THE MACCABÆAN
Abarbanel The Drama of a People
THE PERSONS OF THE DRAMA.
KınG FERDINAND OF SPAIN. (JUEEN ISABELLA. Don JUAN DE LUCENA, minister. Donna VIOoLANTE, his wife. CounT TenDıILLa, held-marshal in the Moorish War. TORQUEMADA, chief inquisitor. Don IsAAC ARBARBANEL, minister of hnance. Don ABRAHAM SENIOR, superintendent of tax collection. Zapoc ABoAB, chief rabbi, SULAMIT, his daughter. Don EMANUAL MOoONTALTO, head of the Jewish community. RAPHAEL MONTALTO, his son. Bar Euisa, leader of the orthodox. CENDoR, Jewish sculptor. ÄLFARO. Davıp, assistant to Aboab. Four OTHER Sons OF MONTALTO. Two Sons OF SENIOR. SPANISH DIGNITARIES. SPANISH NOBLEWOMEN. MARANNO DIGNITARIES. JewısHu PEOPLE. SERVANTS, PAGEs.
The action takes place in Spain in the year 1492.
ACT I.
[A salon in the palace of Don Juan de Lucena, profusely decorated. An entrance in the middle wall; openings right and left to adjoining rooms. In the foreground to the left an artificial grotto illuminated by a reddish glow and hung with roses; separated from the rest of the salon by tall plants.]
SCENE I.
On the right, amid a circle of Spanish noblemen, Don Juan de Lucena and Count Tendilla. On the left, a small group of distinguished Marannos, Don Abraham Senior in their midst. In the background, groups of other guests and ladies.
LUCENA
(grasping both Tendilla’s hands):
’Tis joy to greet the conqueror who broke The Moorish power. Sole masters in our land, Now that Granada’s fallen, we rise unchecked To power supreme, our due, among the nations.
TENDILLA
(with rough modesty)
The Moor's defeat is not the only cause,— Look nearer for the roots of our prosperity. Where shall you find another royal pair To match Castile and Arragon?