The Conclusion of LITTLE MARY. A funny rehearsal memory. I originally had Lulit bring the only "evidence" of the divine birth onstage in a basin (which the audience would never see). The actors quickly realized this would be a horrible moment of theatre which would either provoke laughter or disgust from the audience, not to mention the actors, so it become something she only "talked about".
SCENE EIGHT
The cathedral in Los
Angeles, a few weeks later. Organ music begins, an instrumental prelude to
Easter Mass. Lights fade to spots on Christina and Jose who have entered on
opposite sides of the stage. Jose is dressed for mass in a fine new suit.
Christina is dressed in a beautiful white gown, very pregnant.
We are in the rear of the
cathedral where the celebrants are gathering for the procession. All is still
except for the soothing organ music. The scene must be played with this in
mind. Jose meets Christina center stage. Christina seems distressed.
JOSE
You
are feeling all right?
(she
isn’t)
Si.
JOSE
After
the offering, you will approach the
alter. Cardinal Gian will introduce you to the
congregation
and proclaim the presence of the Lord within you.
The major network cameras will be to your right--
CHRISTINA
Yo
se papa. Nostros lo practicamos
diez
veces.
I know, Father. We rehearsed it
ten
times.
JOSE
Good...
English only, Christina.
Don’t
cast your eyes down, look at
the
people.
(he
demonstrates)
I
notice when you were on Fox news,
you--
Jose illustrates the
trajectory of her eyes downward with his hand. Christina shoots him an annoyed
look. Jose stops illustrating.
JOSE
(cont’d)
Forgive
me, Holy Mother. It is not right that
I
instruct you anymore. But you have always
been
my daughter.
CHRISTINA
Not
always.
Jose touches her hand,
meaning to quiet her.
JOSE
You
were a gift from God, Christina.
CHRISTINA
Was
I?
Tivoli enters.
TIVOLI
Alleluia,
He has risen.
CHRISTINA
Good
morning, Peter.
TIVOLI
(pause)
You
don’t have to go through with this.
Jose nods offstage, as if
toward an admiring crowd.
JOSE
The
children want to meet you,
Christina. Go to them.
Christina goes. Tivoli
steps up beside Jose.
TIVOLI
Overpowering,
and yet euphoric...
Frankincense.
JOSE
Yes.
TIVOLI
Cardinal
Gian has saved the lives of millions,
you
know. The number of starving
he
has seen fed. The number of
persecuted--...
He is destined to be
beatified
and canonized.
JOSE
He
is truly a great man of God.
TIVOLI
All
of that goes on the line today.
JOSE
I
am sorry you cannot find the faith
to
embrace the miracle.
TIVOLI
The
miracle here is the irony that
you’re
actually profiting from this act.
JOSE
This
act?
(beat)
What
kind of father--
TIVOLI
A
father driving a new SUV, making
movie
deals on his cell phone.
JOSE
Si.
This is America.
TIVOLI
My
impression’s been that you despise America.
JOSE
Americans.
I am enjoying a prosperity
they
have known for decades.
Now,
I am the pig.
TIVOLI
How
quickly you’ve learned the language.
JOSE
For
you, I would not learn it.
But for the future of my family—
TIVOLI
Your family?
JOSE
Yes. For my family, I will do anything.
Jose discreetly brings
something to his mouth, and tears off part of it with his teeth.
TIVOLI
Are
you eating?
JOSE
Big
Mac. I am hungry much lately.
(re:
Tivoli’s scowl)
You
don’t need that look.
I
know you hate me.
TIVOLI
For
fifteen years, you have taken
our
charity, while speaking against our
ideals
and everything we’re trying to achieve.
JOSE
Why
haven’t you thrown me out?
TIVOLI
We
help the needy, Jose. Morally, you qualify.
JOSE
Morally,
you preach love to the immigrant
while
trying to reduce his numbers.
TIVOLI
I
preach against large families and
genocide
by propagation. Open immigration
encourages
that.
JOSE
You
want to keep the status quo. Status
quo
is no good for us. We are poor and minority.
We
want to be rich and majority.
TIVOLI
We
are all immigrants in this country.
JOSE
Then
it’s only me you are against?
TIVOLI
I
know you’re not the man you pretend to be.
JOSE
Ah!
Then we are both the same. No wonder we
hate
each other.
TIVOLI
Christina
started running away
from
you for some reason.
JOSE
Not
away from me. To the chapel.
TIVOLI
You’re
the only man who would have
had
the opportunity--
JOSE
You
were there.
TIVOLI
(beat)
If
I was not a priest...
JOSE
That
day will come, I think.
Jose sneaks another bite
of his Big Mac. Christina reenters, “T.V.” lights from offstage beaming in on
her. She falters and Jose goes to her.
Savici enters from the opposite
side. He is not in his vestments for mass and carries a paper bag.
SAVICI
Alleluia!
He has risen.
TIVOLI
Alleluia!
He has risen.
What’s
in the bag?
SAVICI
Beef
jerky. My attendants in Rome love it!
TIVOLI
(nodding
at Savici’s clothes)
We’ll
be processing any minute.
SAVICI
I
observed the early mass at another
church.
The Abbott there was clearly
ecstatic.
TIVOLI
You
won’t be here for the ceremony?
SAVICI
I
wish I could. But I am visiting the missions
along
the Camino Real.
TIVOLI
We’re
getting international television coverage.
SAVICI
Ah!
Not even I can unring a bell.
TIVOLI
We
owe it to Victorio Cardinal Gian to be here.
SAVICI
Events
in my honor have been arranged.
It
is the request of His Holiness, in his stead.
(a
small shrug)
Always
working.
(beat)
The issue has become… divisive. Tread
carefully, Bishop Tivoli. Some in the
Curia feel you are… needed. And please,
extend my regrets to the Cardinali.
GIAN’S
VOICE (offstage)
Alleluia!
He has risen.
SAVICI
Pax
vobiscum. Sic sit.
Savici hurries and leaves
before Gian appears. Christina returns with Lulit, as Gian enters, looking
radiant. It is not just his imposing vestments, Gian’s face seems aglow.
GIAN
Alleluia!
He has risen, Peter.
Alleluia!
He has risen, my children.
Christina...
Gian cups Christina’s
hands in his. The organist begins to play “Jesus Christ Has Risen Today”.
