Writing a play
Inverted commas are not required when writing a play. Stage
directions are shown in italics or brackets. The characters’
names are followed by a colon. When one character leaves
the stage, the stage direction is ‘Exit’. When two or more
characters leave the stage, use the plural form ‘Exeunt’.
(Enter Helen and David. He is carrying a tray of tea.)
Helen: Put the tray on the table, please.
David: (Puts tray on table) Do you want me to pour?
Helen: No, it’s all right. I’ll wait till Betty comes in.
David: Shall I call her?
Helen: No thank you. She said she had to finish a letter.
She’ll be here soon.
Checklist
◆ Direct speech is enclosed in inverted commas.
◆ Always put a punctuation mark before closing the
inverted commas.
◆ A new paragraph is used for each speaker.
◆ No inverted commas are used for indirect speech.
◆ Put a colon after the character when writing a play and
do not use inverted commas.
110 / IMPROVE YOUR PUNCTUATION & GRAMMAR