The Lady of Dawn

La dama del alba ("The Lady of the Dawn" in English) is a Spanish play written by playwright Alejandro Casona in 1944. It is a fantasy-drama in which Death personified is the main character. It takes place in a small village in the Spanish Principality of Asturias. The play consists of four acts, and is very popular in its own country. Synopsis Act I The Narces family is introduced in this act. It is revealed that the mother mysteriously lost a daughter, Angelica, to the large river in their town four years ago. Angelica was married to a young man named Martin three days before her apparent death. Her body was never found, and thus no proper burial was performed. The memory of her death still dwells in the minds of her family. The play starts on the anniversary of her death. "La Peregrina" (The Pilgrim in English) shows up at the door, who is traveling on the Camino de Santiago, or "Way of St. James," as it is translated into English. Since pilgrims are said to bring blessings upon the houses they visit, the family allows her inside. The grandfather recognizes her but doesn't remember from where he knows her. The children play a game with her, and she laughs in a strange way, which scares the children. She says she has never laughed before. She is also surprised by the fact that she had felt her beating heart. Suddenly, the woman becomes fatigued and falls asleep. She tells the children to wake her up before nine, which they fail to do because they go to bed. Act II The Grandfather realizes that The Pilgrim is the personification of death; he recognizes her from a near-death experience he had years before in the mine accident which killed all the children, total of seven, of the family servant, Telva. He pleads with her to leave his family alone, as they have suffered enough already because of her. The Pilgrim had actually come to kill Martin but was unable to, because she was asleep when Martin was supposed to die. Described in very human terms in the play, she explains she is merely fulfilling her mission, and doesn't like having to be present whenever someone dies. She explains to the grandfather she has a difficult life, never being able to die yet being death itself. The grandfather takes pity on her referring to her as a "poor woman." Meanwhile, Martin brings back a girl by the name of Adela, who had tried to commit suicide in the river. The Pilgrim admits that she wasn't expecting the young girl's death.