GIAN
Let
us all be joyful.
CHRISTINA
Yes,
your Eminence.
GIAN
Praise
God.... Praise God.
Gian launches into the
hymn, the other singing more quietly along with him.
GIAN
“Christ,
the Lord, is risen today!
ALL
Alleluia!
Sons
of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise
your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing,
ye heavens, and earth, reply, Alleluia!
Now Jose processes,
walking out through the audience or exiting.
ALL
Love's
redeeming work is done, Alleluia!
Fought
the fight, the battle won, Alleluia!
Lulit processes.
Lo!
the Sun's eclipse is over, Alleluia!
Lo!
He sets in blood no more, Alleluia!
Gian nods gently to
Christina to go.
Vain
the stone, the watch, the seal, Alleluia!
Christ
hath burst the gates of hell, Alleluia!
Gian touches Tivoli warmly
on the shoulder as he processes past him, and then follows up behind.
ALL
(with Gian’s voice rising above them)
Death
in vain forbids His rise, Alleluia!
Christ
hath opened Paradise, Alleluia!
ACT
II
SCENE
ONE
The Chapel of St. Mary,
the Mission in the Desert, three months later. As lights rise, we hear a Gospel
choir singing—serenading Little Mary from outside. Christina is propped up on
the bench, leaning her back against the wall, hugely pregnant and looking very
pale, with dark circles under her eyes.
Tivoli and Lulit sort
through a box of “filed” mail beside him.
LULIT
From
the Christian Community Network?
(Christina
frowns)
Office
of the Prime Minister of Israel?
TIVOLI
Probably
not a supporter.
LULIT
Archbishop
of Sao Paolo.
CHRISTINA
(nods, taking it)
He’s nice.
LULIT
Gerber’s Baby Food.
CHRISTINA
Endorsements
have to go through Papa.
TIVOLI
www.littlemary.info. They’ll sell you
their web
address
for 1.2 million dollars.
Christina shakes her head.
The Gospel song ends.
CHRISTINA
They
sing so great. Who are they?
TIVOLI
A
Gospel choir from Mississippi.
They
saw you on one of the talk shows.
LULIT
This is fan mail. These are pleas for
your
divine intervention… I threw away the
bad
ones….
CHRISTINA
Thank
you, Mother Lulit.
(puts aside the letter she’s reading, rubs her
eyes)
Can I read them later?
Lulit touches Christina’s
hand, comfortingly.
LULIT
Are
you tired from your traveling?
CHRISTINA
I
guess so…
(closes
her eyes)
We
listened to their hearts
this
morning. Like seven little jackhammers.
LULIT
Not long now, Christina.
Christina manages a smile.
Lulit takes the box of letters and leaves.
TIVOLI
Oh.
Some drawings of you came from an orphanage
in
Venezuela.
CHRISTINA
Yes,
please.
TIVOLI
Good,
I’ll get them.
(rises)
Tina,
you haven’t been to confession in months.
Is
there anything—
CHRISTINA
I’m
worried about you, Peter.
TIVOLI
You’re
worried about me?
CHRISTINA
The
light has gone out of your face.
TIVOLI
You
can understand that, I think.
Given
everything that’s going on.
CHRISTINA
Why
won’t you believe me?
TIVOLI
(pause)
I
believe you, Christina. I do.
I
believe you.
CHRISTINA
(pause)
But
you don’t believe me.
TIVOLI
No.
But it was easy to say and it
made
me feel good. Made me feel
like
I wasn’t letting you and God down.
Made
me feel important and accepted.
It
just wasn’t true.
CHRISTINA
You
think that’s what other people
are
doing?
TIVOLI
I
can’t pretend, Christina.
CHRISTINA
Why would you have to pretend? You believe
in
God, you taught me to believe in Him.
TIVOLI
Of
course. But I do not see God here.
I
have sifted through so many things in my life, Christina.
And
one thing I have come to believe is that
God chooses not to act on Earth. We can carry His Spirit
inside us, but we are alone here
to make our own choices and mistakes.
That’s why it’s so important what we do here.
CHRISTINA
Maybe God knows we’ve made too many mistakes.
That we need His help.
TIVOLI
Don’t you think He would have helped sooner?
(beat)
And… if God could intervene down here,
don’t you think He would have… stopped this
from being done to you?
Christina gives him a
look.
CHRISTINA
(beat)
Then I’m sorry, Bishop Tivoli. There
is nothing more we can do for each other.
TIVOLI
How
sad that is.
Gian enters with the stroller,
followed by Lulit.
GIAN
“A
wandering minstrel, I,
A
thing of threads and patches...”
As Gian pivots the
stroller toward the audience, we see he is toting gallon water bottles-- now
empty. He seems more joyous then even before, and sweats profusely, seen on his
face and through his every day clergyman clothing.
GIAN
Christina!
Peter!
I
have been delivering water to the pilgrims
since
sunrise.
Gian takes off his head
phones, placing the walkman in a pocket of the stroller. He is gauging
Christina’s state of being as he speaks.
GIAN
A
woman knew I liked
Gilbert
and Sullivan-- from the Internet!
Ah,
what an age! I feel so
good. So good to be of service to people--
strangers--
again. But the heat!
TIVOLI
It’s
a little hotter every summer, it seems.
GIAN
Almost
over now. What a blessing are the seasons!
CHRISTINA
How
many are out there?
GIAN
Spread
further than I can walk and
as
far as I can see.
Christina moves to the
front of the stage and steps up on a box. As she “appears” in the window, a
cacaphony of cheers erupt and grow steadily louder until it is deafening. For
Christina, is like beginning blown back by a hot wind. She wobbles slightly, then steps down and out
of the window. The deafening roar slowly fades. Gian helps her to a bench where
she sits.
GIAN
As
many as I’ve witnessed
in
St. Peter’s Square to be blessed
by
His Holiness.
My
heart is full like
the
day I first accepted Christ
as
my Savior. After all this time,
imagine!
TIVOLI
I’m
happy for you, Papa.
GIAN
What’s
happened to your faith, Peter?
TIVOLI
What’s happened to my faith?
LULIT
Proof
of God is all around you.
Peter, you once led me to reject my
truth to embrace a new belief.
