Madonna of the Cat
In Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale (1610), King Leontes of Sicilia puts his wife Hermione on public trial because he believes she’s having an affair with his best friend, King Polixenes of Bohemia. His accusation is baseless, and by the time the trial is over, Leontes is responsible for the death of his son Mamillius, the banishment of his infant daughter Perdita (left unattended to perish in the wilderness), Hermione’s presumed demise, and the death by bear mauling of his friend Antigonus. Unbeknownst to Leontes, Hermione and Perdita live. Perdita is found and raised by shepherds in Bohemia, and Hermione’s friend Paulina sequesters her for 16 years until Perdita can safely return to Sicily. Madonna of the Cat imagines what happens during those 16 years.
“. . . the heart of Madonna of the Cat is in a pair of female relationships, principally that between Hermione, a queen who lost everything except her life, and Paulina, the friend that both saves and sequesters her . . .”
— Marty Hughley, Oregon Arts Watch