Standard Playwriting Format
Please follow these standard formatting rules:
- Act and Scene headings are centered.
- Character’s names are centered and capitalized.
- Stage directions are indented one tab and italicized.
- Character’s names in stage directions are capitalized.
- Parenthetical stage directions are used for small actions.
Act One
Scene 1
Writopia Lab, New York City. Day.
DAN, a tall Writopia instructor, sits on the couch. He munches on a bunch of potato chips, crumbs fall on his lap. He brushes them off into the crevasses of the couch. REBECCA enters the room with her coat on.
REBECCA
Dan?
DAN
What?
REBECCA
Did you just brush off your crumbs in the couch?
DAN
shrugging
No.
REBECCA
You’re lying. And now I have to sweep them up.
DAN gets up and walks up to REBECCA.
DAN
Don’t worry about it. I’ll do it.
REBECCA and DAN freeze, staring at one another as the lights on them dim down. Lights come up from behind the couch, where a large chip crumb named NORMAN breaks out into song.
NORMAN THE CRUMB
Dan won’t sweep me up, he will forget about me. I’m so lucky — here at Writopia with instructors like Dan!
Blackout.
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