In the Prologue, Sole (the Sun) and Amore (Eros) compete over Giasone (Jason), to settle which woman, Isifile (Hypsipyle) or Medea, he will love. In Colchis, Giasone forgets himself in Medea’s company. His friend Ercole (Hercules) reproaches him for his lack of heroic diligence. Indeed, the hero left his first wife, Isifile (queen of Lemnos), to find the Golden Fleece, and he declares his love to his new mistress. As for Medea, she dismisses Egeo (Aegeus), whose love bothers her. Oreste (Orestes) came to inquire about Giasone on behalf of Isifile; he meets the stammerer Demo, who challenges him to a duel and then begs to be his friend, while still imploring him to let himself be beaten because it would make Oreste happy. Medea plays with Giasone and makes him believe that she wants him to marry Delfa, then she declares her love to him, causing bitterness on the nurse Delfa’s part. While Isifile laments the loss of her husband, Medea wards off the spirits to ensure Giasone’s success in his quest for the Fleece. Oreste learns about Giasone’s love for Medea and goes to tell Isifile, whom he finds asleep, dreaming about her husband’s return: he takes advantage of the situation and steals a few kisses from her. When she wakes up, he tells her about Giasone’s betrayal. She orders him to have Giasone killed. Giasone struggles in the Labyrinth, as part of his quest for the Fleece; then he sails to Corinth, with Medea. A love affair develops between Oreste and Alinda, Isifile’s companion. Egeo learns of the lovers’ flight from Demo and decides to follow them. When their ship sinks, Demo believes that he is dead and in a whale’s stomach. Another love affair begins between Alinda and Besso. Oreste tells Giasone that Isifile is looking for him. Giasone tries to distance Medea, who wants to meet her rival, by explaining to her that she is a visionary. Isifile walks in on the romantic duo, interrupting them. To get rid of her, Giasone promises her his love, and he arranges for them to meet in an inn. He gives in to her request for a kiss, as a token of his honesty. Once again, a romantic duo is interrupted: it is Medea’s turn to walk in on Giasone and Isifile. To pacify her, Giasone asks her to meet him too, and promises that Besso will have Isifile killed. To Besso, Giasone demands that the first person to appear be thrown into the sea, no matter if they are man or woman. Egeo, dressed up as a seaman, meets Demo who, still convinced to be dead, mistakes him for a spirit. Suspicious, Medea appears before Besso: captured by Giasone’ soldiers, she believes that her lover has betrayed her. When Isifile arrives, Besso sends her away. Thrown into the water, Medea is rescued by Egeo; she entrusts him with her revenge. Giasone, convinced that Besso carried out his mission, tries to fall asleep, and he dreams of the ghosts of the two women. Egeo tries to kill him, but Isifile prevents him from doing so. She is wrongly accused of the attempted murder, and Egeo runs away. While Besso announces Medea’s death, the latter appears and reveals the whole plot. Then, Egeo’s testimony clears up the situation. Isifile wants to kill herself out of romantic disappointment, but the depth of her feelings wins Giasone back. Everyone, including Medea, can now rejoice.

"On foot and by rod" puppet

Marionette with counterweight

Not specified

Acciaiuoli Filippo (aka Gran Burattinajo)

Apolloni Giovanni Filippo

Italy

Rome

Printed

Greek mythology

Golden Fleece

Love

Jealousy

Shipwreck

Unfaithfulness

Magic

Heroic

Melodramatic

Fantasy

Comical

Il Novello Giasone, 1671 (front cover)

Italian

Jason

Hercules

Confident

Queen

Hypsipyle

Oreste

Lady

Medea

Nurse

King

Aegeus

Servant

Satyre

Spirit

Choir

Argonauts

Soldier

Sailor

Sung play

Love story

Play in verse

Prologue

Cross-dressing

Character mistaken as a member of the other sex

Sword fight

Comic stuttering

Prayer

Magic spell

Apparition of demons

Account of a dream

Monologue

Night scene

Interlude

Apparition of a god

Ballet

Flying machine

Stone throwing

Flying character

Equivocation

Off-stage scream

Off-stage noise

Il Novello Giasone

The New Jason

Jason lands in Colchis with Teseu (Theseus) and an armed escort; he seeks to obtain the Golden Fleece. As he admires the King’s beautiful daughter, Medeia (Medea), and her cousin Creúsa, his servant Sacatrapo is coveting Arpia, Medeia’s servant. Sacatrapo, hidden inside a sideboard, overhears Medeia declaring her love for Jason to her servant. Jason promises to marry Medeia if she helps him find the Golden Fleece. But he is in love with Creúsa: he declares his love to his servant and entrusts him with inquiring into the young woman’s feelings. The King is sceptical about the motifs of Jason’s coming and asks Medeia to find out about his true intentions. Because Jason urges her to, Medeia carries him on a cloud to the enchanted garden. On Pegasus’s back, Jason enters the garden, where he fights against a fire-breathing dragon; laid down, the dragon disappears into flames. Medeia summons Sacatrapo thanks to a dragon who spits the servant out of its month. Casting her spells, she makes the flowers of the garden move and transforms them into nymphs (which Sacatrapo sees as donkeys). Jason confirms again that he loves Medeia, even though he is thinking about Creúsa. Jason is preparing to flee with Teseu and asks Sacatrapo to go fetch Creúsa. The servant tells the King that Jason stole the Golden Fleece from him. Medeia, abandoned, confides in Creúsa. The young women order Jason to explain himself. The King asks Medeia to vouch for Jason; she agrees. Sacatrapo meets Medeia: mistaking her for Creúsa during a night scene, he reveals that Jason is unfaithful. Furious, Medeia buries him slowly to feed the dragons with him, and replaces his head with a donkey’s. He must look for his head in the depths. Arpia fools Sacatrapo by promising that he will discover a donkey with golden droppings; this donkey is said to be kept by an ant. Sacatrapo is determined to kill the ant and steal the donkey using the hat given by Arpia, which should make him invisible. Medeia walks in on Creúsa and Jason during a romantic duo scene; she buries her rival inside a mountain. The King begins a war against the Argonauts: Sacatrapo arrives with a rag on his head and believes that he is invisible. He and Jason are taken prisoners. Riding a chariot drawn by dragons, Medeia divides the armies with a river. The King disowns his daughter, as she raises a tower from which she defies him. While Sacatrapo believes that he has found a treasure, snakes come out of the chest he is dragging: he has once again been fooled by Arpia. Creúsa and Jason flee during a night scene, but Medeia unleashes the winds, leading to a storm scene, so that they are forced to go back to Colchis. The King pardons Jason, offers him to marry Creúsa and promises to kill Medeia, who escapes on a cloud.