Rationale

Most print editions do not number stage directions. Stage directions (SD) normally sit outside the act-scene-line (ASL) numbering system that is conventional in modern print editions. However, LEMDO gives xml:ids and independent numbers to stage directions, which means that editors can cite their own stage directions with great precision. To cite from other published LEMDO editions, follow the guidelines for print editions (at least until we surface the SD numbers in our HTML interface).

Practice: Cite from Print Editions

If a stage direction is embedded in a line (within the dialogue) or typeset on a line that also contains dialogue, we can use the ASL (or scene-lines) to point to the stage direction. If the stage direction is before or after a speech, it is standard practice to identify stage directions by the nearest line. Use your judgement to decide whether the line before or after the stage direction is the most appropriate hook for the stage direction. A good general practice is to think about blocks of action; keep the stage direction with the line that belongs to the same block of action. The first stage direction in a scene will necessarily be cited by the subsequent line, just as the last stage direction in a scene will necessarily be cited by the preceding line. In a play with acts and scenes, the first stage direction might thus be cited 1.1.1SD.

If the edition has an established system for numbering stage directions, cite by the edition’s system. For example, the (NOS CW) adds .1 to the preceding ASL or scene-line. The stage direction after 1.1.112 is thus 1.1.112.1.

To cite an editor’s note on a stage direction, add .n to the number of the stage direction. A note on 1.1.1SD would be cited 1.1.1SD.n. A note on 1.1.112.1 would be cited 1.1.112.1.n

Practice: Cite from Your Own Edition

To cite from a semi-diplomatic text in your own edition, our current protocol gives you two options: Add anchors to the semi-diplomatic file and point to the anchors. See to learn how to add anchors, and to learn how to point to those anchors. Point to the xml:id of the closest speech. All speeches in semi-diplomatic transcriptions have canonical speech numbers, so we can use the localCit protocol described here: . We will soon have a third way for you to point to places in your semi-diplomatic text. We will be giving xml:ids to witness line numbers (WLNs) in the xml; currently (as of July 2026), WLNs have n values from which HTML ids are generated in the processing. We will update this document when xml:ids are in place and can be pointed to using the localCit protocol.

To cite from your modern text, take advantage of the fact that stage directions have their own xml:id in the modern text. (See for an explanation of how stage directions are numbered.) Follow the protocol for using a ptr element with a type value of localCit to point to the xml:id of the stage direction. See . Example:

it is clear that Labervele cannot hear Lemot and Florila’s discussion, and speaks in asides overheard only by the audience until , when he addresses Lemot directly.