Heretic Links
This
two-act satirical comedy, based on an actual historical court case, opens as
the prisoner Catharina Linck is led in by her
Inquisitor. The Inquisitor cannot resist
delineating Catharina’s crime in a long-winded fashion, but Catharina
repeatedly cuts through the Inquisitor’s harping with humor and theatricality,
and then takes over the trial. During
the first-act reenactment of how Catharina came to be charged by the
Inquisition, Catharina’s adventures in pursuit of the love of women intertwine
with her adoption of male garb for protection in this satire of current and
historical gender roles. Striving always
to be the center of attention, Catharina enlists in armies and promptly deserts
them in the heat of battle, all with the flair of commedia-style physical comedy.
Disguised as a man, she married another woman whom she hopes will adore
her forever. Her wife’s enthusiasm is
dampened, however, because Catharina fails to keep a job, preferring repeated
baptisms in various religions in order to gain alms money. Set in the “seemingly unending time of the
Inquisition”, issues of gender proscriptions and performance (and sexual performance)
are dramatized to engage today’s audiences.
During the second half of the play, Catharina is brought sharply back to the environment of the Inquisition trial. She takes charge in the examination by a midwife of her “true sex”, and attempts to buy time in the courtroom by conducting cross-examination that incriminates the woman that she “married”. Catharina’s efforts to forestall the inevitable trial verdict merge with her fantasies of being saved by her mother from execution for military desertion and her recollections of her pitiable childhood in an orphanage. Yet, the Inquisition systematically disposes of Catharina’s allies, and she alone is left to face the Inquisitorial venom. The audience has been able to laugh heartily at Catharina’s ridiculous life and the society in which she lived it; yet, the final seconds of the play halt laughter. The satire and humor of the play are punctuated by the reality of Catharina’s inevitable fate and her courage in the face of it.
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Play Structure: |
2 Acts: Act I, 9 scenes; Act
II, 6 scenes |
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Cast size: |
4 – 8 2 main characters, 2 amalgam
characters, 4 optional chorus roles |
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Gender: |
All female; multi-racial
casting acceptable |
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Period: |
The seemingly unending time
of the Inquisition |
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Location: |
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Set: |
One set, a bare stage with
removable “bed” and other sparse furniture |
Production History
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Heretic Links received its premiere production by The
Experimental Theatre Project (White Cat Productions) at the Richard Hugo
House Theatre in |
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Catharina |
Kayti Barnett |
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Margaretha |
Jenny Schmidt |
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Antagonista |
Jessica Stepka |
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Confidanta |
Amber Zipperer |
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Chorus |
Louise Penberthy Yvette Zaepfel |
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Costume Designer |
Teresa Thuman |
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Set Designer |
Katie Lawrence |
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Props Designer |
Michael Mowery |
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Lighting Designer |
Bruce Wheelock |
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Sound Designer |
Regan deVictoria |
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Light Operator |
Bruce Wheelock |
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Sound Operator |
Michael Mowery |
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Stage Manager |
Chryste Call |
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Production Team |
Amanda Askea Michael Mowery |
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Poster Design/ Photography |
Ken Holmes |
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House Manager |
Tim Crist |