TIVOLI
I
can’t.
GIAN
Oh,
Peter! Ever since you left Africa--…
Have you become such an American?
(no
answer/Gian shakes his head)
I
requested Rome for you, but His Holiness believed
you
were needed in America.
TIVOLI
I
told His Holiness I wanted it.
GIAN
America?
TIVOLI
America
is the center of the world now, Papa.
Not
Rome. I have a better chance of helping
the
people of Africa if I’m in Los Angeles.
They react to the curious
sound of a helicopter landing outside.
GIAN
You
came to Los Angeles for influence and power.
Worldly interests, Peter.
TIVOLI
We
live in the world, Papa. It is all we have
in
this life.
(beat)
I’ll get the drawings.
Tivoli exits.
LULIT
Excuse
me, Your Eminence.
Lulit follows Tivoli off.
Gian now focuses on Christina.
GIAN
(smiles)
I
leave tomorrow for Washington.
(she
nods)
The
President and I will meet.
I
will speak at a large gathering
about
the wonder that has occurred.
(beat)
You
look unwell.
CHRISTINA
I’m
sorry, you Eminence.
GIAN
Sorry?
CHRISTINA
I’ve
been feeling kind of miserable…
GIAN
So many babies in your little body. That’s all.
Christina nods.
CHRISTINA
When
you found Bishop Tivoli
abandoned
in the fountain, did you
think
it was odd?
GIAN
Yes, it was. Why do you ask?
CHRISTINA
(a
difficult confession)
It
happened to me, too.
GIAN
To
you?
CHRISTINA
(pause)
My
father found me abandoned in the strawberry
field that he was tending, just a little ways from
this chapel.
GIAN
You
are not... you were not born Jose’s child?
CHRISTINA
Families
came and went from here a lot
back
then he says. No one knew whose I was.
GIAN
Found
as Peter was found. Praise God.
Why
have you not told anyone this?
CHRISTINA
It
didn’t seem to matter before.
Now
my father thinks his enemies
will try to use it against us.
GIAN
I
see.
CHRISTINA
Please
don’t tell anyone, Your Eminence.
GIAN
Why do you tell me?
CHRISTINA
(a
wave of anxiety)
I
don’t know where I came from.
You
told me I might be hearing
the
voice of the Devil.
GIAN
No!...
No, I am certain you are not.
CHRISTINA
I’m
sorry, Your Eminence. I just haven’t
been sleeping. I lie down every night, but I don’t
sleep.
GIAN
How
long have you not been sleeping?
CHRISTINA
Don’t
get mad…. Six weeks.
GIAN
Impossible.
CHRISTINA
I
know. You die without sleep. You die if you don’t eat.
I
only eat now because everyone loses it if I don’t.
I
don’t think I can die, your Eminence.
Not
with them in me.
GIAN
You
must do everything possible to
insure
their health. This means
eating
and sleeping.
CHRISTINA
They
talk to me when I sleep, your Eminence.
GIAN
What
do they say?
CHRISTINA
I
don’t know, it’s in foreign languages I
don’t
understand… But I think they’re warnings.
Christina’s face screws
up, she touches her stomach.
GIAN
What’s
wrong?
CHRISTINA
They’re
kicking.
Gian’s eyes suddenly lock
on her belly.
GIAN
May
I... Pardon me... May I... listen?
Christina nods, then becomes
puzzled again.
CHRISTINA
Listen?
Gian nods. Christina nods again. He kneels down
and, very gently and politely puts his ear to her belly, Gian’s eyes widen, and
widen again.
Tivoli enters carrying a
stack of crayon drawings. Gian gasps and recoils.
CHRISTINA
Your
Eminence?
TIVOLI
Papa?
Tivoli puts down the
drawings. Gian tries to rise, but stumbles, disoriented. Tivoli catches him and
moves him to a bench.
TIVOLI
What
are you doing?
GIAN
Peter,
I...
TIVOLI
Calm
down, Papa. Take some breaths.
You
shouldn’t be carrying water
to
them in this heat--
GIAN
Peter!
Listen.
Gian refers to Christina’s
belly. She covers her belly defensively.
TIVOLI
Listen
to what?
GIAN
Listen!
CHRISTINA
Why?
GIAN
(instructing
Christina to allow it)
Please.
Tivoli awkwardly puts his
ear to her belly, waits, listening hard. After a moment, he lifts his head.
GIAN
What?…
What did you hear?
TIVOLI
Nothing.
CHRISTINA
(to
Gian)
You
heard them, Your Eminence?
What did they say?
GIAN
You
heard nothing, Peter?
Tivoli, to Christina’s
surprise puts his ear to her belly again. He seems desperate to hear, but
again…
TIVOLI
Nothing.
CHRISTINA
What
did they say, Your Eminence?
GIAN
“Stop
the flood”.
CHRISTINA
The
flood?
GIAN
Oh,
dear Lord…
Oh,
Pietro. Dear son…. It’s not what I wanted to hear...
but it is the same voice… the same presence…
(short
of breath again)
So
much to lay at my feet.
TIVOLI
Papa…
If you heard the babies speaking--… I know
it’s
a hard idea to accept, you’ve always been so vital—
GIAN
Do
I seem feebleminded to you? In any way
different
from the man you have always known?
(Tivoli
doesn’t answer)
Then
why do you doubt me?
TIVOLI
I
heard no voices, I heard nothing.
CHRISTINA
Maybe your faith is too weak.
TIVOLI
You are fifteen, Christina—
CHRISTINA
So was St. Mary.
TIVOLI
(beat)
Maybe you are God’s chosen. Or maybe your
are a teenager in love with a fantasy.
But you have no business questioning my faith.
GIAN
I know it’s hard to believe—
TIVOLI
Would you believe it, Papa? If I was the one--!
GIAN
Yes, I would have faith.
(catches his breath)
It is a mystery. A mystery.
But I cannot deny it.
I now know “what must be done”.
“Stop
the flood of humanity…”
TIVOLI
What?
GIAN
We must stop the flood of humanity.
TIVOLI
That’s what the voices said?
GIAN
Yes. God, give me the strength
to do Thy
bidding.
(beat)
Those reports you gave me, Peter, I threw them away.
I will need them again. I leave for Washington
tomorrow.
TIVOLI
What is happening here? I don’t believe it!
