Traveling in spacetime with Virgil - 2

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B071FB9SGV

ACT 1

First Scene

The Inquisitors of the Holy Inquisition

( Tommaso Cosimo Caccini,   Lodovico delle Colombe, Niccolò Lorini, Claudio Acquaviva, Benedetto Mandina , Jacopo Aldobrandini e don Pedro de Vera; one unnamed secretary and four friars; two soldiers; witnesses:   Scipione Prestinace, Giovanni Mocenigo, Francesco Graziano and friar Celestino from Verona; the Unnamed Witness;  Pope Clemens VIII’s envoy Alberto Tragagliolo; the devils of Loudun: Lucifer, the young Satan, Beelzebub, Leviathan, Elimi, and Astaroth; apart Dante and Virgil).

The lights get on over a square table where twelve people form a  judge board for heretic sinners, proponents of deism, scientific searchers, magician, witches, astrologers   and  fortune-tellers. On the table there are several ponderous books. The secretary has got a plume ink pen and writes down the assize’s record. Above the table, with block characters there a festoon with the write “Pigeon League”. On the left there is a door with a script “Astronomical Observatory”; still on  the left, much closer to the judges table,  another door with the script “Torture Room”; On the right a third door leads outside. At the table some cardinals, friars and a secretary chancellor.

President Tommaso Cosimo  Caccini: Eminent brothers and members of this holy assembly, we are conveyed to debate and sentence against all the enemies of Saint Roman Church: heretic sinners, proponents of deism, scientific searchers, witches, wizards, astrologers   and  magicians. But above all we fear the asserters of reason. They want to destroy the church for they fight against the pope’s authority which, as we all know, in founded on the sacred scriptures, the only dogmatic truth. They are the darkness posing as light, the blasphemy pretending to be science, the falsehood impersonating the truth. In one word they are the antichrist came on earth to destroy the world! (to the soldiers) Let the first witness enter!

The First Guard opens the Astronomical  Observatory Door

Secretary: (screaming out loudly) Scipione Prestinace!

 

Second Scene

(all the above said plus Scipione Prestinace)

Scipione Prestinace: Your Eminences! I’ve seen him! The man from Stilo! He’s building the City of the Sun! (after witnessing, like all witnesses,  he will stay on the back of the room)

Card. Caccini: That’s enough! Call the second witness!!!

Secretary: Giovanni Mocenigo!

 

Third Scene

(all the above said plus Giovanni Mocenigo)

Giovanni Mocenigo (breaks in almost breathless): The friar from Nola is over there! He’s laughing and mocking like a crazy man! Come yourselves and see through the Telescope that I’m telling the truth!!!

Lodovico delle Colombe (to card. Caccini): Shall we go and see?

Card. Caccini (in a angry way): I’ll never look through that devilish tool! Let another witness come!!!

Secretary: Francesco Graziano!

Fourth Scene

(all the above said plus Francesco Graziano)

Francesco Graziano (comes in timidly): Good day your eminences…

Nicolò Lorini: What can you testify of those heretic people?

Francesco Graziano: I’ve heard many of them saying the earth moves on along the sun!

A buzz will rise powerful through the accusers

Claudio Acquaviva: What other proves do we need!!”! They are denying the Holy Books!!!

Card. Caccini: Let’s hear the fourth  witness!

Secretary:I call for  Frà Celestino from Verona

Fifth Scene

(all the above said plus Fra’ Celestino)

Fra Celestino: Your Eminences I have heard people saying the pope is not unfailing and that it cannot  be believed what cannot be demonstrated by means of scientific evidence; and furthermore the Almighty cannot intervene in human affairs for He has created the world and nothing more cares of it!!!

Don Pedro de Vera: That’s unbelievable to be heard!!!

Card. Caccini We have  a last witness, haven’t we?

Secretary: Come the last witness!!!

 

 

 

Sixth Scene

(all the above said plus the Unnamed Witness)

The last witness (is a dark, hooded  men with a sheepskin on his hands) I bring the list of the black men with the books of blasphemy they have written against the unique truth: Galileo Galilei, Hugo Grotius, John Comenius, René Descartes, Francis Bacon, Johannes Keplero, Isaac Newton, John Locke, David Hume, Immanuel Kant…

Benedetto Mandina: I think that’s enough!

Jacopo Aldobrandini: Let’s them burn all!

Card. Caccini (with imperative voice): Silence please!!It’s time to issue our sentence!

 

Seventh Scene

(Enter the Devils of Loudun:  Lucifer, the young Satan,  Beelzebub,  Leviathan, Elimi,
and Astaroth. They wear spears of iron, tightens and tridents; all of them are horribly dressed and infuse great terror in the judges and in all the present people)

Lucifer: I also have to issue a sentence in the name of all the guilty magicians, alchemist and witches you have burn through the time and on revenge of those, much more numerous, you have unjustly condemned.

Card. Caccini (in  a desperate attempt): Vade retro Satana!

Satan (laughing). Hey, don’t misunderstand! Satan is me oh man! I could go back if you held the Holy Cross! But you have dismissed it since longtime!

Beelzebub (with a fierce grin): Enough with the talk! Let’s go to have the great orgy on torture!!

(forced and planted by the arms’ devils all the judges, the guards and the witnesses are pushed into the room of torture; the devils will do that with outrages and obscene phrases against the religious men. After all the men are inside the torture room appear on the stage Dante and Virgil.)