. “For me, it was all about discovery,” Angelina says. “Rummaging through NIDA’s workshop, I found old hooks and hardware with so much personality—details you just can’t design from scratch. Our gun prop was constructed entirely from scrap materials, as was The Stork. It reminded me how rewarding it is to work with what’s already available.”

Support from NIDA

Both designers’ credit NIDA’s teaching staff and resources for helping bring their vision to life. “Hannah Garman, our Set Construction Manager, was a huge support,” Angelina said. “She actively encouraged us to reuse materials from the workshop and helped me think creatively about how to repurpose items. Having support and buy-in from workshop supervisors makes a huge difference to the decisions a designer can push forward”.

Edison echoed this sentiment. “The costume stock held at NIDA was invaluable. Without it, I wouldn’t have been able to source so many of the pieces affordably and sustainably. Textile waste is one of the biggest contributors to landfill globally. Having a large number of costumes at my fingertips was a huge reduction in online purchases and plastic packaging, not to mention the carbon emissions from deliveries and manufacture.”

Looking ahead, Angelina and Edison are committed to continuing their sustainable journeys in the industry, wherever possible. “Decisions start with the designer and director,” Angelina emphasized. “We have the power to shape production processes and lead this conversation. NIDA has taught me not to be too precious about my initial ideas, which is invaluable when trying to find solutions.”

Edison agreed. “This project taught me that creativity thrives within constraints. Finding more sustainable solutions pushes you to think differently, and the results are often more meaningful and rewarding.”

Edison and Angelina

Set Model

Costume Renders

Stork Design Render

Learn more about Angelina and Edison’s design approaches:

GREENING YOUR ARTS PRACTICE AS A DESIGNER – BOOK FOR FEBRUARY 2025!

APDGreen Conversations representative Imogen Ross will be running the inaugural Greening Your Arts Practice course at NIDA in February 2025.  Greening Your Arts Practice will introduce sustainable ways of working, allowing creatives to take the important step towards an eco-friendlier performing arts practice and make a lasting impact on their productions and the planet. Suitable for designers at all career stages.

THEATRE GREEN BOOK IN PRACTICE

Angelina and Edison’s conscious design approach is also a win for the NIDA Green Plan which was launched in 2022 and has placed sustainable goals into the heart of NIDA’s diverse curriculum. The Theatre Green Book [TGB] is used as a teaching resource across all departments, and student-led productions aim for the TGB Baseline/Basic standard, with varying degrees of success.

The Theatre Green Book is a collaborative resource developed by theatre architect Paddy Dillon and a range of theatre-makers, venues, producers, technicians and designers to provide practical circular guidelines for post-concept sustainable theatre-making. Divided into three volumes (Sustainable Productions, Sustainable Buildings, and Sustainable Operations), it offers a step-by-step approach to reducing theatre’s environmental impact by measuring, and mitigating a designer’s desires.

Key points include:

• An emphasis on using pre-existing, reclaimed and biodegradable materials as a default in set, costume and prop design.
• The importance of designing productions with a clear plan for material reuse or recycling, aligning with principles of circularity.
• The value of engaging audiences, students, and practitioners in conversations about sustainability, fostering a culture of ecological responsibility within the industry.

The TGB Basic standard asks a production to limit its new and unrecyclable products to 50% of the show’s needs, and then to ensure that 85% of everything used in the production process is rehomed, re-used or recycled. A thoughtful waste-reducing approach to design offers a powerful reminder to all of us in stage and screen that the future of visual storytelling lies not just in imagination and creativity but in taking collective responsibility for each decision we make.

Spring Awakening exceeded the Basic standard, achieving the TGB Intermediate standard in both sets and costumes – an excellent achievement for both designers and their teams.

In Angelina’s last words to us, “Is a small detail worth ruining the planet for? Often, the answer is No. With enough ingenuity, the alternative solutions can be even better than what you first imagined.”

THERE IS ALWAYS SO MUCH MORE TO THE GREEN CONVERSATION…

If you are interested in adding your professional design voice and suggestions to an APDG Sustainability Protocols group or promoting green initiatives in future Green Conversations, please send an email to Imogen Ross to offer assistance, suggest topics of research and point us towards members who are doing great things in the field of sustainable design.