CHRISTINA
I
hear them too, Peter.
TIVOLI
You think this will change my mind?
CHRISTINA
What?
TIVOLI
Telling me that your mystical voices are preaching
exactly what I’ve—
GIAN
This has nothing to do with you!
Nothing less than God’s own command
would compel me--
Your work has God’s blessing. Whether you
believe it or not has no bearing—
TIVOLI
I believe stopping the flood of humanity
is the will of God. Visions and voice,
notwithstanding. I have believed it
most of my adult life. But
I cannot accept what you’re claiming—
GIAN
Then just believe that
we believe to and help us! If for no other reason,
then to further your own cause.
Pause, Tivoli turns and
paces away.
GIAN
Peter?
TIVOLI
I’m
thinking.
(pause)
Papa, the Vatican is already questioning
whether you are fit to lead the church--
GIAN
I cannot not let such worldly things concern me.
If you will not advise me—
TIVOLI
I will advise you. I am advising you now. If you
try to further my cause by claiming
Divine guidance from her unborn—
I’m sorry, Christina-- I will have to deny it.
GIAN
But it’s the truth.
TIVOLI
You
must promise, Papa, you won’t tell them
about the babies. That you are following their
voices.
GIAN
We should deceive them?
CHRISTINA
Just because you don’t believe us, Peter--
TIVOLI
No one will believe you! Do you want
God’s command to have any effect?
GIAN
I see.
(pause)
I will do as you suggest, Peter. But I will bring
His message to the flock.
TIVOLI
What will you tell them?
GIAN
(pause)
That
the will of God has changed.
Lights fade out.
Scene Two
Gian moves into a
spotlight at a podium/alter. Gian
is addressing an assembly in Washington, D.C..
GIAN
The
will of God has changed. How strange it is,
even
to say it. But I know deep in my soul
that
it’s true. I ask you, Mr. President, and
all
of you assembled here, to help me
begin
the new work. I am calling upon
the
Roman Catholic Church and all the nations
of
the world to observe one year of abstinence.
The room erupts in loud
muttering, and lights fade out on Gian and he continues over the din.
GIAN
(continued)
It
is with God’s blessing! We should begin
offering economic incentives for small
families, and penalties for large ones.
If that fails, imposed fertility limits for
everyone,
rich or poor!
(another
big reaction from the crowd)
It is with God’s blessing! It is with God’s
blessing!
VOICE
The
Vatican voiced its concern over
the
speech made by their most senior
Cardinal--
VOICE
Nigeria
demanded--
VOICE
India
vowed--
VOICE
The
President expressed--
VOICE
Israel
denounced--
VOICE
Doctors
insist--
VOICE
Geneticists
research--
VOICE
But
detectives can’t disprove--
VOICE
--as
a virtual “city of believers”
has
sprung up around the
Mission
in the Desert--
SCENE
THREE
The Chapel, a few days
later, dusk outside. Lulit sits on a bench, knitting baby booties, A Gospel
choir can be heard outside singing a hymn. Gian is “nesting”, making the space
comfortable. The space has become somewhat cluttered with gifts, “Christian”,
“Catholic” and “baby” in theme.
Christina sits on the
other side of the statue, leaning against it, too pregnant to kneel. She may be
asleep, although her eyes are partially opened. After a pause, her mouth starts to move, speaking in Latin.
Lulit and Gian pause and listen.
CHRISTINA
Centum
cinquantis annis silvae in peninculum
Vertent…
Valete, silvaee
GIAN
It’s
Latin this time...“150 years... Temperate
forests
turning to scrub brush...”.
Christina trails off and
is quiet again. Tivoli enters, his clothing covered in dust. He wears the
turban of a nomad, with a swath of cloth across his nose and mouth.
TIVOLI
The
Cardinal Secretary’s helicopter just landed.
Tivoli looks at the scene,
starts to unravel and remove his turban.
GIAN
Ah.
Good… Is something else troubling you?
TIVOLI
That’s
the end of it. We’ve tried sinking three
new
wells this week. Nothing. The pilgrims
have
drained the water table completely.
Our
retention pond is a cesspool.
Our
fallow fields are garbage dumps.
They’ve
eaten all the fruiting crops,
and
trampled the crops that weren’t.
They
seem to be doing everything wicked
except
fornicating.
GIAN/LULIT
Peter/Shh!
They look at Christina who
seems oblivious.
CHRISTINA
Oowayn
il thelij you ruddee il naharrat al rabeea’?
GIAN
(listens
again)
Not
Latin now...
LULIT
Arabic...
about snow... where is the snow to
feed the spring rivers....?
TIVOLI
I’m
taking her back to the doctor.
GIAN
The doctor has said her health is fine.
TIVOLI
You think this is “fine”?
LULIT
She is in Communion with God.
GIAN
All is well, Peter.
TIVOLI
No. No, all is not well. My
best
friends are lost to me. My prize pupil,
my
hope for the future, is pregnant and—
I
don’t know what now, catatonic.
There are
almost
a million people camped in my back yard
wiping
out everything I have worked for for fifteen years.
GIAN
Peter--
TIVOLI
The
Mission is dead, Papa.
The only choice now is to migrate.
GIAN
You
can understand why they want to be here.
TIVOLI
Yes!
To show each other how devout they are!
LULIT
We have paid a price, Peter. But our message has
reached
the world. Three more Dioceses contacted us
today, wanting start their own collectives. Our
work will go on.
Savici has entered behind them, unnoticed.
SAVICI
Will
wonders never cease.
GIAN
Cardinal
Savici. Welcome.
TIVOLI
You
chartered a helicopter?
SAVICI
The
traffic dictates. You have grown
most
especially popular.
(re:
Christina)
Is
she sleeping?
LULIT
She
is in trance.
SAVICI
Trance?
Christina begins
muttering.
CHRISTINA
In vijftig jaar, de dalingen van de
graangewassenproductie achter
de vraag permanent.
SAVICI
And
now she is speaking in tongues?
GIAN
(listens)
Dutch.
CHRISTINA
De vlotter van kwallen door vensters van condominium
Florida koraalertsaders.
SAVICI
I
hear “Florida”.
GIAN
“Condominium
coral reefs.”
Her muttering stops.
