Iphigeneia in Tauris
Encyclopedia
Iphigenia in Tauris is a drama by the playwright Euripides
, written between 414 BC
and 412 BC
. It has much in common with another of Euripides's plays, Helen
, and is often described as a romance
, a melodrama
or an escape play.
Iphigeneia
narrowly avoided death by sacrifice
at the hands of her father, Agamemnon
. (See plot of Iphigeneia at Aulis
.) At the last moment the goddess
Artemis
, to whom the sacrifice was to be made, intervened and replaced Iphigeneia on the altar with a deer, saving the girl and sweeping her off to Tauris
. She has since been made a priestess at the temple of Artemis in Tauris, a position in which she has the gruesome task of ritual
ly sacrificing foreigners who land on King Thoas
's shores.
Iphigeneia hates her forced religious servitude and is desperate to contact her family in Greece
. She wants to inform them that, thanks to the miraculous swap performed by Artemis, she is still alive and wants to return to her homeland, leaving the role of high priestess to someone else. Furthermore, she has had a prophetic dream about her younger brother Orestes
and believes that he is dead.
Meanwhile, Orestes has killed his mother Clytemnestra
to avenge his father Agamemnon
with assistance from his friend Pylades
. He becomes haunted by the Erinyes
for committing the crime and goes through periodic fits of madness. He is told by Apollo
to go to Athens
to be brought to trial (as portrayed in Eumenides
by Aeschylus
). Although the trial ends in his favour, the Erinyes continue to haunt him. Apollo sends him to steal a sacred statue of Artemis to bring back to Athens so that he may be set free.
in the land of the Taurians (modern Crimea
). The altar is in the center.
The play begins with Iphigenia reflecting on her brother's death. She recounts her "sacrifice" at the hands of Agamemnon
, and how she was saved by Artemis and made priestess in this temple. She has had a dream in which the structure of her family's house crashed down in ruins, leaving only a single column. She interprets this dream to mean that Orestes
is dead.
Orestes
and Pylades
enter, having just arrived in this land. Orestes was sent by Apollo
to retrieve the image of Artemis from the temple, and Pylades has accompanied him. Orestes explains that he has avenged Agamemnon's death by killing Clytaemnestra and Aegisthus
. The two decide to hide and make a plan to retrieve the idol without being captured. They know that the Taurians sacrifice Hellene blood in their temple of Artemis. Orestes and Pylades exit. Iphigenia enters and discusses her sad life with the chorus, composed of captive Greek maidens, attendants of Iphigenia. She believes that her father's bloodline has ended with the death of Orestes.
A herdsman enters and explains to Iphigenia that he has captured two Hellenes and that Iphigenia should make ready the lustral water and the rites of consecration. The herdsman heard one called Pylades by the other, but did not hear the name of the other. Iphigenia tells the herdsmen to bring the strangers to the temple, and says that she will prepare to sacrifice them. The herdsman leaves to fetch the strangers. Iphigenia explains that she was tricked into going to Aulis, through the treachery of Odysseus
. She was told that she was being married to Achilles, but upon arriving in Aulis, she discovered that she was going to be sacrificed by Agamemnon. Now, she presides over the sacrifices of any Hellene trespassers in the land of the Taurians, to avenge the crimes against her.
Orestes and Pylades enter in bonds. Iphigenia demands that the prisoners bounds be loosened, because they are hallowed. The attendants to Iphigenia leave to prepare for the sacrifice. Iphigenia asks Orestes his origins, but Orestes refuses to tell Iphigenia his name. Iphigenia finds out which of the two is Pylades and that they are from Argos. Iphigenia asks Orestes many questions, especially of Greeks who fought in Troy. She asks if Helen has returned home to the house of Menelaus, and of the fates of Calchas, Odysseus, Achilles, and Agamemnon. Orestes informs Iphigenia that Agamemnon is dead, but that his son lives. Upon hearing this, Iphigenia decides that she wants one of the strangers to return a letter to Argos, and that she will only sacrifice one of them. Orestes demands that he be sacrificed, and that Pylades be sent home with the letter, because Orestes brought Pylades on this trip, and it would not be right for Pylades to die while Orestes lives.
Pylades promises to deliver the letter unless his boat is shipwrecked and the letter is lost. Iphigenia then recites the letter to Pylades so that, if it is lost, he can still relay the message. She recites:
During this recitation, Orestes asks Pylades what he should do, having realized that he was standing in front of his sister.
