You've just finished writing a paper that references Hamlet, A Raisin in the Sun, or Death of a Salesman — and now you're staring at a blank Works Cited page wondering how to cite a play properly. Is it treated like a book? A poem? Something else entirely?
Good news: citing plays is actually straightforward once you understand the logic behind each citation style. This guide walks you through how to cite plays in MLA, APA, and Chicago formats, with real examples you can adapt right away.
Why Citing Plays Is a Little Different
Plays occupy a unique space in academic writing. They're written as scripts but often published as books — and when you quote them, you're typically citing specific acts, scenes, and lines rather than page numbers. That quirk affects how your in-text citations look, especially in MLA format.
The format you use will also depend on:
- Whether you're citing the play as a standalone book or as part of an anthology
- Whether you're quoting dialogue, stage directions, or the preface
- Which style guide your professor or institution requires (MLA, APA, or Chicago)
Let's break each one down.
How to Cite a Play in MLA Format
MLA (Modern Language Association) format is the most common style for literature and humanities papers, so it's where most students need to know how to cite plays.
Works Cited Entry for a Standalone Play
If the play is published as its own book, treat it like a book citation:
Last Name, First Name. Title of the Play. Publisher, Year.
Example:
Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. Penguin Books, 1998.
Works Cited Entry for a Play in an Anthology
If the play appears in a collection or anthology, you need to credit both the playwright and the editor:
Playwright Last Name, First Name. "Title of the Play." Title of the Anthology, edited by Editor First Name Last Name, Publisher, Year, pp. Page Range.
Example:
Williams, Tennessee. "The Glass Menagerie." The Norton Anthology of American Literature, edited by Robert S. Levine, W. W. Norton, 2017, pp. 2134–2185.
MLA In-Text Citations for Plays
Here's where citing a play in MLA style gets unique. Instead of page numbers, MLA recommends using act, scene, and line numbers — separated by periods — when they're available. This is more useful to readers because editions vary in pagination.
Format: (Author's Last Name act.scene.lines)
Example:
"To be, or not to be, that is the question." (Shakespeare 3.1.55–56)
If the play doesn't use act and scene divisions (some modern plays don't), use a page number instead:
(Miller 45)
Pro tip: Once you've established the author's name in your sentence, you can drop it from the parenthetical and just include the act, scene, and lines: (3.1.55–56).
How Do I Cite a Play in MLA Style If It Has No Line Numbers?
Some published plays — particularly contemporary ones — don't include line numbers. In that case, simply use page numbers as you would with any other prose source. Your in-text citation will look like a standard book citation: (Hansberry 74).
How to Cite a Play in APA Format
APA (American Psychological Association) format is less commonly used for literary analysis, but you may need it for theater studies, education, or psychology courses that discuss drama.
APA Reference List Entry
In APA 7th edition, cite a published play as you would a book:
Last Name, Initials. (Year). Title of the play. Publisher.
Example:
Hansberry, L. (1994). A raisin in the sun. Vintage Books.
APA In-Text Citations for Plays
APA uses the author-date system. For a direct quote, include the author's last name, year, and page number:
(Hansberry, 1994, p. 36)
Unlike MLA, APA does not use act and scene numbers in in-text citations — always use page numbers.
How to Cite a Play in Chicago Format
Chicago style (used in history and some humanities fields) offers two systems: Notes-Bibliography and Author-Date. For literary works like plays, the Notes-Bibliography system is most common.
Chicago Bibliography Entry
Last Name, First Name. Title of the Play. City of Publication: Publisher, Year.
Example:
Beckett, Samuel. Waiting for Godot. New York: Grove Press, 1954.
Chicago Footnote or Endnote
First Name Last Name, Title of the Play (City: Publisher, Year), page number.
Example:
Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot (New York: Grove Press, 1954), 22.
Citing a Play You Watched vs. Read
Did you attend a live performance or watch a recorded production? That changes your citation. When citing a live performance, you're citing the production itself — not a published text. In MLA, a live performance citation looks like this:
Shakespeare, William. A Midsummer Night's Dream. Directed by Emma Rice, Globe Theatre, London, 15 June 2022.
For a filmed or streamed production, treat it more like a film or video recording, including the platform or distributor where relevant.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Citing Plays
- Using page numbers in MLA when act/scene/line numbers are available — MLA prefers the latter for classical plays.
- Forgetting to italicize the play title — play titles are always italicized, not put in quotation marks.
- Citing a play anthology without crediting the editor — the editor's name is a required part of the citation.
- Mixing up styles mid-paper — pick one citation format and stick with it throughout.
- Omitting the edition — for classic plays with multiple editions (like Shakespeare), noting the edition helps readers locate your exact source.
Quick-Reference Summary
MLA Play Citation at a Glance
- Works Cited: Playwright Last Name, First. Play Title. Publisher, Year.
- In-text (with act/scene/lines): (Author act.scene.lines) → e.g., (Shakespeare 3.1.55–56)
- In-text (page number only): (Author page) → e.g., (Miller 45)
APA Play Citation at a Glance
- Reference list: Last Name, Initials. (Year). Play title. Publisher.
- In-text: (Author, Year, p. #) → e.g., (Hansberry, 1994, p. 36)
Chicago Play Citation at a Glance
- Bibliography: Last Name, First Name. Play Title. City: Publisher, Year.
- Footnote: First Last, Play Title (City: Publisher, Year), page.
Tools That Make Academic Citing Easier
Manually formatting citations is tedious — and one misplaced comma can cost you points. If you want to skip the formatting headaches, the WriteGenius Citation Generator can build accurate MLA, APA, and Chicago citations in seconds. Just enter the play's details and copy the formatted result directly into your paper.
Once your citations are sorted, it's also worth running your entire paper through the WriteGenius Grammar Checker to catch any lingering errors before you submit. And if you find that any of your quoted passages need to be reworded for flow or to avoid over-quoting, the WriteGenius Paraphraser can help you rephrase source material smoothly while keeping the meaning intact.
Final Thoughts
Knowing how to cite a play correctly — whether you're writing in MLA, APA, or Chicago format — is one of those skills that pays off throughout your entire academic career. The key things to remember: italicize play titles, use act/scene/line numbers in MLA when available, and always match your in-text citations to your Works Cited or reference list entries.
When in doubt, double-check your style guide, use the examples above as a template, and lean on reliable tools to handle the formatting so you can focus on what really matters — your argument and analysis.