Performing a play script

In a nutshell

Plays are written in a specific format called scripts which are performed to the audience by the actors. In this summary, you will learn more about play scripts as well as some tips for performing them.

Play scripts

Play scripts are written slightly different from other types of texts. In order to perform a play script, it is important to get familiar with some important information.

Scripts

A script is a text written for a movie, speech, broadcast or play. When it comes to plays, scripts are written in scenes and every scene must contain the setting (when and where), characters and the events that take place.

Dialogue

Play scripts contain information and details about the story and the characters. Usually speech punctuation is used when a character says something in a story, but in a play script the dialogue is written without any speech punctuation. The character's name is simply written followed by a colon (:). What the character says comes directly after.

Example

Samuel: I hate Mondays! Why can't mum drive me to school, so I can sleep later?

Stage directions and details

Scripts also include directions and details on how the actors should perform the lines. These are called stage directions and are written in brackets within or before the dialogue with instructions on what a character should do.

Example

Jess: (shaking) I'm freezing!

How to perform a script

When performing a play script, you can speak and move differently to make the character more credible and interesting to watch. Acting makes the difference when you are performing a script; instead of saying what the character is feeling, you have to show it visually through acting or stage directions.

Example

John was lost in the woods, he started trembling and sweating.

John: HELP! PLEASE SOMEBODY HELP ME!

Tip: Stand in front of a mirror and practice the different stage directions that can appear on a play script such as whispering, trembling and speaking in an angry voice.