Orestes reveals his identity to Iphigenia, who demands proof. First, Orestes recounts how Iphigenia embroidered the scene of the quarrel between Atreus
and Thyestes
on a fine web. Orestes also spoke of Pelops’ ancient spear, which he brandished in his hands when he killed Oenomaus and won Hippodamia, the maid of Pisa, which was hidden away in Iphigenia’s maiden chamber. This is evidence enough for Iphigenia, who embraces Orestes. Orestes explains that he has come to this land by the bidding of Phoebus’s oracle, and that if he is successful, he might finally be free of the haunting Erinyes
.
Orestes, Pylades, and Iphigenia plan an escape whereby Iphigenia will claim that the strangers need to be cleansed in order to be sacrificed and will take them to the bay where their ship is anchored. Additionally, Iphigenia will bring the idol that Orestes was sent to retrieve. Orestes and Pylades exit into the temple. Thoas, king of the Taurians, enters and asks whether or not the first rites have been performed over the strangers. Iphigenia has just retrieved the idol from the temple and explains that when the strangers were brought in front of the idol, the idol turned and closed its eyes. Iphigenia interprets it thusly to Thoas: The strangers arrived with the blood of kin on their hands and they must be cleansed. Also, the idol must be cleansed. Iphigenia explains that she would like to clean the strangers and the idol in the sea, to make for a purer sacrifice. Thoas agrees that this must be done, and suspects nothing. Iphigenia tells Thoas that he must remain at the temple and cleanse the hall with torches, and that she may take a long time. All three exit the stage.
A messenger enters, shouting that the strangers have escaped. Thoas enters from the temple, asking what all the noise is about. The messenger explains Iphigenia’s lies and that the strangers fought some of the natives, then escaped on their Hellene ship with the priestess and the idol. Thoas calls upon the citizens of his land to run along the shore and catch the ship. Athena
enters and explains to Thoas that he shouldn’t be angry. She addresses Iphigenia, telling her to be priestess at the sacred terraces of Brauron, and she tells Orestes that she is saving him again. Thoas heeds Athena’s words, because whoever hears the words of the gods and heeds them not is out of his mind.
Euripides
Euripides was one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens, the other two being Aeschylus and Sophocles. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to him but according to the Suda it was ninety-two at most...
, written between 414 BC
414 BC
Year 414 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Tribunate of Cossus, Ambustus, Potitus and Albinus...
and 412 BC
412 BC
Year 412 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Ambustus and Pacilus...
. It has much in common with another of Euripides's plays, Helen
Helen (play)
Helen is a drama by Euripides, probably first produced in 412 BC for the Dionysia. The play shares much in common with another of Euripides' works, Iphigenia in Tauris.-Background:...
, and is often described as a romance
Romance (genre)
As a literary genre of high culture, romance or chivalric romance is a style of heroic prose and verse narrative that was popular in the aristocratic circles of High Medieval and Early Modern Europe. They were fantastic stories about marvel-filled adventures, often of a knight errant portrayed as...
, a melodrama
Melodrama
The term melodrama refers to a dramatic work that exaggerates plot and characters in order to appeal to the emotions. It may also refer to the genre which includes such works, or to language, behavior, or events which resemble them...
or an escape play.
Background
Years before the time period covered by the play, the young princessPrincess
Princess is the feminine form of prince . Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or his daughters....
Iphigeneia
Iphigeneia
Iphigenia is a daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra in Greek mythology. In Attic accounts, her name means "strong-born", "born to strength", or "she who causes the birth of strong offspring."-Post-Homeric Greek myth:...
narrowly avoided death by sacrifice
Sacrifice
Sacrifice is the offering of food, objects or the lives of animals or people to God or the gods as an act of propitiation or worship.While sacrifice often implies ritual killing, the term offering can be used for bloodless sacrifices of cereal food or artifacts...
at the hands of her father, Agamemnon
Agamemnon
In Greek mythology, Agamemnon was the son of King Atreus and Queen Aerope of Mycenae, the brother of Menelaus, the husband of Clytemnestra, and the father of Electra and Orestes. Mythical legends make him the king of Mycenae or Argos, thought to be different names for the same area...
. (See plot of Iphigeneia at Aulis
Iphigeneia at Aulis
Iphigenia in Aulis is the last extant work of the playwright Euripides. Written between 408, after the Orestes, and 406 BC, the year of Euripides's death, the play was first produced the following year by his son or nephew, Euripides the Younger, and won the first place at the Athenian city...