SAVICI
She
is very creative.... Wake her up.
LULIT
She
cannot be.
SAVICI
Perhaps
I could try.
Gian steps in, going to
Christina and with Lulit’s help, gently raises her to her feet. Now she is on
her feet in the same unresponsive state. She begins walking slowly.
SAVICI
I
am amazed, Bishop Tivoli. Amazed what is allowed
to
go on. Amazed, Cardinal Gian, by you.
GIAN
Did
His Holiness not ask me, through you, to stay here
and
advise the girl?
Savici pulls out his
notes.
SAVICI
You
told the President of the United States
to
begin rationing and making more taxes on
gasoline
and fresh water.
GIAN
Yes.
SAVICI
Our
agenda in Washington was to
voice
support for the ban on homosexual
marriage...
You asked the members of the
World
Trade Organization to “abandon
their
unholy quest to create an open world market.”
GIAN
Yes.
SAVICI
Our
agenda was to entreat Washington
to
reconsider prayer in schools.
GIAN
I
didn’t have time.
SAVICI.
You
have called for a year of abstinence, and
despite
our communications, have
not
retracted it.
GIAN
Abstinence
is not a sin.
SAVICI
Global
abstinence.
GIAN
It
is a first step.
SAVICI
It
is-- pardon, your Eminence-- outrageous.
As
Pope Paul instructed-- “We must
strive
to multiply bread so that it suffices
for
the table of mankind, and not rather favor
the
artificial control of birth—
SAVICI TIVOLI
In order to diminish the number We
know the quote.
of guests at the banquet
of life.”
GIAN
I
have not yet condoned contraception.
TIVOLI
So
take comfort, Cardinal-Secretary.
SAVICI
I
take none.
TIVOLI
What’s
wrong, are our numbers down?
SAVICI
Quite
to the contrary. The masses seem easily led.
We
all know of Cardinal Gian’s popularity.
TIVOLI
(encouraged)
He
is having some effect?
SAVICI
However,
should a Pope ever condone contraception,
he
will admit Papal error at the gravest level.
He
will suggest that the Anglican Church was
more
inspired than Romanism,
and
that the thousands upon thousands
of
Catholics damned for their acts of
intrinsic
evil were guilty of no sin at all.
GIAN
The
will of God has changed..
SAVICI
You
are suggesting, under such circumstances,
you
might condone such a thing.
GIAN
If
the call for abstinence goes unheeded, I will
take
whatever actions are necessary to
bring
Our Flock to follow God’s decree.
SAVICI
What
decree do you refer to?
I
know of no such Gospel or doctrine
in
the Bible.
GIAN
It
is the New Gospel.
SAVICI
It
bears a strong resemblance to
the
doctrine-- the ravings--
of
our friend, Bishop Tivoli.
TIVOLI
I’m
sure you imagine that I’ve hypnotized everyone.
SAVICI
We
examined the possibility.
GIAN
I
take full responsibility for my actions.
SAVICI
To
what purpose, Victorio?
What
benefit can this all be to you?
Christina has made her way
up on the box by the window. She is seen by the crowd which erupts in another
cacophonous roar, startling Savici. Christina seems hardly to notice the noise.
SAVICI
Humph.
(pause)
You
have been called back to Rome, Cardinal Gian.
Christina turns and slowly
comes down the steps again.
GIAN
The
birth is expected any day.
SAVICI
Immediately.
I will conduct matters here.
GIAN
These
are the instructions of His Holiness?
SAVICI
His
Holiness is beyond giving instruction.
Only
our prayers will bring him through
another
week.
(says
a brief prayer in Latin)
Domine,
dones eo sanitatem.
GIAN
Surely
we will not go into Conclave
until...
SAVICI
You
are not being called to Rome to go
into
Conclave. I regret it is the decision of the
Curia
that you be censured.
LULIT
No,
you mustn’t!
Christina seems to awaken.
She stares at them, listening.
SAVICI
We
cannot allow you to subvert
this
event to your own ends.
LULIT
You
are blind.
SAVICI
Many
changes are coming, Mother Superior.
Many.
TIVOLI
This
is my mission.
SAVICI
No,
it is our mission, and it is becoming a dangerous
liability.
The girl will be taken by
helicopter
to a Catholic hospital
in
the San Fernando Valley.
LULIT
You
cannot do that!
GIAN
Censure
me, Augustine, but I will not leave her
children
in your hands.
SAVICI
You
will do as I instruct.
You
will be removed, the girl will come under
my
care, and this mission will be sold.
TIVOLI
You
don’t have the power--!
SAVICI
(ferociously)
I
DO!.... And you will obey me.
GIAN
Forgive
them, for they know not what—
Christina suddenly
“awakens”.
CHRISTINA
He’s gone… He’s left us, Peter….
I’m very tired. I need to eat.
The lights suddenly go
out.
GIAN
Christina?...
(no
answer)
Christina?!
SCENE
FOUR
Several hours later.
Tivoli is alone in the candle lit chapel, seated on a bench before the statue,
drinking wine from a sacramental chalice.
Jose enters. He has gained
a tremendous amount of weight, his belly protrudes from his expensive, but now
too small suit. His hair is frosted blonde and his skin is much lighter. He has
gold and jeweled rings on most every finger. He is holding a bag filled with
seven small, pristinely wrapped gifts in one hand, and a huge half eaten turkey
wing in the other. His accent has all but disappeared.
JOSE
Where
is my daughter?
Tivoli stands and turns.
TIVOLI
(pause)
Who
are you?!
JOSE
Are
you drunk, Your Eminence?
TIVOLI
(in
disbelief)
Jose?
JOSE
The
mission is dark. Another blackout?
TIVOLI
What’s
happened to you?
JOSE
Huh?
I added blonde highlights. Where is my daughter?
TIVOLI
You
mean Christina? I’ve lost her.
(beat)
What
are you eating?
JOSE
Smoked
turkey leg. They are selling them outside
on
the midway. It’s lucky they have their own generators.
Funnel
cakes, cheese steaks,
sausage
and peppers-- It was a filling walk from
the
north parking lot.
Jose puts his bag of gifts
on Christina’s bed.
TIVOLI
Are
you insane?
JOSE
No,
I’m just hungry. I’ve been hungry since...
since
I signed my citizenship
papers.
