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About this quote

What does it mean?
A good critic understands current events in theater, but a great one also recognizes what is missing or absent.
In plain terms
Great critics notice what is absent, not just what is present.
What can you take from it?
Pay attention to silences and absences as much as visible actions.

Where it applies

  • reviewing art
  • analyzing trends
  • strategic planning

Putting it to work

  • identify gaps in projects
  • review market needs
  • assess team output

Questions to consider

  • What do you notice is missing in your field?
  • How does absence shape meaning?

Another view

Noticing what is not happening can be subjective and hard to prove.

More from Kenneth Tynan

  1. John Osborne spoke out in a vein of ebullient, free-wheeling rancour that betokened the arrival of something new in the theatre - a sophisticated, articulate l…

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  2. When you've seen all of Ionesco's plays, I felt at the end, you've seen one of them.

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  3. A villain who shares one's guilt is inevitably more attractive than a hero convinced of one's innocence.

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