THE MOTHER OF GOD

VISITS HELL

A Play in (Mostly) Iambic Pentameter

by

Daniel Guyton

Daniel Guyton

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© 2009 by Daniel Guyton

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

CAUTION: Professionals and amateurs are hereby warned that this play

is subject to royalty. The Mother of God Visits Hell is protected by Daniel

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Royalty of the required amount must be paid whether the play is presented

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To contact author, please visit www.danguyton.com.

Cover design by William Steven Carroll

ISBN 978-0-557-06860-9

© 2009 by Daniel Guyton

The Mother of God Visits Hell

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This play is dedicated to the Town and Gown Players of Athens,

GA, and to the memories of Tom Tanner, Ben Teague, and

Marie Bruce. May they rest in peace.

Daniel Guyton

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THE MOTHER OF GOD VISITS HELL premiered at the Royal Theatre on board the

Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA in February, 2009 as part of the Cherry Poppin’ Play

Festival. It was produced by the Alive Theatre Company (Jeremy Aluma, Artistic

Director; Sunita Townsend, Production Manager). Play was directed by Sylvia Blush;

set design by Aja Bell; costume and prop design by Patricia Ramirez; and the stage

manager was Joseph Howells. The cast was as follows:

GOD – Eric Ruiter

MARY – Casey Gates

MICHAEL – Kelby LeNorman

SATAN – Paul Knox

URIEL – Rebecca Patrick

GABRIEL – Steve Meeks

AZRAEL/COBBLER – Jason Harris

MOLOCH – Scott Lennard

ABADDON – Gilbert Martinez

MARGARET/ANGEL – Jackie Riddle

SMITHEE/ANGEL – Calli Dunaway

SOUL 1 – Justin Jung

SOUL 2 – Steffan Muntsinger

SOUL 3 – Carina Clemente

ANGEL – Allison Taylor

THE MOTHER OF GOD VISITS HELL simultaneously premiered at the Athens

Community Theatre in Athens, GA in February, 2009. It was produced by the Town

and Gown Players (Marie Bruce, President). Play was directed by Patric Ryan; set

design by Tom Tanner, lighting design by Winston Murray, music composed by Mirla

Criste, costume design by Gabriele Topp, and the stage managers were Melanie Marty

and Emily Dawson. The cast was as follows:

GOD – Sean Polite

MARY – Amy Laine Dowdy

MICHAEL – Patric Ryan

SATAN – Sherelle Patisaul

URIEL – Katherine Walters

GABRIEL – Carson Cerney

AZRAEL – Robert M. Hall

ABADDON/COBBLER – Mitch Maxey

COBBLER’S WIFE– Carrie Jedlicka

MOLOCH/SMITHEE – Jeff Chen

CHERUBS – Grace Kee, Camryn Tanner, Elizabeth Raatz, Victoria Raatz

SOULS IN TORMENT – Matt Noller, Joanna Eldredge, Lèland Downs, Kylie

Lucchesi

The Mother of God Visits Hell

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"… There is, for example, one little monastery poem (from the

Greek, of course): 'The Mother of God visits the Torments'… The

Mother of God visits hell and the Archangel Michael guides her

through 'the torments'. She sees sinners and their sufferings.

Among them, by the way, she sees a most amusing class of sinners

in a burning lake: some of them sink so far down into the lake that

they can no longer come up again, and 'these God forgets’ – an

expression of extraordinary depth and force – And so the Mother

of God, shocked and weeping, falls before the throne of God and

asks pardon for everyone in hell, everyone she has seen there,

without distinction. Her conversation with God is immensely

interesting. She pleads, she won’t go away, and when God points

out to her the nail-pierced hands and feet of her Son, and asks:

‘How can I forgive His tormentors?’ she bids all the saints, all the

martyrs, all the angels and archangels to fall down together with

her and plead for the pardon of all without discrimination…”

“The Brothers Karamazov” by Fyodor

Dostoyevsky [p. 247-8, translation by

Richard Pevear and Larissa Volok-

honsky, Vintage Press, 1991]

Daniel Guyton

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DRAMATIS PERSONAE

GOD – all-knowing, the creator

MARY – his mother MICHAEL – archangel, highest of the Seraphim

SATAN – the devil

URIEL – the angel of song GABRIEL – archangel, a messenger

AZRAEL – the angel of hell, a gate-keeper ABADDON – a demon

MOLOCH – a demon

COBBLER – a shoemaker MARGARET – his wife

PENNY – his daughter

SMITHEE – a blacksmith MURDERER – a killer

VARIOUS SOULS in torment

Please double-cast as needed. Most of these characters may be of any

race or gender desired.