No matter how much I eat,
or
what.
We hear shouts from
outside.
JOSE
It’s
reminding me of Mexico City out there.
Over
a million now, living
in
tents and lean-to’s, no running water.
Dysentery
and cholera.
Now we hear the sounds of
violence: screams, blows, cries, bottles smashing.
TIVOLI
We
need rain.
JOSE
Heavy
rain. Light rain is bad. Just aggravates them.
Heavy
rain, their aggravation will give way
to
despair and they’ll shut up.
We hear two gunshots.
JOSE
(cont’d)
(with
no trace of an accent)
Aey-yi-yi. If only they could live lives of quiet
desperation.
TIVOLI
You
couldn’t speak English six months
ago.
How is this possible?
JOSE
All
part of the miracle. With God’s blessing, my ministry
has
already gone international over night.
TIVOLI
Your
ministry?
JOSE
The
Ministry of Little Mary. We are worldwide.
Already,
our reach and influence has
dwarved
anything you and your mission have
ever
achieved.
TIVOLI
I
have trouble envying you.
JOSE
We
offer instant hope and immediate
salvation.
What did you offer?
TIVOLI
Truth.
JOSE
Reason
and statistics.
TIVOLI
Challenge
and sacrifice.
JOSE
There
is enough challenge and sacrifice
in
living day to day. Minute to minute.
You
expected too much of people.
Our
lives are too precious to us. Our families, our
fortunes,
our things-- too precious to sacrifice for
30
billion strangers a hundred years from now.
TIVIOLI
How
can you be proud of all this?
JOSE
(a
moment of fear and doubt)
Because
I cannot stop it.
Jose shakes off his
anxiety, finding solace in his shopping bag. He sets one little package on
Christina’s pillow.
TIVOLI
She
doesn’t need more gifts.
JOSE
Shh.
It’s a surprise. Keys to her new Hummer.
She
is sixteen next month. I didn’t
want
her brothers and sisters to be jealous,
so
I bought one for each of them.
TIVOLI
Have
you learned the phrase “counting your chickens...”
JOSE
No
eggs will be left for those
who
wait til they’ve hatched.
TIVOLI
(pause)
Are
you the Devil?
I
don’t think so, I am a man
taking
advantage of his opportunities....
as
you are. Allowing Cardinal Gian
to
sacrifice himself to do your dirty work.
TIVOLI
Dirty
work? It could be the best thing he
does for
mankind in his illustrious life.
My only regret
is that he’s following visions.
Tivoli stares at the
statue.
JOSE
You
sound dismissive. Visions are Biblical.
TIVOLI
Yes,
I know.
JOSE
If
not for Constantine’s vision, where would we
be?
He dreams of Peter and Paul,
who
tell him to stop worshiping pagan idols
and
turn his faith to the one true Christian God.
TIVOLI
That’s
the church’s version. Other versions say
that Constantine butchered countless thousands.
He
murdered his own wife, son and
eleven-year-old
nephew.
JOSE
God
is forgiving.
TIVOLI
It
was only when Constantine was too old and sick to
offend
the Christian God that he allowed
himself
to be baptized.
JOSE
To
find salvation.
TIVOLI
To
play it safe. The record of Constantine’s
famous “dream” was actually
a
forged fabrication written by Pope Stephen III
hundreds
of years later. He used it
to
gain power superior to any secular
king.
That’s the other version.
JOSE
And
you call yourself a man of God.
TIVOLI
I
am. But you’re speaking of religion.
And
religion is history.
JOSE
You
should never have become a priest.
TIVOLI
It’s
a little too late for that.
Sirens are heard outside,
followed by more screams.
JOSE
Eh! Who wants to listen to this?
You can be sure conditions will improve after Phase
I
is
completed.
TIVOLI
What
are you talking about?
JOSE
I’ve
bought the place. Or, I should
say,
the Ministry of Little Mary has acquired it
from the Catholic Church.
TIVOLI
They sold it to you?
JOSE
We’ll break ground immediately after the birth.
Made a sweet deal. Water and power will be brought
to us at government expense.
Tear down the windmills and the solar panels--
Make room for “New Jerusalem”. What do you think?
(Tivoli’s
look tells him, Jose grins)
Where
is Christina?
TIVOLI
Missing.
JOSE
Missing?
TIVOLI
She’s
been missing for seven hours.
Jose yanks Tivoli by his
collar.
JOSE
What
have you done!
GIAN
She
is found.
Gian enters, helping Christina,
who is wrapped in a sheet, to walk to the rocking chair.
CHRISTINA
Hello, Papa.
TIVOLI
What
happened?
JOSE
Are
you all right?
CHRISTINA
Yes.
TIVOLI
Where
did you go, Christina?
CHRISTINA
I
don’t know. Outside.
GIAN
I
found her hidden in the
strawberry field.
Tivoli looks at her stomach, which
has receded tremendously.
TIVOLI
Christina…. You’re--… Did it happen?
CHRISTINA
What?
TIVOLI
The babies. Where are they?
CHRISTINA
The babies?… The babies are risen.
GIAN
Risen?
CHRISTINA
I think so.
I remember hearing you all arguing…
Then I felt lighter,like I was being lifted--
SAVICI
No
more stories, little girl.
We
need an objective description.
TIVOLI
Where are the babies?
Lulit enters with a bloody rag.
JOSE
Some were lost?
LULIT
There
were no babies.
SAVICI
Tell them.
LULIT
I
searched the field. All I found is the afterbirth
with seven umbilical cords
attached.
GIAN
Dear
Lord… How your flock will weep.
SAVICI
(Savici
looks into the bowl, winces in disgust)
Who
witnessed this?
LULIT
No
one. Cardinal Gian and I found her
alone
and asleep.
SAVICI
Ah.
JOSE
¿Christina, qué usted ha hecho? ¿Qué usted ha
hecho a nosotros?
Christina,
what have you done? What have
you
done to us?
CHRISTINA
I
did nothing, Papa!
Jose backs away from her and runs
out of the room.
SAVICI
You
must now tell us who
was
involved and where to find the remains.
LULIT
There
were no remains, except what you
see
there.
Lulit refers to the clay bowl.
GIAN
It
is wondrous, still. For it is divine in its making.
SAVICI
It
is nothing to me, but a bloody mess.
