Question

Shakespeare structured The Tempest so it begins during a storm, rather than in Milan where most of the backstory takes place. How does this decision most clearly affect the story?

Answer 1

The audience only learns about the events in Milan from the characters (apex)

Answer 2

By making it begin during the storm, Shakespeare, in a way, advances the story to after the events in Milan. Because of that, the audience is clueless about how things got to that point and have to learn about it through the dialogue presented by the characters.