Character Relationship Map: Dark August

Characters

• Adrianna Putnam (played by Kim Hunter) — protagonist

  A local psychic considered a witch by townspeople. Jackie consults her to cure Sal's symptoms. Adrianna confirms a curse, advises burning the studio, and conducts a protection ritual with Sal, Jackie,...

• Sal Devito (played by J.J. Barry) — protagonist

  A New York visual artist relocated to Vermont with his girlfriend. Following a car accident, he suffers physical ailments and paranoia about a curse. He accidentally injures Paul, crashes his car chas...

• Jackie (played by Carolyne Barry) — supporting

  Sal's girlfriend who moves to Vermont with him. Worried about his deteriorating health, she seeks help from Adrianna Putnam and visits the grandfather to stop the curse, fleeing after being attacked....

• Lesley (played by Kate McKeown) — supporting

  A clairvoyant friend of the couple. She gives Sal a tarot reading warning of danger but promising aid from an unknown woman. She accompanies Sal and Jackie to Adrianna, confirms the curse, and takes p...

• Theo (played by Frank Bongiorno) — supporting

  A friend of Sal and Jackie. He joins them for dinner and the visit to Adrianna. He actively participates in the protective ritual at Adrianna's home, drinking from the goblet alongside the others to h...

• The Child (played by Karen Lewis) — minor
• Paul (played by Richard Allan Fay) — supporting

  Sal's friend who assists him in building his art studio. He suffers a leg injury when Sal, distracted by a hooded figure, inadvertently causes an accident. Sal drives him to the hospital, resulting in...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Lesley → Sal Devito (Professional Clairvoyant Adviser) — Lesley interprets supernatural signs that frame Sal's danger.

  Lesley gives Sal a tarot reading that warns he is in danger and that an unknown woman will come to his aid.

• Jackie → Adrianna Putnam (Professional Seeker And Adviser) — Jackie relies on Adrianna to protect Sal and organize a response to the curse.

  Jackie believes Adrianna can help Sal, visits her for assistance, and later brings Sal to Adrianna's home for a protective ritual.

• Sal Devito → Adrianna Putnam (Professional Client And Psychic) — Adrianna becomes Sal's principal source of supernatural guidance.

  Sal visits Adrianna with Jackie and Lesley. Adrianna confirms his suspicion of a curse and advises him to burn the unfinished studio.

• Sal Devito → Jackie (Romantic Girlfriend) — A romantic partnership strained by Sal's symptoms, fear, and suspected curse.

  The plot states that Sal relocated to rural Vermont with his girlfriend, Jackie. Jackie remains concerned about Sal and actively seeks help for his wo...

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Lesley → Adrianna Putnam (Alliance Ritual Participant) — Lesley connects her clairvoyant warnings with Adrianna's protective ritual.

  Lesley accompanies Sal and Jackie to Adrianna and later takes part in the protective ritual at Adrianna's home.

• Theo → Sal Devito (Social Friend) — Theo supports Sal as part of the couple's close social circle.

  Theo joins Sal and Jackie for dinner and later participates in the protective ritual intended to help Sal.

• Lesley → Jackie (Social Friend) — Lesley is a trusted friend whom Jackie consults during the crisis.

  Lesley has dinner with Jackie and Sal, and Jackie later confides in Lesley about her belief that Adrianna can help Sal.

• Sal Devito → The Child (Unknown Accidental Causal Link) — The child's death becomes the source of Sal's guilt and the later supernatural threat.

  A car accident involving Sal shortly after his move resulted in the death of a young girl.

• Sal Devito → Paul (Social Friend) — A friendship tested by an accident and Sal's increasingly dangerous distractions.

  Paul helps Sal build his art studio. Sal accidentally causes Paul to injure his leg and then attempts to drive him to the hospital.

• Theo → Adrianna Putnam (Alliance Ritual Participant) — Theo cooperates with Adrianna's ritual effort to protect Sal.

  Theo goes to Adrianna's home and drinks from the goblet during the ritual designed to transform the negative energy attached to Sal.

Story Analysis

A troubled artist becomes trapped between guilt, suspected witchcraft, supernatural persecution, and a devastating final confrontation.

Plot Progression

1. A Troubled Vermont Arrival — Sal and Jackie struggle to adjust to rural Vermont after leaving New York City. The earlier fatal accident and Sal's unexplained symptoms establish guilt, fear, and suspicion.
2. The Hooded Presence — Sal's work with Paul is disrupted by repeated sightings of a hooded figure. Paul's injury and the covered-bridge crash intensify Sal's paranoia and physical distress.
3. Signs of a Curse — Lesley's tarot reading warns Sal of danger, while Jackie seeks a more direct explanation. Adrianna confirms the curse and identifies the figure as demonic.
4. Fire and Desperation — Sal follows Adrianna's advice and burns the unfinished studio, but the fire is extinguished and he is arrested. Jackie then investigates the suspected curse-maker's home and escapes an attack.
5. The Broken Protection — Adrianna conducts a protective ritual with Sal, Jackie, Theo, and Lesley. Although Adrianna is shot during the incantation, the ritual's force turns against the curse's caster before Sal faces a final...