The Sustainable Theatre project is dedicated to delivering sustainably made theatre in non-traditional spaces to encourage the reinvestigation and importance of human stories in the global effort to spread knowledge and empathy around climate change
Steven Gaultney’s
Bright Light Burning (Belém)
Steven Gaultney’s Bright Light Burning at COP30, Belém, Brazil
Past Productions
The Earth does not wait. It turns. It carries us whether we are ready or not. In Sharm El-Sheikh, voices rose to remind us that time is not a resource to be bargained—it is the measure of our courage. The turning asks: what will you set in motion, what will you mend, before the circle closes again?
The Earth Turns, inspired by the University of Exeter’s Green Futures: We Still Have a Chance, premiered at COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh, resonated in downtown Cairo, and lives on as an evocative audio play. A call to action for a world still within reach.
In Dubai, migrants from the Global South lit the dark with a fire that refused to be extinguished. Not a performance, but a promise: to live as if the future is watching, to act as if the unborn are present. Their light asked of us all—will you pass on embers or ashes?
Bright Light Burning, created by Steven Gaultney with The Theatre of Others and University of Exeter’s Green Futures: We Are the Possible, premiered at COP28 in Dubai. Performed across the UAE, livestreamed worldwide, and welcomed into delegate policy spaces, it sparks urgent dialogue on our shared future.
In Baku, the circle widens. The young carry forward the flame, demanding not pity but partnership. They remind us that to be an ancestor is not a matter of time, but of choice. We burn brightly not for ourselves, but for those whose names we will never know. To be remembered as guardians, not as witnesses to collapse—that is the work of today.
Bright Light Burning was reimagined at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, with young performers whose lives will be shaped by today’s decisions, reminding us of our responsibility to be good ancestors.
Our Expertise
Our collective brings together directors, writers, teachers, ancestors, and citizens who have made theatre across continents, cultures, and contexts. We have created performances in places of privilege and scarcity, for audiences shaped by radically different socio-economic realities, always attuned to the lived experience of the communities we serve. Our expertise lies not only in staging work, but in listening, translating, and adapting—crafting theatre that resonates across borders and generations. We draw from both rigorous artistic research and lived global practice, uniting creative risk with social responsibility.