nbarrett · 2026-07-11T09:24:41Z

What this adds

Ports the reporting markers from Serenity BDD (Java) so that control-flow and setup activities can opt out of reporting:

IsHidden: an activity's own step is omitted from the report, while the activities it performs are still reported. Check now implements IsHidden (matching Java's ConditionalPerformable), so a conditional no longer narrates its own "checks whether ..." step; only the branch it decides to perform is reported.
IsSilent: an activity's own step, and everything nested under it, are omitted from the report. Useful for setup or teardown activities whose reporting would only add noise. The isSilent() method lets silence be decided dynamically, mirroring Java's CanBeSilent.

PerformActivities honours both markers at the single point where activity domain events are announced, so the behaviour is consistent across every reporter (console, Serenity BDD, and any custom crew).

Motivation

Reports for scenarios that repeatedly dismiss cookie banners, or run instrumented setup/teardown, fill up with steps that add no value. Check in particular narrates a "checks whether ..." line for every conditional, even when the branch does nothing. In Serenity BDD (Java) ConditionalPerformable is IsHidden, so this brings the two products back in line.

Behaviour note

Check is hidden by default in this change, matching Java's ConditionalPerformable. That removes the conditional's own line from existing reports, leaving only the branch it performs. If you would rather keep current Check output and make hiding opt-in, I am happy to adjust so the markers ship without changing Check's default.

Tests

packages/core/spec/screenplay/reporting/reporting-markers.spec.ts: the isHidden / isSilent guards.
packages/core/spec/screenplay/questions/Check.spec.ts: asserts Check is hidden.

Related discussion

Avoiding instrumented calls producing report output during test setup serenity-bdd/serenity-core#669: the Serenity BDD (Java) capability this mirrors.
how to hide steps in the report #161 and Question: On Silent operations like frame switching and waits : Serenity 2.0 #365: earlier discussions about hiding steps and silent operations.
Adding flow control to Serenity-js specs #155 and #159 feat: add ConditionalPerformable to permit flow control #159: the original flow-control / ConditionalPerformable work that became Check.

Ports the reporting markers from Serenity BDD (Java) so that control-flow and setup activities can opt out of reporting. - IsHidden: the activity's own step is omitted from the report, while the activities it performs are still reported. Check now implements IsHidden, matching Java's ConditionalPerformable, so a conditional no longer narrates its own "checks whether ..." step; only the branch it decides to perform is reported. - IsSilent: the activity's own step, and everything nested under it, are omitted from the report. Useful for setup or teardown activities whose reporting would only add noise. PerformActivities honours both markers at the single point where activity domain events are announced, so the behaviour is consistent across every reporter (console, Serenity BDD, and any custom crew). Related tickets: - serenity-bdd/serenity-core#669 (the Serenity BDD Java capability this mirrors) - serenity-js#161 - serenity-js#365 - serenity-js#155 - serenity-js#159

nbarrett force-pushed the feat/hidden-and-silent-activities branch from 1f62bc1 to bb357fe Compare July 11, 2026 09:29

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feat(core): silent and hidden activities for cleaner reports - #3394