The stars of the upcoming revival of The Pride, including Captain America star Hayley Atwell and Gavin And Stacey’s Mathew Horne, are eager to discuss the show with audiences on Twitter.
The pair, who star in the revival of Alexi Kaye Campbell’s Olivier Award-winning play alongside Harry Hadden-Paton and Al Weaver, spoke about the power of the social networking site at a press conference held yesterday.
“Twitter is a wonderful forum for debate across a huge spectrum,” said Bad Education star Horne at the event where the cast of The Hothouse, the Trafalgar Transformed season’s current production, met the cast of The Pride, the next production, which begins its run at the Trafalgar Studios on 8 August. “It’s absolutely right that we should be talking about it and discussing it. These shows are for people to discuss, to take away and to open up debates about issues.”
“Using Twitter to be able to talk more about it and to reach a wider audience is a great asset for us,” added Atwell, who will be seen on the big screen in 2014’s superhero sequel Captain America: The Winter Soldier. “It also means Trafalgar Transformed can make theatre as accessible as possible to a diverse audience.”
The social site, which allows users 140 characters to post their views, has hit the headlines for the wrong reasons this week as journalists Grace Dent, Hadley Freeman and Catherine Mayer received bomb threats, while campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez and MP Stella Creasy received deeply abusive and threatening tweets.
Director Jamie Lloyd and everyone involved in the Trafalgar Transformed season sees social media as an important force for connecting with theatregoers.
“I think it’s very easy for theatres to just use their Twitter and Facebook accounts to market a show or throw up ticket deals,” the director, who will also direct the autumn stage adaptation of The Commitments, said. “To actually engage with an audience through that is vital.
“I truly believe that theatre can and should be a springboard for debate and imagination. It shouldn’t be just about going to the West End and having a jolly good time. The season has to have a political charge. It’s commercial theatre, but it’s created with a social conscience. That is very important. I think theatre must be vital. It must be an important part of our culture.”
To join The Pride on Twitter follow @TrafTransformed, @HayleyAtwell, @mfhorne, @harryhpaton, @Al_weaver and @lloydjamie