In 1542 Marguerite contrived to come with her brother, the Sieur de Roberval, and Jacques Cartier on the grand attempt to found a colony in New France. But when de Roberval discovered she had dared to indulge in an affair with a minor nobleman on board ship, he abandoned her, with her lover and nurse, on a stark deserted island in the Strait of Belle Isle. Over two years later, alone and half mad, Marguerite is reduced to eating raw fish and haunted by phantoms of those who have betrayed her and those she has lost. But she sees a ship that promises rescue. Between the moment when the ship lowers its sail, to when the dinghy scrapes onto the shore, Marguerite is torn between madness, love, despair, remorse and the desire for revenge, as she struggles with her memories and her tormenting phantoms. Can she return to the 'civilization' that has betrayed her? Is there a way to live or is it better to die?
Year Printed: 2015
First Produced: 2015 at Alumnae Theatre, Toronto, ON
Running Time: 65 minutes
Acts: 1
Male Cast: 2
Female Cast: 3
Suitable for School Performances: Students age 16+
Keywords: Drama, 1542, Isle of Demons, Canadian history, betrayal, abandonment, passion, adventure, despair, madness, sorrow, revenge, cold, survival