To begin with: The play begins with two deaths and a very sick king: Gerard de Narbon, an acclaimed doctor, passed away six months ago. The Count of Rossillion has just passed away. The King of France is dying and has refused all medical help, because he believes there is no hope for a recovery.
The new Count of Rossillion, Bertram, is being sent to Paris where he will become the ward of the King. He leaves behind his mother who is the guardian of Helena, the orphan daughter of Gerard de Narbon. At the same time, a civil war breaks out in Tuscany and many of the French nobility plan to travel to Italy to become mercenaries.
Paris
Act I
Florence Rossillion
Scene 1: Rossillion, the Countess’s Palace Scene 2: Paris, the King’s Palace Scene 3: Rossillion, the Countess’s Palace Scene 4: Paris, the King’s Palace Scene 5: Paris, the King’s Palace Scene 6: Rossillion, the Countess’s Palace
Act II Scene 1: Florence, the Street Scene 2: Florence, the Army Camp Scene 3: Florence, the Widow’s Home Scene 4: Florence, the Street Scene 5: Florence, the Widow’s Home Scene 6: Florence, the Army Camp Scene 7: Florence, the Widow’s Home Scene 8: Rossillion, the Countess’s Palace
Characters in the Play:
A Page
Rynalda
mother of Bertram guardian of Helena
works for the Countess
steward to the Countess
Bertam
Parolles
King of France
new Count of Rossillion ward to the King of France
a soldier and companion to Bertram, part servant and part teacher
Countess of Rossillion
Helena ward of the Countess orphan daughter of doctor Gerard de Narbon
Lafew the King’s close advisor
Widow Capilet
Diana
Mariana
once a noble woman in Florence who now runs a guest house for religious pilgrims
daughter of Widow Capilet
neighbor of Widow Capilet
The Dumaine Brothers
French lords, later soldiers in the Florentine Army
French lords, later captains in the Florentine Army
Important Characters We Never See, but Hear About: The former Count of Rossillion, recently deceased. Gerard de Narbon, a skilled doctor who died six months ago Maudlin, the daughter of Lafew, who would be the kind of aristocratic woman Bertram wants to marry.