The Mother of God Visits Hell

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SCENE I. GOD’S DESIGN

GOD enters, followed by his mother.

GOD. I must forbid it, Mother. ‘Tis too rash.

MARY. 'Tis rash to salve the wounds which We’ve inflicted?

GOD. No, ‘tis rash to salvage wounds which were

By worms inflicted. Say, what weight have We

With worms? With water bugs? With moping yellow

Maggots and decay? O nay, I say

We stay up here in Heaven safe, whilst they

Betray the flesh of sinful men. Thus, Thou

And I and Seraphim shalt play the harps

Divine, whilst vermin, scum and scavengers

Beneath the earth shall dine. I say again…

MARY. No need. I heard Thee fine the other time.

Thou bad’ Me not to go so I will stay.

GOD. Yea, ‘n haunt Me for eternity with guilt.

MARY. Well, I am a Jewish mother. So adye.1

GOD. Remain. Please. For I wish to speak with Thee.

Thou comest here with wringing hands and blurting

Nervously about a journey I

Must needs abhor. Wert Thy request a little

Less unorthodox, it would be done,

Thou canst be sure.

MARY. (Bowing) Aye, certainly it would.

And if I’ve inadvertently, somehow

Just now offended Thee, it wasn’t by

Intent. Thou art My Father, and My Soul

Divine. I aim to follow closely Thy Design.

GOD. What twist is this? Why call You Me

Thy Father? Come now, am I not Thy Son?

MARY. O aye, ‘tis true enough. On earth Thou wert

My Child. I raised Thee from a nursing babe

To one all men admired. But Ye conceived

Of Me full fifteen years ‘fore e’er I touched

1 Yiddish, means “good night.” Pronounced “ad-yeh.”

Daniel Guyton

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MARY. (Cont’d) My womb to feel thee kick. In thus, Thou art

My Father, Son, and this be not a trick.

GOD. Ah, now Thou vexeth me. I long to see

Thee smile. So come, stand next to Me, and let

Us gaze upon the earth awhile. For ten

Millennia I’ve reigned, as God above

The men, with naught but cherubs to amuse

Me. Thus unsatisfied and full of pride,

Incapable of pity, cursing all

The blessèd fools who durst refused to bend

Their knees before Me so. And when I

Condescended to be Man, ‘twas in a blaze

Of fury! Lo, for how could I have known

The agony and groans of life in My

Creation, when I knew the beauty only

Of My Own design? I held such arrogance

And gumption then in My celestial

Presumption that all men were naught

But servants in My mind. ‘Tis true, the old

Adage, of power and corruption – although

I could scarce believe it of Myself.

‘Twas Thee who rescued Me, and all of man.

Thy motherly affections, and Thy soft

And tender hand, which taught Me love above

All other acts of Mine. “To err is human,

Yet forgiveness is divine.” “Judge not

Lest ye be judged.” Yes, all these passages

Were Thine. I felt such strong compassion when

I cradled in Thy arms, I could no longer

Punish as I once bethought I should.

‘Tis true I came to earth in anger, but

‘Twas Thee who gave Me strength. In thus, Thou art

My Mother, and the holiest of saints.

MARY. Thy words bring rivers to My eyes. Nay please,

Forgive My imposition. I’ll not ask

Thee anymore.

GOD. But stay, and ask Me more.

For anything Thou wisheth… Save for one.

The Mother of God Visits Hell

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MARY. I’ve all a soul could ask for, in Thy Grace.

My throne upon the mantle made of gold.

I dream in shiny sparkles, and I swim

In silver lakes, and lay upon the surface

Of the clouds. My wont is not for riches,

Nor My own desires, but to witness

Those who suffer in the sepulcher

Of fire. To offer them compassion, though

They err. I wish this not for Me, but yet

For all humanity, for those who have

To wallow in the mire. ‘Tis true, all men

Have sin in them, and so, deserve to perish.

But those worms can only swallow them

If Thee they do not cherish. Now I know

My tongue is bothersome, so please, forgive

Me for My rants. But if Thou hast affection

Yet, so give My wish a second chance.

GOD. And what about temptation? How wilt Thou

Resist? The devil has a honey voice,

Yet venom on his lips. He’s known for his

Vexation of the holiest of wits.

MARY. Aye, Lucifer’s a troubled soul, and failed

At veneration. Whereas I was borne

An empty palette with no sinful inclinations.

Though his words be full of lies

And powerful libations, I’ll not drink

A drop of them to keep Me from salvation.

I’ll be well.

GOD. Alone in hell? And what

If he attacks?

MARY. Then send an angel. My

Protector. Thy most worthy bodyguard.

GOD. Whom?

MARY. Michael.

