How to Cite a Play

Step-by-Step Guide

1. 1

   Step 1: Begin with the name of the playwright.

   Use the format last name, comma, first name, period.
   
   Even if the play is part of an anthology with an editor, you will still start with the name of the playwright of the specific play you're citing., Place a period after the title.
   
   Make sure to properly capitalize the words in the title. , Place the anthology title in italics, followed by a period.
   
   If the play did not come from an anthology, you can skip this step. , Precede the first and last name with "Ed." For example, "Ed.
   
   Mary Close." Put a period after the last name of the editor.
   
   The format of the name should be first name, last name. , You can usually find this information on the copyright page in the beginning of a book or anthology.
   
   Place a colon after the city.
   
   Example: “New York:” , This will go right after the city and colon.
   
   Properly capitalize the name of the publisher.
   
   You can find the name of the publisher in a few places, but most likely on the copyright page of the book.
   
   Example: “New York:
   Penguin,” , Place a period after this number.
   
   This will come after the publisher and comma.
   
   Example: “New York, Penguin,
   1990.” , Use a dash to indicate a block of page numbers.
   
   Place a period after these numbers.
   
   If you are citing a single play published by itself rather than as part of an anthology, you can skip this step.
   
   Example: “105-120.” , In most cases, it will be "Print," but it may also be "Web." If you are citing a web-based source, including an eBook, make sure you add a date of access after the medium.
   
   This would be the date you accessed the online material.
   
   Write the date of access in the format of date, month, year.
   
   Example for print: “Print.” Example for web: “Web. 15 Apr.
   2014.” If you accessed the web material from a database, put the name of the database after the year of publication in italics.
   
   Example: “New York:
   Penguin,
   1990.
   
   Academic Search.
   
   Web. 15 Apr.
   2014.” , You will need to cite the act, scene, and line numbers for the piece of the text you’re incorporating into your paper.
   
   Following the quote, you would put the in-text citation in parenthesis in this format: (act.scene.lines).
   
   For example, if you are quoting a line from act 2, scene 5, lines 1-4, the in-text citation would look like this: (2.5.1-4).Some instructors might want you to use Roman numerals instead of arabic in your in-text citations to represent the act and scene numbers.
   
   If they want you to use Roman numerals, the in-text citation would look like this: (II.v.1-4)., If your quote is longer than 3 lines, you will need to block it, which requires an indent of one extra inch from the left margin.
   
   The name of the speaker should have this extra inch indent, and subsequent lines of dialogue should be an inch and a quarter.
   
   Write character names in full capital letters.Just like when quoting a regular piece of prose in MLA style, long quotes need to be blocked in a similar fashion.
   
   Use the ruler at the top of your word processor to slide the margins where you need them to be.
2. 2

   Step 2: Add the title of the play

3. 3

   Step 3: in italics.

4. 4

   Step 4: Add the title of the anthology

5. 5

   Step 5: if applicable.

6. 6

   Step 6: Add the name of the editor of the anthology

7. 7

   Step 7: if applicable.

8. 8

   Step 8: Write the city of publication.

9. 9

   Step 9: Include the publisher

10. 10

    Step 10: followed by a comma.

11. 11

    Step 11: Add the year of publication.

12. 12

    Step 12: List the page numbers.

13. 13

    Step 13: Finish your entry with the medium of publication.

14. 14

    Step 14: Use in-text citations.

15. 15

    Step 15: Block longer quotes.

Detailed Guide

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