Act Two
SCENE ONE: UBALDO and ISABELLA
Ubaldo beats Isabella to make her agree to go into the room and be content with marrying him. She enters, crying, with a handkerchief over her eyes. She wonders about the situation, and the old man tries to console her with jokes. In the end, she dismisses him, telling him that if he came to make a fool of her, it will take more than that to affect her. The old man leaves angrily.
SCENE TWO: ARDELIA and DOCTOR
The Doctor calls Ardelia and makes the same requests, but she refuses, saying she has other things on her mind. The Doctor, confused, leaves.
SCENE THREE: ISABELLA disguised as a man, ORAZIO on the side, and GRADELLINO
Isabella comes out, saying she dressed in that attire so as to freely investigate and find out who murdered her dear Orazio. Gradellino enters, and they have a scene together. He tells her that Ottavio was the one who killed Orazio. Isabella expresses anger, vows revenge, and pleads for Gradellino to accompany her. And during this...
SCENE FOUR: ORAZIO and the aforementioned characters
Orazio, disguised with a fake beard, steps forward, unrecognized by anyone. He claims to be a foreign soldier and asks Isabella who she is. Similarly, she claims to be a soldier but only seeks revenge for a wrong she experienced in love. He reproaches her, saying that the soldiers of love should not be accompanied by the weapons of Mars. They have a conversation, and he offers to accompany her in her adventure. She accepts and asks for his name. He says his name is Innocente, and she says her name is Fedele. Gradellino's name is Narciso. They all depart to seek their fortune in war.
SCENE FIVE: ARDELIA and ROSETTA
Ardelia expresses her suspicion that Orazio found an opportunity in the war, so she has dressed as a man to enlist under his command. She believes that, despite fortune's opposition, she will have a chance to serve him. She entrusts the house to Rosetta and leaves. Rosetta pleads with her not to leave, but Ardelia does not listen and departs, leaving Rosetta in tears.
SCENE SIX: The two PARENTS, and later, ROSETTA
The parents discuss the stubbornness of their daughters, attributing it to their virtue. They resolve to call them. The Doctor calls for Isabella, but she doesn't respond. He enters the house but doesn't find her. He comes out, lamenting, and Ubaldo reprimands him, saying that his own stinginess in not keeping a servant led to this. Ubaldo calls for Rosetta and tells her to call Ardelia. Rosetta, in tears, says Ardelia ran away from home, dressed as a man. The parents mock each other and leave to search for her.
SCENE SEVEN: ORAZIO, ISABELLA, and GRADELLINO
Orazio tells Isabella that he has realized, from her behavior and actions, that she is a woman. He offers to keep her secret as long as she is willing to be his lover. Gradellino asserts that she is not a woman, but in the end, she confesses that she is indeed a woman but cannot reciprocate his love. She explains how she lived as the lover of a man named Orazio, who was deprived of his life. She dresses in male attire to seek revenge against his killer. Gradellino confirms her story, and they all depart. Orazio lingers, expressing his trust in Isabella's faithfulness, and then leaves.
SCENE EIGHT: OTTAVIO and ARDELIA
Ardelia sees Ottavio, pretends not to know him, and he doesn't recognize her. He greets her and asks who she is. She says she is a captain forming a company for the Spanish Crown. She asks him to consider enlisting her. He agrees and says that soon he will come to that place with his officers. He leaves, and she remains, performing a scene, and then departs.
SCENE NINE: GRADELLINO and BRIGHELLA
They have a scene of friendship, and in the end, Brighella decides to play a trick on Gradellino. He tells him about his sufferings and how he is dying of hunger. Brighella asks Gradellino to present him two scudi over a ring and says that as a friend he will lend him two scudi without interest.* They joke about the tooth extraction by Messer Timoteo**, and the second act ends.
* This loose description appears to be a lazzo that the actors were familiar with, probably something where Brighella confuses Gradellino into forfeiting his goods and makes it seem like an act of charity when he loans Gradellino back his own money. Compare a similar con in Bragatto Act 4, Scene 5.
** A lazzo in which ludicrous techniques are used to extract a patient’s tooth; probably played by background actors during the scene, as Timoteo is not otherwise mentioned.