Final Image

The Final Image of a play is the last visual image that the audience is left with as the lights fade (or the curtain comes down) on the paly. The final image is often a metaphorical or symbolic commentary upon what has come before it.

Plays start in one place, and end in another. The final image is the last moment you have, as a playwright, to tie the story together. West Side Story starts with a gang fight, and ends with members of each gang lifting the same dead body together. The Final Image is also the last final word on the Dramatic Question posed at the beginning of the play, whether you provide a definitive answer or an opportunity for more questions.