by Freyda Tartak

Created on: September 18, 2009

Putting on a great show is all about managing expectations. Even to properly surprise somebody, they still need to know what they are in for. The trick is really simple: Tell them what they'll see, show it to them, and then tell them that's what they were expecting, even if they didn't think so. The beginning is the hook. In the first three seconds the audience has already decided if they should really pay attention or not.

Any great story comes full circle. A movie opens with our hero walking down a country road. A bunch of stuff happens. He's not as clean cut anymore and he may even be limping, followed by bunch of yapping puppies but, the entire audience knows the flick is over because he's walking down a country road again.

The human psyche is built to depend on this devotion to the circular altar. We worship spiral progression, always passing the same point without ever touching it more than one time. We can never relive the same moment but, can't avoid repeating history. It is the incongruity of desire versus expectation that makes this formula such a powerful tool.

The middle of a performance is just a way to alter the beginning just enough that the end gives the audience pause. It must be a constant flow to the inevitable return. Without out this linear approach the performance is choppy and uneven, making it difficult to appreciate its finer points. Timelines can be flexible and jump from one milestone to another. The same life can be told without following a natural progression. Order is defined by how well the end was delivered, not by the path it took to get there. Some of the best stories ever told jumped back and forth in time while somehow always keeping the reader right there in the moment. The Edible Woman is the best example.

Surprise is the sudden realization of fact despite anticipation of a different result. It can be brought about by delivering something sooner or not delivering it at all. It can be accomplished by convincing the audience that what they wanted is not what they needed, after all. Only through knowing the mind of the viewer almost better than the subject matter itself can this surprise be fully realized.

Properly managed expectations deliver the punch three seconds before the recipient was about to wonder where it was. Too soon, would leave them starving, unsatisfied. Too late, would given them enough time to put up resistance and block maximum impact. They still knew it was coming but, weren't ready and therefore satisfied. The end offers closure. Though recent trends advocate cliff hangers at some point a story should end. If it doesn't, patience may.

Learn more about this author, Freyda Tartak.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.