Summary

When The Bridge of San Luis Rey mysteriously collapses, five travellers are precipitated into the deep gorge below. Was it chance or the hand of God that brought these five together at that fatal moment on the bridge? Or were they, themselves, responsible in some way for what happened? These questions are raised with compassion and answered by Wilder with an indirect affirmation of the power of love. Set in early 18th century Peru at the height of the Spanish Inquisition, this timeless story chronicles the intertwined life stories of the victims, taking us through worlds as diverse as the theatres, convents, brothels and docks of Lima, Peru, to sea-faring explorations patronised by the courts of Madrid, Spain. From the backstreet brothels and theatres of 18th century Lima to the majestic courts of Spain; from the palaces of Peruvian Archbishops to the Inquistadorial missions from Madrid; and from the sanctuary of Inca shrines high up among Andean villages to the straits of the American coastlines; comes a story of chance. PERHAPS AN ACCIDENT Perhaps not. But one thing is certain. Five seemingly unrelated voyagers find themselves united in the same destiny. Five people, on separate journeys for different reasons, happen to be crossing the bridge at San Luis Rey at noon on the fateful day of July 20th, 1714. The bridge breaks and all five fall to their deaths in the deep gorge below. Was it chance or the hand of God that brought them together on that fatal day at that place and that moment in time? Or were they, in some way, to blame for what happened to them? We begin with the announcement of some great catastrophe. There can be no doubt that something unthinkable has befallen and touched every last person on the streets of the city. The people of Lima fall to their knees in the great cathedral and murmur their prayers. After the bodies of the victims are "approximately collected and approximately separated", then casketed, the crowds pay tribute to these five coffins on the altar of the great Cathedral at Lima and the heart-rending expression of sorrow continues. Only one person, BROTHER JUNIPER (GABRIEL BRYNE) seems apart from the emotional melee. Having been schooled in questions of faith, he resolves immediately to take theology in hand and give it its rightful place among the exact sciences. The results of his controversial studies are brought to the attention of The Inquisition, presided over by THE ARCHBISHOP OF LIMA (ROBERT DE NIRO). After compiling thousands of questions and filling scores of notebooks in his efforts to establish a theory in memoriam to the victims, Brother Juniper is best placed to understand the tragedy. During his defence, he attempts to unravel the reasons for their having found themselves on that particular bridge on that particular day: THE MARQUESA DE MONTEMAYOR AND PEPITA Published soon after the accident are the infamous Letters of DONA MARIA, MARQUESA DE MONTEMAYOR (KATHY BATES), to her Daughter, DONA CLARA (EMILIE DEQUENNE). The more idolatrous the love and attention DONA MARIA fixes on her daughter, the more repulsed and determined to escape the young girl becomes. At the first opportunity of a match that might bring some distance between them, the fifteen-year-old DONA CLARA accepts an offer of matrimony from DON VICENTE, EL CONDE D’ABUIRRE (SAMUEL LE BIHAN), connected to the courts in Spain. Her removal to Madrid is required and after the usual blessing associated with such leave-taking, DONA MARIA immediately begins the letter writing which will become the monument of literary exchange between Mother and Daughter. Alone in Lima, DONA MARIA’s life is fuelled entirely by the writing and receiving of letters to her daughter. These are of such exquisite language, wit and grace that were it not for the immortality of the pages surviving her death, "we would die ourselves in the knowledge", Wilder says, given that her daughter barely glanced at the pages. All other aspects of DONA MARIA’s existence fall apart. Her appearance deteriorates. Often preoccupied and ill-groomed, her wig might have fallen a little over one ear and her rouge misplaced. Her chin is never dry, her lips always mumbling the text of the endless dialogues she would, had she the courage, commit to paper. A rigorous daily routine is established with the support of her faithful servant, PEPITA (ADRIANA DOMINGUEZ), consisting of church-going, visits to witty conversationalists in search of material and ending with the imbibing of Chicha before retiring to bed. PEPITA comes to her from La Conventa of Santa Maria Rosa de Las Rosas by request of THE ARCHBISHOP (ROBERT DE NIRO) who fears that without some companionship, DONA MARIA might go completely mad. DONA MARIA invites PEPITA to accompany her to the great opening of La Trampa Adelante at the Comedia Theatre. The title role is played by the legendary actress, LA PERICHOLE (PILAR LOPEZ DE AYALA), rumoured to be either the daughter or lover of the theatre's impresario UNCLE PIO (HARVEY KEITEL). PEPITA witnesses a public humiliation by LA PERICHOLE when the entire audience turns to DONA MARIA in her box to mock and laugh at the level of her inebriation as the actress interrupts her performance of La Trampa Adelante to mimic the Marquesa's actions. PEPITA removes DONA MARIA from the royal box in order to prevent any further humiliation, aware of the ridicule in which her mistress is held in Lima. It is the strong resolute spirit of her mistress that inspires her to persevere with her assignment and accompany DONA MARIA to the shrine of Santa Maria de Cluxambuqua to pray for the safe delivery of DONA CLARA’s baby, when after many years the news reaches her that her daughter is with child. The journey is undertaken as the last of a complex series of superstitious and religious rites and taboos as propitiation to