The Mother is a wealthy landowner's widow in rural Andalusia who zealously protects her only surviving son. She lives in constant fear of violence after losing her husband and eldest son to a feud with the rival Felix family. She adheres strictly to traditional social expectations and openly wishes her son had been born a girl so he would be safe from the violent obligations placed on men.

The Bride is a 22-year-old woman living with her father on an isolated, struggling farm. She is bound by rural Andalusian societal expectations to marry the Bridegroom for financial stability and land consolidation. Despite her practical agreement to the arranged marriage, she harbors deep dissatisfaction and struggles with intense feelings for her former lover.

The Bridegroom is a practical young landowner who has recently secured his financial future by purchasing a distant vineyard. As the last surviving male of his family, he is sheltered by his mother but approaches life with a straightforward, non-violent attitude. He acts according to conventional expectations, viewing his upcoming marriage as the logical next step in his life.

Leonardo is an impulsive and passionate young man, and the only character in the play given a proper name. He belongs to the Felix clan, the family responsible for the deaths of the Bridegroom's father and brother. Married to the Bride's cousin and expecting a second child, he remains tormented by his previous relationship with the Bride and refuses to adhere to social niceties.

Leonardo's Wife is the cousin of the Bride and a young mother pregnant with her second child. She is acutely aware that her husband does not love her and still harbors feelings for her cousin. Despite recognizing her husband's erratic behavior and secret horseback rides, she is restricted by her society's patriarchal rules to her domestic duties.

The Father is a proud and pragmatic alfalfa farmer who lives with his daughter on an isolated tract of land. He is highly focused on agriculture and land acquisition, viewing his daughter's marriage primarily as an opportunity to merge his struggling farm with the Bridegroom's prosperous vineyard.

The Servant works in the Bride's household and acts as an attendant, confidante, and occasional mediator. She observes the late-night visits of Leonardo's horse and attempts to enforce traditional celebratory attitudes upon the reluctant Bride, functioning similarly to a traditional chorus by commenting on the household's events.

Leonardo's Mother-in-Law is a traditional older woman who assists her daughter with childcare and domestic duties. She notices the physical exhaustion of Leonardo's horse and questions his whereabouts, representing the watchful, policing nature of the local community.

The Neighbour is a local woman who serves as an information conduit for the Mother. She provides crucial background information about the Bride's past relationship with Leonardo, inadvertently sparking the Mother's intense anxieties about the upcoming engagement.

The Moon is a supernatural force personified as a young woodcutter casting a luminous blue light. Rather than a passive celestial body, the Moon actively hungers for human blood and functions as an agent of fate, desiring to illuminate the forest so violent events can run their course.

The Beggar Woman is the physical personification of Death. She operates in the primordial forest, speaking in verse about waiting coffins and shrouds. She actively guides the pursuing characters through the woods, ensuring that the natural cycles of fate are fulfilled without mercy.

The Three Woodcutters act as a traditional chorus within the forest setting. They observe the passions and pursuits of the human characters, expressing sympathy for those who follow their desires while acknowledging the inescapable nature of the blood feud.

The Young Women represent the societal expectations placed upon women and function similarly to mythological weavers of fate. They sing traditional wedding songs, ask the Bride about her wedding pins, and later spin red wool that symbolizes the thread of human life.