.) At the last moment the goddess
Goddess
A goddess is a female deity. In some cultures goddesses are associated with Earth, motherhood, love, and the household. In other cultures, goddesses also rule over war, death, and destruction as well as healing....
Artemis
Artemis
Artemis was one of the most widely venerated of the Ancient Greek deities. Her Roman equivalent is Diana. Some scholars believe that the name and indeed the goddess herself was originally pre-Greek. Homer refers to her as Artemis Agrotera, Potnia Theron: "Artemis of the wildland, Mistress of Animals"...
, to whom the sacrifice was to be made, intervened and replaced Iphigeneia on the altar with a deer, saving the girl and sweeping her off to Tauris
Taurica
Taurica, Tauric Chersonese, and Taurida were names by which the territory of Crimea was known to the Greeks and Romans.- Etymology of the name :...
. She has since been made a priestess at the temple of Artemis in Tauris, a position in which she has the gruesome task of ritual
Ritual
A ritual is a set of actions, performed mainly for their symbolic value. It may be prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community. The term usually excludes actions which are arbitrarily chosen by the performers....
ly sacrificing foreigners who land on King Thoas
Thoas
Thoas , son of Andraemon and Gorge, was one of the heroes who fought for the Greeks in the Trojan War. He was a former suitor of Helen of Troy and led a group of forty ships for the Aetolians, one of the larger contingents. In the Iliad it states that he received his lordship because the previous...
's shores.
Iphigeneia hates her forced religious servitude and is desperate to contact her family in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. She wants to inform them that, thanks to the miraculous swap performed by Artemis, she is still alive and wants to return to her homeland, leaving the role of high priestess to someone else. Furthermore, she has had a prophetic dream about her younger brother Orestes
Orestes (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Orestes was the son of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon. He is the subject of several Ancient Greek plays and of various myths connected with his madness and purification, which retain obscure threads of much older ones....
and believes that he is dead.
Meanwhile, Orestes has killed his mother Clytemnestra
Clytemnestra
Clytemnestra or Clytaemnestra , in ancient Greek legend, was the wife of Agamemnon, king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Mycenae or Argos. In the Oresteia by Aeschylus, she was a femme fatale who murdered her husband, Agamemnon – said by Euripides to be her second husband – and the Trojan princess...
to avenge his father Agamemnon
Agamemnon
In Greek mythology, Agamemnon was the son of King Atreus and Queen Aerope of Mycenae, the brother of Menelaus, the husband of Clytemnestra, and the father of Electra and Orestes. Mythical legends make him the king of Mycenae or Argos, thought to be different names for the same area...
with assistance from his friend Pylades
Pylades
In Greek mythology, Pylades is the son of King Strophius of Phocis and of Anaxibia, daughter of Atreus and sister of Agamemnon and Menelaus. He is mostly known for his strong friendship with his cousin Orestes, son of Agamemnon.-Orestes and Pylades:...
. He becomes haunted by the Erinyes
Erinyes
In Greek mythology the Erinyes from Greek ἐρίνειν " pursue, persecute"--sometimes referred to as "infernal goddesses" -- were female chthonic deities of vengeance. A formulaic oath in the Iliad invokes them as "those who beneath the earth punish whosoever has sworn a false oath"...
for committing the crime and goes through periodic fits of madness. He is told by Apollo
Apollo
Apollo is one of the most important and complex of the Olympian deities in Greek and Roman mythology...
to go to Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
to be brought to trial (as portrayed in Eumenides
The Oresteia
The Oresteia is a trilogy of Greek tragedies written by Aeschylus which concerns the end of the curse on the House of Atreus. When originally performed it was accompanied by Proteus, a satyr play that would have been performed following the trilogy; it has not survived...
by Aeschylus
Aeschylus
Aeschylus was the first of the three ancient Greek tragedians whose work has survived, the others being Sophocles and Euripides, and is often described as the father of tragedy. His name derives from the Greek word aiskhos , meaning "shame"...
). Although the trial ends in his favour, the Erinyes continue to haunt him. Apollo sends him to steal a sacred statue of Artemis to bring back to Athens so that he may be set free.