CHRISTINA
Have
I done something wrong? Was I unworthy?
GIAN
I don’t know. It may be punishment—
—or a warning.
LULIT
He has sacrificed His own Children.
Why?
CHRISTINA
Was
it part of His plan, Your Eminence?
SAVICI
Whose
plan?
GIAN
Stop the flood.
SAVICI
The flood?
GIAN
God needs us to find our way alone.
LULIT
You are certain?
GIAN
I am certain of nothing. But I have faith.
Faith or proof, we could not have both.
SAVICI
You
are all fine performers.
Perhaps, now Mother Lulit, you will tell
me the facts of this latest miracle-- this
multiple
murder---
GIAN
You
are preposterous, Cardinal Savici.
SAVICI
I find myself quite credible. The church
has been
misled by an
elaborate scheme.
GIAN
You
profess to understand the mystery
of
God’s work here?
SAVICI
Mystery?
It is what I have suspected all
along.
A fraud. The guilty ones knew
their charade would be uncovered,
so they destroyed the evidence.
LULIT
The evidence?! How dare you accuse us!
Savici turns to Tivoli.
SAVICI
What do you say, Bishop Tivoli. How do you explain
it?
TIVOLI
It’s a
tragedy.
SAVICI
Do you believe this is the work of God?
TIVOLI
I can’t explain it.
SAVICI
You have denied the presence of God in
this matter all along.
TIVOLI
I have.
SAVICI
Wisdom.
Even though to have professed belief
would
have helped further your cause.
That
displays character.
TIVOLI
Why
flatter me, Augustine Cardinal
Machiavelli?
SAVICI
You
believe I am not a supporter?
I
restored you.
TIVOLI
You
restored me to keep my
mouth
shut.
SAVICI
Ohh,
that would be quite a gift
for
such a small token in return.
We
restored you because we believed
you
were the most promising successor
to
Gian.
GIAN
He’s
fabricating.
SAVICI
The
day has come for me to praise you.
To
thank you for trying to make the
Roman
Catholic Church progressive.
TIVOLI
What
do you want from me?
SAVICI
The wind, she has changed. In the wake of this new
fiasco,
you as the lone dissenter, may become essential,
“Cardinal” Tivoli.
GIAN
Don’t
be baited, Peter.
TIVOLI
You
know what I’ll do if I’m appointed.
SAVICI
Of
course. Change things. Prudently
and thoughtfully.
GIAN
Even
if it’s true, Peter, what are you thinking?
The murmur of the crowd outside
grows with intensity. Savici takes notice, speaks quickly.
TIVOLI
Do you understand if this is God, He has doomed
you
all by this? They are waiting out there
for
His Children, not His dark omen.
LULIT
You
must accept His will and choose your side.
SAVICI
Bishop
Tivoli chose his side long ago.
The incident with the statue,
how
did you explain it to me?
A stroke?
(beat)
Gian’s proclamation that she
carried
the Divine’s offspring--
You
used the word “dementia”,
I
recall clearly. I thought it provocative.
GIAN
Peter?
TIVOLI
I
warned you this would happen, Papa.
GIAN
I have no
regrets. I acted on faith.
TIVOLI
You followed voices that weren’t there.
SAVICI
Voices?
More than one?
CHRISTINA
They
told us--
Savici advances toward her
angrily.
SAVICI
Silence,
“Little Mary”! You are poison now!
GIAN
Move
away from her!
(to
Savici)
We
must stop the flood of humanity.
That
is God’s command.
SAVICI
That
was the Divine message from her
empty
belly?
Jose has re-entered, dressed in
his farm worker clothes and carrying a woolen blanket. He wraps the shawl over
Christina’s head. She actually looks like the Virgin Mary now.
JOSE
Come, Christina.
LULIT
You
cannot take her out there.
JOSE
We
will blend into the crowd now, before
they
find out.
Savici steps in front of Jose.
SAVICI
You
may not run out on your bill, Senor.
JOSE
I
will do what I have to, to protect my daughter.
Move,
Your Eminence.
A beat, then Jose chucks Savici.
No one has ever pushed Savici. He glares at Jose, then hears the mounting fury
from outside.
SAVICI
Clearly
you do not know your place, Senor.
But
you will know it soon.
JOSE
(goes
to window)
Why
are they restless?
SAVICI
Bad
news, she travels quickly.
JOSE
They
know!
The sudden crash of rocks being
hurled at the walls as the crowd grows furious.
SAVICI
We must board the helicopter, Bishop Tivoli.
TIVOLI
Come
on. We all have to go while we can.
SAVICI
No,
no, no! Space allows only myself, the pilot
and
two others.
GIAN
Then
the three priests will stay, Augustine.
SAVICI
Your
faith in the rabble surpasses my own.
TIVOLI
Christina,
you must go with Cardinal Savici—
CHRISTINA
If
we can’t all go, then I am not leaving.
SAVICI
Just
so. I respect your wishes to stay.
Come,
Tivoli!
CHRISTINA
Stay,
Peter. Have faith.
We hear bottles crash against the
outer wall.
TIVOLI
Hear
them? There’s your American Dream, Jose.
They’re
going to tear us to pieces.
JOSE
I
will tell them, Christina, that it was me.
That
I forced you to go along with it.
CHRISTINA
Papa,
no!
Jose hugs and kisses her, then
pushes her into Lulit’s arms.
JOSE
Take
her, Mother Lulit. There is a chance that
I
will be enough for them.
Jose exits.
CHRISTINA
Papa!
SAVICI
Tivoli,
we go now!
GIAN
It
is still not too late
to
show God your faith in Him, Peter.
A surge of sound from outside.
TIVOLI
Faith
won’t save us, Papa.
It’s
not enough for them.
Tivoli suddenly hugs Gian to him.
SAVICI
Gian’s
time is over.
It is your
time, now.
Tivoli backs slowly away from
Gian.
GIAN
Stay
and protect her.
SAVICI
They
have brought this upon themselves.
To stay is to ally yourself with them.
TIVOLI
I
can’t just leave them.
SAVICI
Then you will be disgraced with them.
(beat)
Do not turn down my gift, Cardinali.
It is a “one time offer”.
He looks to Christina and Lulit.
TIVOLI
Lulit,
Christina--
LULIT
God
will protect us.
