There's a fine line between asking the audience to work for the resolution and keeping them in the dark to the point of distraction.

 I have written two plays recently in which significant elements of the story arc are dependent upon the director's concept and character back story created by the actors. After the first draft of a piece, I generally ask a few directors, producers and actors to read the script and offer notes. With respect to these two short plays, the opinions have been split down the middle. Half want one character more defined, outlined, concretized. The other half intrigued by the omission of specific character descriptions and authentic but amiguous dialogue. Both halves were passionate about their position.

The 10 Min. play went through a workshop production in December and was well received. The best part of the audience response was, "that could have been so-and-so in our family!" Perfect! They weren't distracted and they were satisfied that the ending was earned if they worked for it. No cue cards necessary to tell the audience when to "oohh", "laugh", and "applaud."

Last month I submitted the 60 Second piece to a festival. The artistic director of the theatre sent me an email, "...it's all in the direction." He decided to work for the laughs - no cue cards necessary. I tell you, I wanted to send him a reply email with just one word, "applause."