GOD. Hmm. I do not like this plan.

MARY. But Michael is as capable as any.

Daniel Guyton

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GOD. Aye, and more. The heartiest of angels.

Yea, and surely he would place himself

‘Twixt Thee and any harm. But danger lurks

At ev’ry turn. The flames of hell are warm.

MARY. I’ll bring a fan.

GOD. No need. Thy head is cool.

And Michael’s sword is stronger than a thousand

Middling fools in all of Satan’s army.

But if something should go wrong…

MARY. Thou art

Omnipotent.

GOD. O aye, in My dominion.

But there’s little say have I inside

His walls. And then, if any harm befalls

Thee, it should start a war, with all the guards

Of Heaven shall with swords come swarming down!

My Cherubim shall arrows fling within

His minion’s scalded hearts. My Seraphim

Shall cease to sing…

MARY. Enough! I’ll not depart.

GOD. If this be Thy desire, Thou should’t go.

MARY. But I desire friendliness and love!

For peace betwixt the Hell beneath, and Heaven

Up above. My wont is not for massacres,

Nor war. Instead, to be ambassador

‘Twixt Thee and Purgatory. But,

If Ye bethinks it treacherous, I will

Not move an inch. I’ll stay within these Golden

Gates and linger in Thy Glory.

GOD. Sweet.

Give peace now, I implore Thee. (Loudly) Michael!

MICHAEL. (Entering) Aye,

My Lord?

GOD. Please guide My Mother safely through The darkened underworld. She longs to see

The suffering of souls.

The Mother of God Visits Hell

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MICHAEL. ‘Tis dangerous.

GOD. I know.

MICHAEL. (To MARY) My Lady, take my hand.

MARY. My Son,

I cherish Thee.

GOD. (To MICHAEL) Just bring Her back as planned. (They exit) There’s no more certainty. At times like these,

I envy man. For whom have I to pray to?

Lights out. End of scene.

SCENE II. THE UNDERWORLD

A heavy door opens. MICHAEL and MARY enter into

SATAN’s lair. MICHAEL’s sword is out.

MARY. What ho? Hello? Is anybody here?

MICHAEL. Nay, stand behind me quickly, for I smell

Beelzebub is near.

SATAN. (Entering) Well! Speak the devil’s

Name, they say, and soon he will appear. (Bowing)

M’ Lady.

MICHAEL. (Aiming his sword) Stay! Vouchsafe to keep thy distance.

SATAN. What? And harm the Holy Virgin? Why,

I’d sooner sell my soul.

MARY. To whom?

SATAN. Myself,

Of course. Hmm hmm! (He laughs)

MARY. Why then, I pray thee gets

A bargain. For a soul as venerable

As thine, ‘twould be a shame to cheat thyself.

Don’t go below a dime.

Daniel Guyton

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Daniel Guyton (Author) has won numerous awards for his plays and

screenplays, including two Kennedy Center/ACTF awards for his plays

Attic and Where’s Julie?, as well as the Best Horror Screenplay award

from the Los Angeles Film and Script Festival for A Woman’s Touch,

among others. He received his MFA in Dramatic Writing from the

University of Georgia. His plays have been produced worldwide,

including New York, London, LA, Chicago, Poland, Iceland, Canada,

Australia, and more. He has over 30 publications. For more information,

please visit: www.danguyton.com.

The Mother of God Visits Hell

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For more plays by Daniel Guyton, please visit www.danguyton.com

Other titles include:

1) The Twisted Mind of Daniel Guyton (Poetry and Plays in the

Dark Comedy Vein) – an anthology of short plays and poems by

Daniel Guyton, all with a dark comedy bent. Features 13 plays and

14 poems. Published by Lulu.com. ISBN 9780557070138.

2) 52 Monologues for Grown-ups (And College Kids) – a

collection of funny, dark, and disturbing monologues by Daniel

Guyton. Perfect for actors, students, and actors pretending to be

students. Some monologues may not be suitable for children under

17. Published by Lulu.com. ISBN 9781105806155.

3) Where’s Julie? – a full-length play about a teenage girl who

runs away from home to escape her over-bearing mother, her

alcoholic father, and her autistic younger brother. When she

escapes, however, all she finds is a pot-smoking kleptomaniac

boyfriend, a religious zealot friend, and a selfish older sister. But

when she contemplates abortion, the play gets really funny.

Mature audiences only. Published by Lulu.com. ISBN

9780557082728.

4) I’m Not Gay! – a full-length play about a man so desperate to

prove how “not gay” he really is, he’d rather commit murder than

confront his sexuality. It’s a very dark comedy. Mature audiences

only. Published by Lulu.com. ISBN 9780557092475.