During COVID19 lockdown whilst the Palace Theatre Paignton doors have remained closed to the public, the social media activity has increased to connect with existing audiences and develop new followers.

And now, the multi award-winning venue has been named winner of the Twitter #SmartSocial award, a nationally recognised badge of honour for micro and SME businesses which rewards businesses that are Smart with Social Media.  The #SmartSocial award, founded in 2012 is run by Marketme, a social media management agency and leading distributor of small business news and reviews.  Businesses are encouraged to compete for the prestigious award by tweeting their latest business news and using innovative ways to attract the judges’ attention.

‘We may be closed but we’re still award winning! We are delighted to have been awarded this prestigious social media award in recognition of our hard work. Our continuous activity helps to keep theatre at the forefront of people’s minds during this difficult time’, says Maureen McAllister, Director of Operations for Jazz Hands, the Community Interest Company that manages and operates the Palace Theatre in Paignton. ‘we’ve also been able to support our youngest team member, Isabelle Roper, a South Devon College Performing Arts student, in developing her digital and social media skills.  She has been proactively engaged with our online activity promoting events and helping us to co-ordinate our content’.    

There are several ways to support the Palace Theatre’s activities and projects during COVID19 lockdown including donating through CrowdFunder and GoFundMe fundraising campaigns and taking out an annual membership as a Friend of the Palace Theatre.  To find out more visit the Palace Theatre website and follow social media sites (www.palacetheatrepaignton.co.uk)