The opera opens to the chords of the psalm tune 'York'. John Bunyan is in Bedford Gaol, completing his book The Pilgrim's Progress. He stands, faces the audience, and begins to read from the opening of the book. As he does so, a vision of Pilgrim appears, carrying his burden. A curtain falls to conceal Bunyan, and Pilgrim is alone on stage, reading and in a state of lamentation.
