Show, Don’t Tell. What it is, What Comes With it… and Why it’s Worth it.

There comes a time for spoon feeding–PLAYS ARE NOT ONE OF THOSE TIMES! Now obviously, there’s an exception to the rule here and there. But for the most part, when a playwright, and even the director and actor, is applying the Show, Don’t Tell rule, it makes the story and the experience of it, that much more enriching. (This is true in any other sort of storytelling such as books, movies, TV shows, etc.) So, what is “Show, Don’t Tell”? Well, it’s essentially when a story is being told through ambiguity, or vagueness. It can be done through imagery, metaphor, or simply choosing the right words. “To be or not to be” sounds a hell of a lot better than “should I kill myself?” Oh… and that raises another good point. Show, Don’t Tell often leaves a lot of room for interpretation…. because, is Hamlet literally contemplating suicide? Or is he simply asking the age old question that, let’s face it, most, if not all of us, come to ask ourselves at least once in our lives: what if I had never been born, is life worth living, etc. (Though it goes without saying, if you’re in an emotional crisis, please call 988.)

It’s also worth noting that the Show, Don’t Tell rule should be applied to any play, not just one that’s trying to “convey a message”. A slice of life is just as moving as a heavily political Caryl Churchill play. And bear in mind, ambiguity and vagueness are two different things. But the trick is deciding when to use the Show, Don’t Tell rule. While I think vagueness can be an important aspect of storytelling, I’m focusing on ambiguity for this article because ambiguity is subjective–and that’s where things get juicy! But it’s also where debates can happen, or people can miss your point- sometimes really badly. In fact I often wonder if some of it’s on purpose. In other words, your story will be misinterpreted at some point when you’re ambiguous in your writing. And unfortunately that’s something that a playwright must deal with. Because it’s better to accept that, then sacrifice the quality of your art, and the moving experience that your audience receives. As I, Tonya screenwriter says, “things aren’t just black and white. Things are grey and grey is a lot more interesting.”

Here’s a good example of Show, Don’t Tell. In King Lear, after Kent is banished by the king, he still wants to be loyal to the king. He decides to disguise himself to stay close to him. But here’s the thing: he doesn’t reveal himself to the king once Goneril and Regan show their true colors. Why? Shakespeare doesn’t tell us why–he makes us figure it out for ourselves. It’s logical to conclude that he chooses not to reveal himself at that time because he knows Lear isn’t ready to hear this. Lear is on a journey. Shakespeare could have very well written a soliloquy for Kent, telling us why he’s keeping his disguise, but he didn’t. If he had, we as the audience would be robbed of the experience of forming a conclusion of our own, and thus we’d be spoon fed. People don’t like to be spoon fed–it’s boring and preachy.

Let’s go back to Hamlet. Wow, so much to unpack! And people can unpack it really fucking differently! Shakespeare leaves A LOT of unanswered questions in this play! Did he go overboard with Show, Don’t Tell? Or maybe he drunk?! Yeah, this is shit I think about. But there’s a lot of ambiguity! Were Rosencrantz and Guildenstern willingly scheming with Claudius when Hamlet was shipped off to England? Was Gertrude in on killing Hamlet’s father, or was she just an innocent bystander? Did Ophelia figure out what Claudius did? What the hell takes Hamlet so long with his revenge? And why does he swear allegiance with Fortinbras–the enemy of his father?! Yeah, there’s a lot and people have been spending over four centuries asking themselves these things and more–and this is all part of the fun! But when you try to answer these questions, you need to have something plausible to back it up–but how can you do that when Shakespeare is being ambiguous?! That is the question. 😉

Well, I’ll try to tackle one of those issues, which seems to be the most popular one to discuss: Hamlet’s delay in avenging his father’s death. I think his delay ties into his clear admiration for Fortinbras and his cause, along with the shame he feels for his country’s reputation. When I first read Hamlet I kinda hated it. Because I thought to myself, his father was clearly a war monger, and caused a lot of pain. Why should I give a damn about him? And why should Hamlet? Then I realized that in life, a lot of us struggle with loving our family members who have done horrible things. We watch Hamlet struggle with this. He loves his father and wants to avenge his death, but in my opinion it’s hard for him to bring himself to do it because the pain his father caused is still gnawing at him. I don’t think his delay is a matter of him “not being able to make up his mind”. Give him a break, he’s got a lot going on! So how did I reach this conclusion, even though the script is ambiguous on this matter? Well, I have a lot of examples, but here’s one:

I think seeing Fortinbras lead his army before the “how all occasions” speech is the thing that kicks Hamlet into gear. Fortinbras is strong, brave, and willing to take chances. And above all, he has honor. Hamlet shows admiration for all these things, without mentioning that his father caused the pain that Fortinbras and Norway experienced. Fortinbras makes hard choices because he has to, and Hamlet is realizing that he should too. Despite everything, he loves his father and wants justice for him. He wants the truth to be known. But he also manages to achieve justice for Fortinbras and Norway in the end. Hamlet voices support to Fortinbras in his dying words. It was literally the last thing he said! He didn’t say any reasons he supports Fortinbras, what he said was “[Fortinbras] has my dying voice.” This is all shown to us, not told to us. Shakespeare could have written a speech for Hamlet where he laments his love for his father, and simultaneously his sympathy for Fortinbras. But he didn’t–we get to figure that out. Or, not figure it out. Or debate about it for years. Again, that’s where all the fun is! 😀 This is the conclusion I came to, but someone else may tell you something different. Side note, I also think there’s other reasons for Hamlet’s delay; this is just one example.

Here’s the bottom line: Show, Don’t Tell is vital in storytelling. But it’s still gonna come with a lot. Such as people having many interpretations, misunderstandings of the story, or worst of all people getting a sexist or otherwise bigoted message. Even when that was not only not your intention, but the exact opposite of your intention. I’d say the show Bojack Horseman is one of the best examples! Seriously, CHECK OUT THIS VIDEO!

Hamlet has unfortunately had many misogynistic interpretations, and I call bullshit. For example, people say Ophelia’s insanity and even her death are over sexualized. I think they’re over sexualized by misogynistic readers and directors of the play. Ophelia is smart and witty. Consider the clapback she gives to Laertes in act I. Consider the fact that she clearly doesn’t want to help her father spy on Hamlet–but is forced to. Hence, a commentary on men controlling women in life. Think about how her father and brother clearly tie her worth into her virginity–a long standing and very sexist tradition in our patriarchal world. Honestly… I think the mad scene is, among other things, a giant “fuck you” from Ophelia to everyone who put her in that position. And that’s exactly the way I played it when I portrayed her! And what about Gertrude? Yes, she remarried so quickly after the death of her husband… but did she really have a choice? What opportunities for independence are there for her–even if you set it in present day? Furthermore, it’s very clear that Claudius manipulated her. And then there’s Laertes. He does everything in his power to keep from crying after hearing about his sister’s death because he’s ashamed of doing so. For God’s sake, he just lost his father and sister in quick succession and witnessed the latter have a nervous breakdown! Can we as a society please let him cry?! I think this was Shakespeare’s commentary on toxic masculinity. And it’s brilliant.

You’re not supposed to like Hamlet’s sexist behavior–you can feel this and still think of him as a hero. I do. Life is a learning experience and I think Hamlet has one. For example, I think he has a huge wake up call when Ophelia dies. The play isn’t excusing any of the character’s bad behavior, it’s telling the world, these horrible things exist and they deserve sympathy. Ambiguous storytelling can come with misogynistic interpretations, either from pro feminists, or worse, anti-feminists who use this as part of their cause. What’s more, people often don’t get closure in life. People are cruel, or sexist, or narcissistic, or bigoted, or all or some of these things and more. And they often get away with hurting people, with the victims not getting any kind of resolution. All these things are meant to be empathized with, not celebrated. But unfortunately there are assholes out there that will celebrate this, thinking that wanting these things to happen was the message you were creating. That’s just something writers have to deal with. But good writing still does a lot despite this. People heal and learn from these stories. In other words, it holds the mirror up to nature! No misinterpretations, deliberate or otherwise, can destroy that mirror. So don’t back down.

Foul deeds will rise, though all the earth o’whelm them to men’s eyes.

Portraying things like trauma, sexism, mental illness, and more is hard. But it’s worth it. There’s writing that accurately portrays such things, and writing that’s not only inaccurate, but also exaggerated, spoon-fed and even dangerous! But believe me, good storytelling is well worth it. Don’t be afraid to tackle controversial topics in theater–just do it the right way. One of the greatest examples of this is a play called And Miss Reardon Drinks a Little. I had the honor of playing Anna in a production this year. The characters, the plot, and the dialogue are ambiguous–and it’s one of the most moving plays I’ve ever read. An audience member walked right up to me and said “you were my spirit animal”, and that was an incredible feeling.

Don’t let the unintended things that come with the Show, Don’t Tell rule make you forget it’s importance. It’s enriching, it saves lives, it helps people grow. The truth will out.