SHAKESPEARE ON DISK.

     PERICLES.

Copyright (c) 1990 Interconnection Publications Inc.

     
     DRAMATIS PERSONAE.

PERICLES.
          Prince of Tyre.

HELICANUS.
          A lord of Tyre.

THAISA.
          Princess of Pentapolis.

MARINA.
          Daughter of Pericles and Thaisa.

SIMONIDES.
          King of Pentapolis; father of Thaisa.

ANTIOCHUS.
          King of Antioch.

THALIARD.
          A lord of Antioch.

CLEON.
          Governor of Tarsus.

DIONYZA.
          Wife of Cleon.

CERIMON.
          A lord of Ephesus.

LYSIMACHUS.
          Governor of Mytilene.

LYCHORIDA.
          Nurse of Marina.

A PANDAR.

BOULT.
          The pandar's servant.

A BAWD.

ESCANES.
          A lord of Tyre.

LEONINE.
          Servant to Dionyza.

PHILEMON.
          Servant to Cerimon.

THE DAUGHTER OF ANTIOCHUS.

MARSHALL.

LORDS, LADIES, KNIGHTS, GENTLEMEN, SAILORS, PIRATES, 
FISHERMEN, and MESSENGERS.

DIANA.

GOWER, as CHORUS.



     SYNOPSIS.

1/Prologue.
     GOWER tells the audience that they will hear an old 
story that starts with King Antiochus, who commits incest 
with his daughter, and fends off her suitors by forcing them 
to solve a riddle or die.

1/1  Antioch. A room in the palace.
     ANTIOCHUS, PERICLES and FOLLOWERS enter; ANTIOCHUS 
warns PERICLES of the price of courtship but the prince 
agrees to his conditions.
     ANTIOCHUS' DAUGHTER enters, is praised by the men and 
judged worth the risk.
     PERICLES reads the riddle, realizes its implications 
and tells ANTIOCHUS' DAUGHTER he cannot marry her; PERICLES 
indicates that he knows ANTIOCHUS' secret, whereupon the 
king grants him forty days respite; and all exit but 
PERICLES who decides to flee, and exits.
     ANTIOCHUS enters, calls THALIARD and orders him to 
murder Pericles; a MESSENGER enters, reports Pericles' 
flight, and exits; ANTIOCHUS tells THALIARD to pursue 
Pericles.

1/2  Tyre. A room in the palace.
     PERICLES enters and muses on the danger of Antiochus' 
enmity; HELICANUS and other LORDS enter and greet him; the 
LORDS exit and PERICLES describes the situation to HELICANUS 
who advises the prince to travel; PERICLES agrees to this 
and leaves HELICANUS as regent of Tyre.

1/3  Tyre. An ante-chamber in the palace.
     THALIARD enters and soliloquizes on the hazards of 
associating with kings.
     HELICANUS, ESCANES, and LORDS enter, and THALIARD is 
relieved to hear of Pericles' departure; he resolves to 
return home.

1/4  Tarsus. A room in the Governor's house.
     CLEON and DIONYZA bewail the famine in their country; a 
LORD enters, announces the appearance of a flotilla, and 
exits; PERICLES enters with his ATTENDANTS and tells the 
Governor that he has come to relieve the famine; the 
inhabitants thank him.

2/Prologue.
     GOWER, with the help of a dumb show, explains that 
Helicanus has informed Pericles of Thaliard's mission and 
advised him to leave Tarsus, and that Pericles does so and 
is shipwrecked.

2/1  Pentapolis. An open place by the sea-side.
     PERICLES prays; three FISHERMEN enter and talk; 
PERICLES asks them for help and the FIRST FISHERMAN clothes 
him; the other two exit; the FIRST FISHERMAN tells PERICLES 
that there is to be a tournament for their princess' favor; 
the other FISHERMEN return with PERICLES' armor caught in 
their net, and all three agree to help equip PERICLES for 
the joust if he will reward them.

2/2  Pentapolis. A public way or platform leading to the     
     lists.
     THAISA, LORDS and ATTENDANTS enter with SIMONIDES, who 
starts the joust; a LORD exits to summon the competitors.
     Five KNIGHTS and their SQUIRES successively cross the 
stage, present their shields to THAISA and exit; PERICLES 
enters and does the same.
     As the audience discuss this unknown, they hear a roar 
indicating that Pericles has won.

2/3  Pentapolis. A hall of state; a banquet prepared.
     SIMONIDES and THAISA welcome the LADIES, LORDS and 
KNIGHTS; the MARSHAL directs PERICLES to the seat of honor 
and the king and THAISA drink to the victor; the KNIGHTS and 
LADIES dance and the feast ends.

2/4  Tyre. A room in the Governor's house.
     HELICANUS tells ESCANES that the gods have killed 
Antiochus and his daughter.
     Three LORDS enter and ask HELICANUS to rule, since they 
fear that their prince is dead; HELICANUS persuades them to 
search for Pericles for a year. 

2/5  Pentapolis. A room in the palace.
     SIMONIDES advises the KNIGHTS to leave because Thaisa 
has vowed to stay celibate for a year; the KNIGHTS exit.
     PERICLES enters and SIMONIDES tells him that Thaisa 
wants to wed him; PERICLES suspects a trap and protests his 
unworthiness, but when THAISA enters and admits to her love, 
all agree to the marriage.

