Screenwriting guide

Play Script Format: How to Format a Stage Play

Play script format puts each character name centred in capitals above the speech, runs dialogue across the full page width, and sets stage directions in italics inside parentheses. Acts and scenes get centred headings, and each act starts on a new page; there is a sample page below.

Written and reviewed by ScriptLix EditorialUpdated October 2026

In short

In play script format, each character name sits centred in capitals above the speech, dialogue runs the full width of the page, and stage directions are in italics inside parentheses. Act and scene headings are centred in capitals, and every act starts on a new page.

Play script format: a sample page

ACT ONE

SCENE 1

(A railway waiting room at night. One bench, one clock that is ten minutes fast. VERA, seventies, sits with a suitcase on her knees. TOM, twenties, enters with a mop.)

TOM

We close at midnight.

VERA

The last train is at ten past.

TOM

(checking the clock)

That clock lies.

VERA

So do timetables. I will wait.

(TOM leans the mop against the wall and sits at the other end of the bench.)

Act and scene headings are centred, in capitals, and each act starts on a new page.
Character names are centred in capitals above every speech.
Dialogue runs the full width of the page, so plays read denser than screenplays.
Stage directions are indented, in italics and in parentheses, and stay in present tense.
Short acting directions sit on their own line under the name, in parentheses.
Use a 12 point font such as Times New Roman or Courier, and number every page.

What does the same scene look like as a screenplay and as a play?

The screenplay tells a camera where to be and cuts in late. The play sets the stage in a direction and lets the actors enter, because the audience sees the whole room at once.

Screenplay

INT. HOSPITAL WAITING ROOM - NIGHT

Three plastic chairs bolted together. RUTH (60s) sits upright, handbag on her knees. MILO (20s) offers a cup of tea.

MILO

They only had the one with lemon.

RUTH

I didn't ask for tea.

Stage play

(A hospital waiting room, after midnight. Three plastic chairs bolted together. RUTH, sixties, sits upright, handbag on her knees. MILO, twenties, enters with two cups of tea.)

MILO

They only had the one with lemon.

RUTH

I didn't ask for tea.

Ready to write? The free stage play template formats your play as you type and prints it. Writing for the screen instead? Paste a draft into the screenplay formatter.

How to use it

1
Open with a title page, then a cast list with a one line description of each character, then the setting and time.
2
Centre ACT ONE and SCENE 1 in capitals, and write the opening stage direction in italics and parentheses.
3
Put each speaker’s name centred in capitals, the speech underneath at full width, and short acting notes in parentheses on their own line.

How is a stage play formatted differently from a screenplay?

A screenplay is laid out for the camera: scene headings like INT. KITCHEN - NIGHT, action lines at the left margin, and dialogue in a narrow column in the middle of the page. A play is laid out for the stage and the rehearsal room: no INT. or EXT., directions in italics and parentheses, and speeches running the full width.

Because speeches run wider, a play page holds more words than a screenplay page, so the one page per minute rule of thumb from film does not carry over.

How do you write character names in a play?

In the common American layout the name sits centred in capitals on its own line above every speech. In many British scripts the name sits at the left margin in capitals with the speech beside or just after it. Either is fine for a submission; pick one and keep it the whole way through.

In stage directions, write a character’s name in capitals so actors can find their moves, and introduce each character in the cast list before the play starts.

How do you write stage directions?

In present tense, in italics, inside parentheses, and indented from the dialogue. Keep them to what the audience sees and hears: entrances, exits, key business and light or sound cues that matter to the story. Leave blocking to the director.

A short acting note for one line goes under the name in parentheses, the same as a parenthetical in a screenplay. Use them only when the line would be misread without one.

How do act and scene headings work?

Centre them in capitals: ACT ONE, then SCENE 1 (or Scene One). Start every act on a new page. Some writers also start each scene on a new page; both are accepted. One act plays usually use scene numbers only.

Questions writers ask

What font should a play script use?

A plain 12 point font. Times New Roman and Courier are both common for plays. Number every page.

Is there a free play script template?

Yes. The ScriptLix stage play template formats a play as you type and prints it, with a sample scene to edit.

Is theatre script format the same as play script format?

Yes. Theatre script, stage play and play script all describe the same layout.

Can I convert a screenplay into a stage play?

Not automatically. Scene headings become stage directions, and anything that relies on the camera, such as close ups or quick cuts between places, has to be rethought for one stage.