William Shakespeare
Titus Andronicus
The full script in Final Draft, Word & PDF
A Roman general's family is destroyed in a cycle of revenge with Tamora, Queen of the Goths, in Shakespeare's bloodiest tragedy.
PDFs Only
$4.99
- ✓ Stageplay PDF (91 pp.)
- ✓ Screenplay PDF (81 pp.)
- ✓ Instant download
Full Package
$12.99
- ✓ Final Draft (.fdx)
- ✓ Microsoft Word + RTF
- ✓ Screenplay + Stageplay PDFs
Need more than a few plays?
All 37 plays in every format cost $99, less than 8 single Full Packages. PDFs only: $55 for all 37.
- Genre
- Tragedy
- Written
- c. 1588–1593
- Setting
- Rome
- Scenes
- 14
- Speaking roles
- 27
- Uncut running time
- ~2h 30m
What happens in Titus Andronicus
Titus Andronicus returns to Rome victorious over the Goths and sacrifices the eldest son of their queen, Tamora. When the new emperor Saturninus takes Tamora as his wife, she begins to plan revenge with her lover Aaron. Her sons Chiron and Demetrius brutally attack Titus's daughter Lavinia, and Titus's sons are framed for a murder they did not commit.
Titus, pushed to the edge of sanity, plans a retaliation that matches the violence done to his family. Aaron's own child becomes a pawn, and Titus's surviving son Lucius raises an army of Goths against Rome. The play reaches its conclusion at a banquet, where the cycle of vengeance runs its course. Lavinia's silence is central to what follows.
See the formatting
The first page of Act I, exactly as it appears in the files you download.
The biggest roles
Share of the play's spoken words, counted from the script. 27 characters speak; 13 of them have under 1% of the text — natural candidates for doubling.
| Role | Share of the text | Speeches |
|---|---|---|
| Titus Andronicus | | 134 |
| Aaron | | 63 |
| Marcus Andronicus | | 66 |
| Tamora | | 54 |
| Saturninus | | 51 |
| Lucius | | 54 |
| Demetrius | | 41 |
| Bassianus | | 14 |
For directors
Titus holds 28.8% of the words, with Aaron (14.2%), Marcus (10.1%), Tamora (10.0%), Saturninus (8.0%) and Lucius (7.4%) in a strong supporting group. Twenty-seven speaking roles in 14 scenes, with 13 under 1%, allows for some doubling. At about 2 hours 30 minutes uncut, the length is manageable, and staged violence is a significant practical consideration for any company. Plan fight and blood work early.
Cutting notes
- The 'fly scene' in 3.2 appears only in the Folio of 1623 and is sometimes cut.
- Staged violence is often reduced or suggested rather than shown, particularly Lavinia's mutilation.
- The comic exchanges between Titus and the Clown carrying pigeons in 4.3 and 4.4 are frequently trimmed.
For teachers
Typical topics include revenge, justice and the state, violence and its representation, and the play's debt to Seneca and Ovid, particularly the story of Philomela. Students often examine Aaron's speeches, Lavinia's mutilation and the way characters respond to it, and the final banquet in 5.3. Scholars generally think Shakespeare wrote the play with George Peele, who is commonly credited with much of Act 1.
Questions
Is this the complete, uncut text of Titus Andronicus?
Yes. Every file contains the full play — 14 scenes and about 19,900 spoken words. Cut it yourself in Word or Final Draft to fit your running time.
What is the difference between the stageplay and screenplay layouts?
The stageplay layout indents stage directions and sets dialogue full-width, like a theatre script. The screenplay layout follows film conventions: scene headings and action flush left, character names centred, dialogue in a narrower column. Both tiers include both layouts as PDFs; the Full Package adds editable Final Draft and Word files of each.
Can I use this Titus Andronicus script for a production or a class?
Yes. Shakespeare's plays are in the public domain, so there are no royalties to pay for staging them. Edit, stage, film or teach with these files.
How do I receive the files?
Right after checkout you land on a private download page, and the link is also emailed to you. It keeps working, so you can re-download any time.
