How to Quote a Play

Overview

Knowing how to quote a play is a useful skill for any student or reader of plays. Quoting plays allows you to reference the words of a playwright or characters in the play in an essay or paper. Following the guidelines of the Modern Language Association (MLA) and the American Psychological Association (APA) is essential when quoting plays.

MLA Format

When quoting a play in MLA format, start by identifying the author, play title, and scene. Then, provide a parenthetical citation with the act and line numbers. For example: “Oh, brave new world,/ That has such people in’t!” (Shakespeare 3.2.154-155). If the quote is longer than four lines, set it off as a block quote. When citing a block quote, add a line break before and after the quote and indent one inch.

APA Format

In APA format, start by identifying the playwright, play title, and act and scene. Then, provide a parenthetical citation with the line numbers. For example: “Oh, brave new world,/ That has such people in’t!” (Shakespeare, 1623/2004, act 3, scene 2, lines 154-155). If the quote is longer than four lines, set it off as a block quote. When citing a block quote, add a line break before and after the quote and indent one inch.

In-Text Citations

When referencing a play quote in the body of an essay, include the author’s last name and the page number of the quote in the parenthetical citation. For example: In Romeo and Juliet, Juliet states “O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” (Shakespeare 2). If the author’s name is not included in the sentence, add the author’s last name and page number to the end of the quote in the parenthetical citation.

Citing Multiple Plays

When citing multiple plays, arrange the plays alphabetically by title. The act and line numbers should be provided after the title. For example: “Oh, brave new world,/ That has such people in’t!” (Shakespeare, The Tempest, 3.2.154-155). “To be, or not to be, that is the question” (Shakespeare, Hamlet, 3.1.64).

Number of Authors

When citing a play written by two authors, include both names in the parenthetical citation. For example: “Oh, brave new world,/ That has such people in’t!” (Shakespeare & Johnson, The Tempest, 3.2.154-155). If there are more than two authors, cite the first author followed by “et al.” For example: “Oh, brave new world,/ That has such people in’t!” (Shakespeare et al., The Tempest, 3.2.154-155).

References

At the end of the essay or paper, provide a reference page with the full play citation. For example: Shakespeare, W. (1623/2004). The tempest. In The Norton anthology of English literature (9th ed.). New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company. If citing multiple plays, alphabetize the list of works cited by title.