critics still crucial to theatre

The Stage: So the votes are in and the verdict delivered. Given how grudging I've been in the past about polls in the Stage newspaper, it would be churlish to deny that I'm delighted by its current survey of theatre critics. Its results give myself and Lyn Gardner key places among the most read and valued. That's nice. But, more to the point, it shows that the Guardian itself is the preferred option of many people engaged in theatre's unholy trade.