This Spring Generals, 12 shows were auditioning in the plays room. In traditional Northwestern fashion, for each play, actors were to have 1 form, 1 resume, and a headshot. Many, but not all, choose to print multiple (often 6) pictures per page. This makes about 2.17 pages per play. Because actors are to have forms for each show, even the ones for which they are not auditioning, this makes about 26 pieces of paper per actor. Approximately 200 people auditioned in the plays room. This means that all in all, about 5,200 pieces of paper were passed through the hands of producers and directors, briefly considered, and tossed into a recycling bin (and sometimes, a trash can). These are of course all rough approximations, but regardless, the margin of error is such that we know this is a significant, unacceptable amount of paper waste.

We are of the opinion that as theatre artists, global citizens, and young people in this world, we ought to put some effort into minimizing the environmental impact of our art. We are extraordinarily privileged to attend a university filled with incredibly intelligent individuals. There is no reason we as a community can’t find a better, more sustainable, more conscious solution. Google Forms are significantly easier to fill out, easier to organize, easier to use for scheduling purposes, and far less wasteful. Any computer science major could code software for this. Northwestern theatre needs to take accountability for the absurd amount of paper we waste in the audition process. Come on, people.