Providing an audience with pen and paper to write down their answers to a pre-show prompt isn’t a novel ask.

But the SoHo Playhouse’s Shell offered a masterclass in how to convince attendees to actually engage with the question. 

First off, an individual member of the company confronts everyone one-on-one with the request, a personal touch that emphasizes the direct call to action. 

Secondly, as opposed to allowing us to post our notecards on public view, or in an onstage receptacle offering anonymity, we keep our pages on our persons, and SoHo Playhouse’s basement is intimate enough to make it a distinct possibility that you will be called on to share, so you better have some plans at least outlined! 

Which brings us to the function of this querying. Usually, it can be cast off as peripheral to the primary text, a loose gesture at theme. But the motivated consideration triggered by Shell’s approach leads us to truly reckon with the suggested topic, an active primer that lingers beyond the curtain rising.