SAVICI
Andiamo!
TIVOLI
Forgive me. I’m sorry… There is too much left to
do.
We hear a thunder clap. Savici
shouts at Tivoli and slaps his shoulder. Tivoli and Gian exchange a last look
and Tivoli runs. We hear (or better, see through the window), rain start to
fall. Gian takes the cross
standard from its stand and steps behind Lulit and Christina.
LULIT
It’s
raining... It has started to rain.
Now, great thunder claps and the
sound of a driving, torrential rain mixes in with the din of the crowd as the
lights fade out. These sound continue until the crowd noise is drowned out by
that of the storm. As the sounds of the storm subsides, we hear voices.
VOICE
--an
incident being called the greatest public
fraud
in modern history--
VOICE
--resulted
in a mass riot which claimed the lives
of
hundreds--
VOICE
--trampled
to death, including the body of the man
who
falsely claimed to be the girl’s father--
VOICE
--the
mission buildings were torched--
VOICE
--if
not for the sudden torrential rainstorm
that
doused the flames--
VOICE
--but
investigators fear the worst, as they continue the
search
for the seven missing newborns--
VOICE
--unable
to confirm the well being of the
Mexican-American
teenager once hailed as Little Mary--
Gracie Fields recording of “Wish
Me Luck as you Wave me Goodbye” plays in the darkness.
SCENE
FIVE
As lights rise, the music fades,
til it sounds tiny and distant. The chapel has been ransacked. Gian, in
civilian clothes and walking with a cane now, pushes aside some debris with it.
He bends slowly and picks up his Walkman, then shuts it off. He drops it on the
bed and looks at the now headless statue of Mary.
Lulit and Christina enter, the
former in traditional African dress, the latter in modern day street
clothes.
LULIT
Your
Eminence?
(he
doesn’t react/louder)
Your
Eminence?
GIAN
(turns)
Lulit!
LULIT
The
police escort is here.
GIAN
Ah.
LULIT
Bishop
Tivoli is with them.
GIAN
(beat)
Christina,
come to me.
Christina comes to Gian, he hugs
her warmly.
GIAN
Just
continue to tell the truth and
trust
in God.
(she
nods)
Lulit
and I will stay with you
throughout
the trial.
Once
it’s over and you’re free, oh,
what
an adventure we’ll all go on.
LULIT
Africa
is a magical land.
GIAN
We’ll
teach the will of God to whomever
will
listen.
Christina nods. Gian takes her
hands in his.
GIAN
I
am sorry that I cannot protect you better.
CHRISTINA
The
storm drove the mob away and spared
our
lives. We can be thankful for that.
Tivoli appears in full cardinal
regalia.
TIVOLI
Good
day.
They all stare at him.
GIAN
(pause)
I
thought you would be in Rome.
TIVOLI
Soon.
I wanted to come here first.
GIAN
Why?
TIVOLI
I
wanted to be sure Christina...
That
she was treated properly.
LULIT
I
will see to that.
TIVOLI
I’m so sorry about your father, Christina.
Christina doesn’t answer.
LULIT
Are you ready
to go, child?
Christina nods. Tivoli puts a
gentle hand on Lulit’s arm.
TIVOLI
Some
day, I hope you’ll understand.
LULIT
That
day has come and gone.
Lulit takes Christina’s hand and
leads her past Tivoli.
TIVOLI
I’ll
pray for you, Christina.
CHRISTINA
(stops,
turns)
And
I’ll pray for you.
Christina leaves. Lulit and Tivoli
exchange a final long look, then Lulit exits.
TIVOLI
(beat)
Of
course, I don’t blame them.
I’ve written a letter asking for leniency.
With no bodies, it’ll be hard to prosecute.
Especially now that the afterbirth is missing.
GIAN
Missing? Savici… So, they will explain it all away
then.
Tivoli sees the statue, reacts. He
finds the head and picks it up.
GIAN
You
are to be anointed by His Holiness?
TIVOLI
Yes.
Along with three other archbishops.
Papa,
I could speak with the College of Cardinals--
GIAN
If
they hadn’t fired me, I’d have quit.
Tivoli smiles.
GIAN
And
you? As “Cardinal” Tivoli… what will you do?
TIVOLI
Continue
my work. Already, I have audiences
scheduled
with two European leaders
and
several important religious figure.
GIAN
(oddly
uncommitted)
That
is good?
TIVOLI
We’ll
discuss the population issue and
and
decide on a meaningful course of action.
GIAN
“Discuss
the issue”? Doesn’t sound
like
sheer desperation.
TIVOLI
No...
No, I realized that tact would
not
be effective.
(beat)
Gradual
change is better than none.
GIAN
I
see.
TIVOLI
(beat)
Do
you think I’m the Devil, Papa?
GIAN
I
don’t suppose I’ll know who the Devil
is
until, with God’s mercy, I reach
the gates of Heaven
and see who’s missing.
Tivoli picks up the head of the
formless statue.
TIVOLI
I’ve
often wondered what our great martyrs
might
have done if they had lived.
GIAN
To
live, they would have had to turn
their backs
on God. They would be neither martyrs, nor great.
(pause)
Did you ever believe, Peter? Did you ever believe
in
Anything beyond the limits of your own mind?
TIVOLI
That
last night, when you brought Christina in.
I
knew she could never have let
any harm come to her babies.
I knew then it was God. That it must
have been God all along.
GIAN
Then how? How could do this?
TIVOLI
If I
had allied with you, I would be like you,
silenced
and powerless.
I
will be of greater benefit to mankind now.
GIAN
For
that, you denied your faith?
TIVOLI
I have faith in God, Papa. I just didn’t have
faith in mankind. For that, I pray He
will forgive me.
GIAN
Pray then.
TIVOLI
You do not own
the soul of God, Papa.
You cannot
tell me you know better than
I His will.
This outcome may be what He intended.
GIAN
Pietro… You
are lost.
TIVOLI
I have made my
choice. And I will live with it.
He sets the head of the statue
down.
GIAN
I
know you have many things on your agenda,
Peter.
Attend to them.
Gian crosses past him, and kneels
to pray in front of the headless statue. Tivoli stands watching him. Lights
fade to a spot on the head of the statue. Then blackout. End of play.
