Grade 6 Quiz on Stage Directions

Read the excerpt carefully before answering the questions. What do you think is happening in the scene?
📖 Excerpt from The Phantom Tollbooth, Act I

(Scene: Milo’s bedroom. The room is dimly lit, and Milo sits on his bed, looking bored.)

NARRATOR: (Entering from stage left, speaking to the audience.) This is Milo. A boy who finds everything in life to be terribly dull.

MILO: (Sighs and looks around.) There’s just nothing to do.

(A mysterious package suddenly appears at the center of the stage, glowing faintly.)

MILO: (Jumps up in surprise, then cautiously moves toward the package.) What’s this?

(He kneels beside the package, examining the label carefully. The light dims slightly as he reads.)

NARRATOR: (Stepping forward, pointing at the package.) A strange delivery has arrived. But where did it come from?

MILO: (Reading aloud.) “For Milo, who has plenty of time.” That’s me!

(He carefully opens the package. A small tollbooth emerges, with bright colors and flashing lights.)

MILO: (Stands up, amazed.) A tollbooth? Inside my room?

(He reaches out and touches the tollbooth, and suddenly, a soft, magical sound fills the stage.)

What do stage directions tell an actor to do?

• How to move, speak, or react

• What to wear

• The meaning of the script

Where do stage directions usually appear in a script?

• In parentheses or italics

• At the bottom of the page

• Inside the dialogue

What does the stage direction '(Sighs and looks around.)' tell us about Milo?

• He is excited.

• He is bored.

• He is scared.

Which of these would NOT be included in stage directions?

• The narrator’s monologue

• Where an actor stands

• Lighting changes

What appears suddenly in Milo’s room in Act I?

• A treasure chest

• A mysterious tollbooth

• A magic book

What is Milo’s reaction when the tollbooth appears?

• He is surprised but curious.

• He ignores it.

• He runs away in fear.

Why might a director choose to dim the lights when Milo reads the tollbooth label?

• To create a mysterious mood

• To signal the end of the play

• To make it hard to see

What does the stage direction '(He kneels beside the package, examining the label carefully.)' tell us about Milo?

• He is cautious and curious.

• He is rushing.

• He is angry.

Which of these best describes Milo’s personality at the start of Act I?

• Bored and uninterested

• Happy and energetic

• Angry and impatient