Six Characters in Search of an Author: every role by lines, words, and stage time

Luigi Pirandello, translated by Edward Storer. 24 speaking roles, 14,567 words, about 104 minutes of speech.

The Offbook team

Oct 8, 2026

The Father has the most to say in Six Characters in Search of an Author: about 616 lines and 5,453 words, 37.4% of the play. Pirandello’s play begins when six unfinished characters interrupt a theater rehearsal and demand that their story be staged. The Father carries more than a third of the words, The Manager about a quarter, and The Step-Daughter more than a fifth. Together these three hold about 85% of the play, while The Mother speaks less than 4% of it.

Speaking roles: 24
Scenes: 3
Words: 14,567
Speech time: 104 min

Every role, largest first

Role	Lines	Words	Share	Minutes	Scenes
The Father	616	5,453	37.4%	39.0	3
The Manager	459	3,699	25.4%	26.4	3
The Step-Daughter	371	3,247	22.3%	23.2	3
The Son	103	865	5.9%	6.2	3
The Mother	72	568	3.9%	4.1	3
Leading Man	30	186	1.3%	1.3	3
Leading Lady	25	162	1.1%	1.2	3
Prompter	13	93	0.6%	0.7	2
Maddame Pace	8	61	0.4%	0.4	1
Juvenile Lead	10	52	0.4%	0.4	3
Property Man	10	43	0.3%	0.3	2
L’Ingénue	4	26	0.2%	0.2	2
Third Actor	4	26	0.2%	0.2	1
The Actors	2	13	0.1%	0.1	2
Door-Keeper	2	10	0.1%	0.1	1
Leading Actor	1	10	0.1%	0.1	1
An Actor	2	9	0.1%	0.1	1
Other Actors	1	9	0.1%	0.1	1
Fourth Actor	1	8	0.1%	0.1	1
Madame Pace	1	7	0%	0.1	1
Fifth Actor	1	4	0%	0.0	1
Some Actors	1	3	0%	0.0	1
Machinist	1	2	0%	0.0	1
Some Actresses	1	2	0%	0.0	1

Who speaks in which scene

Darker cells mean more words in that scene. Use it to plan rehearsal calls, or to see how long an actor waits between entrances.

Role	Act 1	Act 2	Act 3
The Father
The Manager
The Step-Daughter
The Son
The Mother

The longest speeches

Speech	Scene	Words	Lines
The Step-Daughter: “My little darling! You’re frightened, aren’t y…”	Act 2	288	29
The Father: “For the drama lies all in this—in the conscien…”	Act 1	226	23
The Father: “Was it my fault if that fellow carried you awa…”	Act 1	223	23
The Father: “He disappears soon, you know. And the baby too…”	Act 1	209	21
The Manager: “Ah! Just your part! But, if you will pardon me…”	Act 2	201	21
The Manager: “Well then, we’ll have it in the garden. Everyt…”	Act 3	190	19
The Father: “Infamous! infamous! After she went away, my ho…”	Act 1	182	19
The Step-Daughter: “Worse? Worse? Listen! Stage this drama for us …”	Act 1	175	18
The Father: “I don’t know to what author you may be alludin…”	Act 3	174	18
The Son: “And they want to put it on the stage! If there…”	Act 2	164	17

Small roles that can be doubled

These pairs of small roles never speak in the same scene, so one actor could play both. Check entrances and silent appearances in your script before you cast it this way.

Prompter and Other Actors
Prompter and Some Actors
Maddame Pace and Third Actor
Maddame Pace and Door-Keeper
Maddame Pace and Leading Actor
Maddame Pace and An Actor
Maddame Pace and Other Actors
Maddame Pace and Fourth Actor
Maddame Pace and Fifth Actor
Maddame Pace and Some Actors
Property Man and Other Actors
Property Man and Some Actors

Questions actors ask

Who has the most lines in Six Characters in Search of an Author?

The Father, with about 616 lines and 5,453 words, 37.4% of everything spoken in the play. The Manager is next, with about 459 lines (25.4%).

How long is Six Characters in Search of an Author?

The full text has 14,567 spoken words, about 104 minutes at 140 words a minute before pauses, scene changes, and cuts. Most productions cut the text, so running times vary.

How many speaking roles are in Six Characters in Search of an Author?

24 named roles speak in this edition, across 3 scenes. 19 of them have less than 2% of the words, which is why small parts are often doubled.