The action takes place in the present day, in a country torn by war.
SCENE 1
The country is on the verge of conflict. A young woman named Adriana sings an old, nostalgic tune in front of her house. As she turns to go in, she is stopped by a drunken young man named Tsargo. He staggers around and reminds her that they had danced together the year before. Adriana vehemently refuses him. Humiliated, Tsargo retreats and sits down to empty his bottle. Adriana’s sister Refka has been watching the encounter and now reproaches her sister for her behaviour. As night falls, we see a dream, but we do not know who is dreaming. Adriana? Tsargo? Refka? Perhaps all three… In the dream, Tsargo prepares to take Adriana to the dance, but as she takes his arm, he turns into a bottle. Adriana drops the bottle, which shatters. The sound of breaking glass and laughter awakens Tsargo, who feels even further humiliated and leaves, uttering threats.
SCENE 2
As if echoing Tsargo’s rage and threats, the distant sounds of war are heard. The young man returns in uniform, holding a gun. He knocks on the door, but Adriana repulses him just as strongly as before, ignoring the gun and the man’s pretext of needing to get to the roof of the house to observe the approaching enemy. He pushes his way through the door and rapes the young woman.
The young man returns in uniform, holding a gun.
SCENE 3
Adriana is pregnant. She argues with her sister, who berates her for deciding to keep the baby. During this scene, Refka tells her sister of a dream she had the previous night, highlighting her fears concerning the child soon to be born. Adriana too is anguished, wondering whether her son will turn out to be Cain or Abel.
Scene 4
It is now 17 years later. Adriana’s son, Yonas, has learned from people outside the family that his father did not die as a hero defending them, as Adriana has always explained to him. The son is furious. His mother justifi es not telling the truth by saying that she wanted to wait until he was mature enough to deal with it. Yonas is still angry both with his family and above all with his rapist father, whom he has never known and whom he promises to kill. Adriana does not even attempt to talk him out of it. The scene concludes with a dream. Again, we do not know who is dreaming: we see the enraged Yonas, who removes the masks from his family members and sacrifi ces them: first Tsargo, then Adriana and Refka. Then he turns the gun on himself.
Yonas is still angry both with his family and above all with his rapist father, whom he has never known and whom he promises to kill.
SCENE 5
Refka is looking for Adriana to tell her something she has just heard. She encounters Yonas, who blames her too for the lies he has been told about his father. As Adriana arrives, Refka tells her in Yonas’s hearing that Tsargo has returned to his homeland. Yonas declares that he will kill Tsargo and leaves. Refka wants to run after him, but Adriana stays put and says three times: “If he has to kill his father, he will!”
SCENE 6
Yonas goes to meet his father. He asks him if he is indeed Tsargo and begins to hurl abuse at him. The man remains with his back turned, but Yonas recognizes him nonetheless. Then Yonas says that he is going to kill Tsargo, but will not shoot him in the back. He asks the man to turn around and look at him. Tsargo turns around slowly, and we realize that he has gone blind. Yonas is confused; he feels unable to carry out the deed now that his father is disabled. He runs away without fulfi lling his promise.
Tsargo turns around slowly, and we realize that he has gone blind. Yonas is confused; he feels unable to carry out the deed now that his father is disabled.
SCENE 7
All four characters are on stage together, but everyone is in a world of his or her own: everyone is confused, uneasy and remorseful. Finally, only Yonas and Adriana meet. The son begs his mother’s forgiveness for not being able to take revenge. Adriana calmly asks him what happened. Then she confesses to Yonas that even before he was born she had agonized by day and night whether her son would turn out to be a killer like his father. Now she has an answer: “We are not avenged, Yonas. We are saved.”
