Issue rehearsal rewrites without reprinting every page

Keep page references stable

1. Lock page numbers when you prepare the first rehearsal binders. From then on, a number identifies a place in the script.
2. Treat a primary page and its following A-pages as one group: for example, 2 and 2A.
3. If added text overflows, continue on 2A instead of renumbering page 3.
4. If all text on a primary page is cut, retain an OMITTED placeholder.
5. For every changed group, remove every previously issued page of that group and insert the complete new group.
6. Leave unchanged groups in place. Label replacement pages with the revision and date; mark changed lines.

You can apply these rules with a word processor and careful manual checks. KolyadaPages prepares its own layout; it cannot preserve pagination from an existing Word, Final Draft or PDF script. Start before distributing the first binders.

Work through the Blue revision

The free fictional play has four roles: INSPECTOR, MARA, ODILE and TEO. Its White baseline has 55 paragraphs across 6 pages. A long ODILE monologue occupies page 4.

• Page 1: TEO’s “paid admission” changes to “bought a ticket”.
• Page 2: add one MARA speech and one ODILE speech.
• Page 4: cut ODILE’s harbour-log monologue; the page becomes empty.
• Page 5: cut one INSPECTOR line.
• Page 6: change “brass key” to “iron key” in a stage direction.

Six changes affect five page groups. The replacement packet is 1, 2, 2A, 4 (OMITTED), 5 and 6. Page 3 stays in the binder.

The added speeches overflow onto 2A. The complete script now has 7 pages, including unchanged page 3 and the page-4 placeholder. The replacement packet has 6 pages.

Give every binder a swap checklist

• Group 1: remove 1; insert 1.
• Group 2: remove 2; insert 2 and 2A.
• Group 4: remove 4; insert the page-4 OMITTED placeholder.
• Group 5: remove 5; insert 5.
• Group 6: remove 6; insert 6.

Check off each group after the swap. Keep personal rehearsal notes available while replacing pages: the app does not transfer annotations from an older printed or digital script.

The supplied answer sheet records character-sheet counts of INSPECTOR 1, MARA 1, ODILE 2 and TEO 1, plus one company-wide stage-direction change. Make sure the changed prop instruction reaches everyone who uses it.

Watch for an obsolete A-page

The Pink draft removes the two new page-2 speeches, restores a short ODILE speech on page 4 and adds a repeated TEO line on page 6. An independent paragraph comparison finds four changes.

The included answer sheet describes replacement pages 2, 4 and 6, with the full script back to 6 pages. Group 2 says remove 2 and 2A; insert 2. Swapping only page 2 would leave the obsolete 2A in the binder.

The pack includes actual export files for Blue only. Pink’s page assignments and swap instructions are reported from the answer sheet; this article’s check did not independently render Pink.

Predict the packet before reading the answers

1. Extract the free pack and open the baseline and Blue plain-text drafts side by side.
2. List additions, cuts and changed paragraphs. Predict which page groups need replacement.
3. Compare your list with the change log, swap checklist and six-page PDF in expected/rev01.
4. Read ANSWER-SHEET.txt, then compare Blue with Pink. Check why removing the whole old group matters.

Automatic comparisons can pair text incorrectly; moved text can appear as a cut plus an addition. Review every change before issuing pages. Rehearsal review and distribution remain your responsibility.

Verification for this article independently found 6 Blue changes and 4 Pink changes using paragraph comparisons. It inspected the actual Blue PDF: pages 1, 2, 2A, 4 OMITTED, 5 and 6. The six change-log entries and swap checklist agree.

Check the input and layout limits

KolyadaPages is an offline single-file app. Load a plain-text play, lock its rehearsal edition, load the next draft and review changes side by side. Export replacement pages, a TXT/CSV change log, character sheets and the swap checklist.

• Input is UTF-8 TXT using TITLE, SCENE headings, NAME: speeches and stage directions. Characters must be printable in Windows-1252.
• No DOCX, PDF or Final Draft import, and no reproduction of their page numbers.
• Limits: 100 pages, 30 roles and 10 revisions per locked edition.
• Tested in Google Chrome 152 on Linux. Physical printers and other environments were not verified.

Read the illustrated setup guide for parsing conventions and the commit workflow. Keep copies of each issued revision and distribute replacement pages with their checklist.