Theatr Iolo smash environmental targets with their recent show, Owl at Home.

Theatr Iolo, the children’s theatre company based in Cardiff, set themselves the ambitious target of achieving the Theatre Green Book baseline standard on their first production since signing up to the scheme.

The company, who celebrated their 35th birthday earlier this year, had set themselves the target of achieving the Theatre Green Book baseline standard for creating more sustainable theatre productions. The scheme encourages theatre companies to source 50% of the materials used in the making of a production from reused or recycled sources, with at least 65% of materials to have a life elsewhere following the show.

Through careful sourcing of materials, the design and production team for Owl at Home ensured that 69% of materials used in the making of the show had a previous life. Further more, an impressive 98% of the materials have gone on to have a future life after the production.

“We’re thrilled to have been able to achieve the Theatre Green Book baseline standard on our recent children’s show, Owl at Home. It’s incredibly important for us to be making our productions more environmentally friendly and to share this with our young audiences. To be able to show that if you are creative and put a lot of thought into what you’re making, then you can reduce the environmental impact whilst still retaining the magic!”
Michelle Perez, Executive Director

Owl at Home was a new production based on the 1975 children’s book of the same name by Arnold Lobel. The autumnal tale for children aged 5-11 was been written for the stage by Rina Vergano and directed by Theatr Iolo’s Artistic Director, Lee Lyford and starred actor and musician George Williams as Owl.

Owl at Home toured between 19 October until 5 November 2022, visiting The Riverfront in Newport, Pontardawe Arts Centre, Torch Theatre in Milford Haven, The Welfare in Ystradgynlais, Chapter in Cardiff, and Theatr Brycheiniog in Brecon. The enchanting tale with music was seen by over 1000 children and their adults.

Theatr Iolo will be seeking to achieve the Theatre Green Book baseline standard for all their future productions. To find out more about the initiative, visit theatregreenbook.com