Last week I received a mysterious invite. “Please join us on 24 October 2018 for drinks to celebrate the launch of a radical new platform for theatre criticism,” it read. That’s intriguing, but not nearly so exciting as the next bit: “…and to find out about Lyn Gardner‘s next step.”
The invite, sent to selected industry professionals, linked through to a dedicated website lynsnextstep.com. I registered to attend and tweeted about #LynsNextStep. With the Twitter frenzy that erupted when the Guardian decided not to renew Lyn’s contract as its long-serving critic, I challenged the Twitterverse to be equally vocal in supporting Lyn’s good news… whatever exactly it might eventually be.
I was heartened – and I know Lyn herself was – by the response.
Just wanted to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone for your interest and enthusiasm for #LynsNextStep and say the launch event is full. But very excited that I will soon be able to share future plans with you all. I am very excited.
— lyngardner (@lyngardner) October 5, 2018
Twitter can sometimes be a wonderfully supportive place, after all. Within a few hours, it seems that the event was hugely over-subscribed. On the website, you can now just join the waiting list – and I fear you may be waiting for a long time.
But fear not if you can’t attend, I’ve just got word that I have permission to live-tweet on the night. So do be sure follow @TerriPaddock and @MyTheatreMates from 6pm on Wednesday 24 October – as well as the fantastic teaser hashtag #LynsNextStep. In the meantime, below is a smattering of responses to date.
If you have any guesses about what #LynsNextStep might be, do tweet us!
#LynsNextStep – Curated tweets by MyTheatreMates
Terri Paddock founded WhatsOnStage.com and the WhatsOnStage Awards, running the company and its events from 1996 to 2013. Terri is also the author of two novels, Come Clean and Beware the Dwarfs, and has previously written for the Evening Standard, Independent, The Times and other national publications. She is renowned for her 'legendary' post-show Q&As and also produces the annual Critics' Circle Theatre Awards and acts as a digital, content strategy and event consultant for theatre, producers and other clients. She tweets about theatre at @TerriPaddock.
