MyTheatreMates’ co-founders Terri Paddock and Mark Shenton are working together on something else!
The Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards 2016 will take place on Tuesday 31 January 2017 at the Prince of Wales Theatre in London’s West End, hosted by Critics’ Circle Drama Section Chairman Mark Shenton, with regular guest speaker Arthur Smith introducing the prestigious awards in much-loved tradition.
For the first time, renowned industry figure Terri Paddock has joined the team to produce the Awards, which are once again generously sponsored and presented in association with Nyman Libson Paul Chartered Accountants, leading entertainment industry specialists; and, for the twelfth year, supported by Delfont Mackintosh Theatres.
Innovations for 2017 include the launch of a dedicated Awards website, Twitter and Facebook channels and new online voting for critics. As part of the extra emphasis on developing digital aspects of the awards, and engagement with critics and industry alike, acceptance speeches will be broadcast for the first time, streamed via Facebook Live on the day.
The Awards can be found online here:
Website – criticscircletheatreawards.com
Twitter – @CCTAwards
Facebook – CCTAwards
As ever, the ceremony will provide an informal gathering of award recipients, the drama critics, theatre practitioners and the media, convivially coming together to celebrate the critics’ personal choice of the best theatre, from throughout the UK, during the last calendar year.
Since the Awards’ inception in 1989 the theatre critics, consisting entirely of respected and influential working journalists, have prided themselves on offering something unique on the packed theatre awards circuit: each member of the Drama Section independently casts their vote based on personal choice, free of any discussion or industry influence, ensuring a highly democratic voting process.
Section Chairman Mark Shenton said:
“More than ever, The Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards offers an independent and indispensable reward to the best theatre of 2016, free of editorial interference or industry lobbying or pressures. The awards are also finally moving into the digital age with a Facebook and Twitter presence that will also make the acceptance speeches available live and in real time to global audiences.”
This is the third awards ceremony that Terri Paddock and Mark Shenton have worked on together. In 2000, they launched the WhatsOnStage Awards and in 2015, when co-founding MyTheatreMates, they launched our own #AlsoRecognised Awards. Both of those are online votes decided by the public – a very different from the long-established Critics’ Circle Awards.
