• (n.) The critical moment in a play, when, contrary to expectation, the action is embroiled in new difficulties.
Coun'ter·turn` (-t...rn`) noun The critical moment in a play, when, contrary to expectation, the action is embroiled in new difficulties. Dryden. 
a turn in an opposing or contrary direction. · an unexpected twist or turn of events in the plot of a story, play, or the like.