3/Prologue.
     GOWER says that Pericles and Thaisa are married and she 
is pregnant; in a dumb-show: messengers arrive from Tyre 
with a request for Pericles' return, and he, Thaisa and a 
nurse embark on a ship that is hit by a storm, and Thaisa 
goes into labor.

3/1  On shipboard.
     PERICLES prays to the gods; LYCHORIDA enters with a 
baby girl and says that Thaisa has died in childbirth; two 
SAILORS enter and convince the reluctant PERICLES to throw 
the body overboard; LYCHORIDA exits to prepare her mistress; 
the ship changes course for Tarsus.

3/2  Ephesus. A room in Cerimon's house.
     CERIMON enters with a SERVANT and some shipwrecked 
PERSONS; he calls PHILEMON and tells him to look after the 
unfortunates, all but CERIMON exit.
     Two GENTLEMEN enter and praise CERIMON's knowledge and 
charity; some SERVANTS enter with the salvaged coffin; 
CERIMON opens it, reads Thaisa's story and sends a SERVANT, 
who exits and re-enters, for necessaries; THAISA is slowly 
revived.

3/3  Tarsus. A room in the Governor's house.
     PERICLES leaves MARINA and LYCHORIDA in the care of 
CLEON and DIONYZA, who promise to love the child out of 
gratitude to the father.

3/4  Ephesus. A room in Cerimon's house.
     THAISA tells CERIMON that she intends to dedicate her 
life to the gods; he suggests Diana's temple.

4/Prologue.
     GOWER tells us that Marina has grown into such a 
paragon that the princess Philoten suffers by comparison, so 
enraging Queen Dionyza that she wants Marina murdered.

4/1  Tarsus. An open place near the sea-shore.
     DIONYZA tells LEONINE not to be deflected from his 
purpose.
     MARINA enters and DIONYZA compels her to walk with 
LEONINE; DIONYZA exits; LEONINE tells MARINA that he must 
kill her; but before he can do so, three PIRATES enter, 
capture MARINA and exit; LEONINE decides to swear that 
Marina is dead.

4/2  Mytilene. A room in a brothel.
     The PANDAR and the BAWD tell BOULT to buy new women, 
and BOULT exits .
     The PANDAR and the BAWD consider their trade; BOULT 
enters with the PIRATES and displays MARINA; the PANDAR 
exits with the PIRATES to pay them; BOULT exits to advertise 
MARINA's virtues.
     The BAWD tries to comfort MARINA; BOULT returns and 
describes their customers to the BAWD; MARINA prays to the 
goddess Diana for help.

4/3  Tarsus. A room in the Governor's house.
     CLEON is horrified by DIONYZA's action but she 
dismisses his misgivings and they exit.
     GOWER enters before the monument of Marina at Tarsus 
and, accompanied by a dumb-show, tells us that: Pericles and 
his train have come to retrieve Marina; they are met by 
Cleon and Dionyza who show him Marina's tomb; the distraught 
Pericles immediately leaves Tarsus.

4/4  Mytilene. A street before the brothel.
     Two GENTLEMEN emerge from the brothel having been 
converted to virtue by Marina.

4/5  Mytilene. A room in the brothel.
     The PANDAR, the BAWD and BOULT are distressed by 
Marina, who has not only retained her virginity but has 
turned the customers towards chastity.
     LYSIMACHUS enters and asks for a girl; BOULT exits and 
re-enters with MARINA; the BAWD tells MARINA to please this 
important visitor, then exits with the PANDAR and BOULT.
     MARINA confounds LYSIMACHUS' expectations and wins him 
to her side; BOULT enters and is cursed by LYSIMACHUS, who 
exits; the BAWD enters, agrees with BOULT that MARINA must 
be raped, and exits; MARINA convinces BOULT to find her some 
honest work.

5/Prologue.
     GOWER says that Marina is a successful teacher but 
gives her earnings to her owners, and that Pericles' ship 
has been blown into Mytilene harbor where he is greeted by 
Lysimachus.

5/1  On board Pericles' ship, off Mytilene.
     HELICANUS tells a couple of SAILORS to welcome the 
governor; some GENTLEMEN enter and, along with the SAILORS, 
greet LYSIMACHUS and his LORDS, who enter.
     Introductions take place and HELICANUS describes 
PERICLES' plight; LYSIMACHUS sends the FIRST LORD for help; 
he exits and soon re-enters with MARINA and a LADY.
     MARINA tells her story to PERICLES, who was resting 
behind a curtain, and he gradually realizes that she is his 
daughter; PERICLES introduces MARINA to HELICANUS, then 
collapses from joy; the others leave him sleeping, and exit; 
DIANA enters and tells PERICLES to visit her temple; the 
company re-enters and PERICLES tells them he must go to 
Ephesus; all exit.
     The scene changes to the temple of Diana in Ephesus, 
where GOWER enters and says that Pericles was royally 
entertained by Lysimachus who is now betrothed to Marina, 
and that the whole party have come to Ephesus.

5/2  The temple of Diana at Ephesus.
     THAISA, VIRGINS, CERIMON and others stand by the altar 
as PERICLES, LYSIMACHUS, HELICANUS, MARINA, a LADY and their 
TRAIN enter; PERICLES declaims his story; THAISA faints when 
she hears it; CERIMON explains who THAISA is; the family are 
reunited and all exit.
     GOWER enters and stresses that both virtue and vice 
have been justly repaid, and informs us that Cleon and 
Dionyza were murdered by an outraged populace.