ensure a happy and healthy pregnancy for DONA CLARA. Every rite of paganism and every prescription of Christianity are carried out in double and triple measure. Two days before the journey over the Bridge at San Luis Rey en route to Cluxambuqua, PEPITA writes to THE ABBESS at La Conventa Rosa de las Rosas to complain of her loneliness. DONA MARIA discovers the simple but truthful letter and it compels her to re-evaluate the nature of her own correspondence with her daughter. Before leaving the shrine of Cluxambuqua, she writes her first true letter in courage, in which she calls for 'life to begin again'. It turns out, also, to be her last letter … ESTEBAN ESTEBAN (MICHAEL POLISH) was discovered with his twin brother, MANUEL (MARK POLISH), some twenty years before, abandoned in a basket outside the convent gates. The twins grew up at the convent until they were past the age of children and their presence began to distract the dedicated sisters. As twins brought up in cloistered environs, they remain seemingly mute to the world and communicate in a secret language, although they learn to read and write perfectly. Many philologists, including THE ARCHBISHOP of Lima concern themselves with divining the reason for their reluctance to speak. Such a profound telepathy exists between them that they are barely conscious of it. One night, back-stage, they are accosted by the famous actress, THE PERICHOLE. Her shiny red shoes and stockings make a particular impression on MANUEL. He becomes her confidant and personal scribe. She trusts as he is mute that he can tell no secrets and engages him to write love letters for her to THE MATADOR (JAVIER CONDE). He is party to her arrangements for secret assignations with her most recent amour while she maintains the attentions of THE VICEROY (F. MURRAY ABRAHAM). Secretly, he worships her from afar. MANUEL’s love of THE PERICHOLE, it seems to ESTEBAN, comes between the twins. After MANUEL refuses to write any more letters for THE PERICHOLE, they are thrown out of the theatre and make their way to the port. There, they obtain work from CAPTAIN ALVARADO (JOHN LYNCH) loading merchandise on the docks amongst the Indians. MANUEL gashes his leg with a metal crate. The wound festers and fever sets in. ESTEBAN nurses his deliriously hallucinating brother who never recovers and a priest is called to administer the last rites. THE ABBESS arranges MANUEL’s funeral, thinking ESTEBAN has died. ESTEBAN takes to the streets, inconsolable in his grief. At the request of THE ABBESS, CAPTAIN ALVARADO persuades him to join his next expedition. They start for the coast via The Bridge at San Luis Rey and happen upon an old man, UNCLE PIO, carrying a baby boy on his shoulders, as they pass in front of DONA MARIA's pilgrimage train on its descent from Cluxambuqua … UNCLE PIO & DON JAIME Of European descent, UNCLE PIO had all the advantages of a privileged upbringing; a classical education and noble bearing but none of the opportunities. He never tires of reminding people that he is the illegitimate offspring of the head of a great Castilian house. He could have had many opportunities to become very rich, had he not been diverted by his vocation; to devote his life to the development of the graces and charms and furtherment of the career of THE PERICHOLE whom he found singing in the Café Pizaro. The undeniable beauty of THE PERICHOLE prompts UNCLE PIO to teach her everything he can about classic Spanish theatre and artfulness. But he is saddened to discover that the purpose of these graces, intended to enhance her ability on stage, become the very means by which she conducts a series of covert and vulgar loveless affairs with numerous suitors for her own ambitious aims. In time, the stage ceases to interest THE PERICHOLE and she sets her sights on becoming a revered lady of society by inveigling herself into the aristocratic elite. This, it seems to her, necessitates breaking off with anyone in any way associated with her past. UNCLE PIO is banished when she produces an illegitimate heir for THE VICEROY. The birth of DON JAIME buys her a present of an elegant little palace, jewels and fashionable finery from France and Spain. Suddenly, then, the news is all over Lima. THE PERICHOLE has the smallpox. As soon as she is able, she hides herself in the hills, orders the sale of her little palace and returns all gifts. No visitors are received and all notes of well-wishing are returned unopened. Like all beautiful women who have been brought up amid continual tributes to their beauty, she assumes without cynicism that it must necessarily be the basis of anyone’s attachment to or interest in her. UNCLE PIO follows her like a vagabond trying to convince her otherwise. Although she refuses to see him, her only eventual concession is to give him charge of her son, so that he provides the boy with a gentleman’s education. UNCLE PIO sets off with the baby boy DON JAIME on his shoulders for Lima by way of The Bridge at San Luis Rey … PERHAPS AN INTENTION BROTHER JUNIPER spends years piecing together all these stories, yet the universal question remains unanswered and seems even more elusive. He longs for a voice of testimony. His book, a testament to the lives of those who died - DONA MARIA, PEPITA, ESTEBAN, UNCLE PIO and DON JAIME - is condemned as heresy. And as he awaits his own destiny at the stake, he receives a visitation. The mourning NUN whom he had previously seen at the funeral of the five travellers, attends the final Inquisition. She lifts her veil to reveal the ravaged face of the beauty that once was THE PERICHOLE. Only she knew all five. Only she has survived. The answer lies not with the dead, but with the bridge between the living and the dead. "There is a land between the living and the dead, and the bridge is love. The only survival. The only meaning."