The Balcony Study Guide

Scene 1 - In a room with an unmade bed, a Bishop sits and declaims his philosophy of faith. He is larger than life, wearing robes with exaggerated shoulders, standing on stilts and wearing garish makeup. A Young Woman in lace and Irma, an older woman in a black suit, attend him. As the Bishop rejoices in the beauty of his clothes, Irma repeatedly reminds him to honor their agreement. The Bishop repeatedly insists that the Young Woman confess her sins, asking if they were real. Both the Young Woman and Irma insist that they were. Ignoring the Bishop's protests, they remove his robes. When the Young Woman continues to insist that her sins were real, the Bishop speaks in a completely different voice and says he hopes she didn't really do the evil things she said she did. Irma reassures him an... (read more)