Iphigenia Among the Taurians is excellent theater by any standard. Its plot is carefully conceived, its characters are clearly defined and behave plausibly and interestingly in crises that are credible; there is the thrill of danger, the romance of far places and strange ways, the sentimentality of old memories and mixed loyalties and nostalgic yearnings. The relationship of Orestes and Pylades (who has at last found his tongue) adds a new dimension of poignancy. The tense and credible recognition scene evoked even Aristotle's admiration. Here if anywhere it is clear that Euripides is dramatist, not pamphleteer. Yet when he is most unmistakably the poet, Euripides is still the teacher. The introduction of a barbarian serves to bring certain unlovely Greek characteristics into relief. The account of Orestes' hallucination at the time of his made seizure suggests a rational interpretation of the accepted story of the Avenging Furies. Apollo's wisdom and honesty are again impugned.
As always in Euripides, the god out of the machine which ensures the happy ending is an equivocation; but here a mind not resolutely skeptical can entertain both alternatives simultaneously. Without Athena's intervention, it is clear, the Greek party would never escape, and their inevitable doom would underscore the tragic meaning of their antecedent history. But the atmosphere of the remote and wonderful which surrounds the whole makes it easy to accept a final miracle without compromising the total effect.
Plot
The scene represents the front of the temple of ArtemisArtemis
Artemis was one of the most widely venerated of the Ancient Greek deities. Her Roman equivalent is Diana. Some scholars believe that the name and indeed the goddess herself was originally pre-Greek. Homer refers to her as Artemis Agrotera, Potnia Theron: "Artemis of the wildland, Mistress of Animals"...
in the land of the Taurians (modern Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
). The altar is in the center.
The play begins with Iphigenia reflecting on her brother's death. She recounts her "sacrifice" at the hands of Agamemnon
Agamemnon
In Greek mythology, Agamemnon was the son of King Atreus and Queen Aerope of Mycenae, the brother of Menelaus, the husband of Clytemnestra, and the father of Electra and Orestes. Mythical legends make him the king of Mycenae or Argos, thought to be different names for the same area...
, and how she was saved by Artemis and made priestess in this temple. She has had a dream in which the structure of her family's house crashed down in ruins, leaving only a single column. She interprets this dream to mean that Orestes
Orestes
Orestes was the son of Agamemnon in Greek mythology; Orestes may also refer to:Drama*Orestes , by Euripides*Orestes, the character in Sophocles' tragedy Electra*Orestes, the character in Aeschylus' trilogy of tragedies, Oresteia...
is dead.
Orestes
Orestes
Orestes was the son of Agamemnon in Greek mythology; Orestes may also refer to:Drama*Orestes , by Euripides*Orestes, the character in Sophocles' tragedy Electra*Orestes, the character in Aeschylus' trilogy of tragedies, Oresteia...
and Pylades
Pylades
In Greek mythology, Pylades is the son of King Strophius of Phocis and of Anaxibia, daughter of Atreus and sister of Agamemnon and Menelaus. He is mostly known for his strong friendship with his cousin Orestes, son of Agamemnon.-Orestes and Pylades:...
enter, having just arrived in this land. Orestes was sent by Apollo
Apollo
Apollo is one of the most important and complex of the Olympian deities in Greek and Roman mythology...
to retrieve the image of Artemis from the temple, and Pylades has accompanied him. Orestes explains that he has avenged Agamemnon's death by killing Clytaemnestra and Aegisthus
Aegisthus
In Greek mythology, Aegisthus was the son of Thyestes and of Thyestes' daughter, Pelopia....
. The two decide to hide and make a plan to retrieve the idol without being captured. They know that the Taurians sacrifice Hellene blood in their temple of Artemis. Orestes and Pylades exit. Iphigenia enters and discusses her sad life with the chorus, composed of captive Greek maidens, attendants of Iphigenia. She believes that her father's bloodline has ended with the death of Orestes.
A herdsman enters and explains to Iphigenia that he has captured two Hellenes and that Iphigenia should make ready the lustral water and the rites of consecration. The herdsman heard one called Pylades by the other, but did not hear the name of the other. Iphigenia tells the herdsmen to bring the strangers to the temple, and says that she will prepare to sacrifice them. The herdsman leaves to fetch the strangers. Iphigenia explains that she was tricked into going to Aulis, through the treachery of Odysseus
Odysseus
Odysseus or Ulysses was a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the Odyssey. Odysseus also plays a key role in Homer's Iliad and other works in the Epic Cycle....
. She was told that she was being married to Achilles, but upon arriving in Aulis, she discovered that she was going to be sacrificed by Agamemnon. Now, she presides over the sacrifices of any Hellene trespassers in the land of the Taurians, to avenge the crimes against her.
Orestes and Pylades enter in bonds. Iphigenia demands that the prisoners bounds be loosened, because they are hallowed. The attendants to Iphigenia leave to prepare for the sacrifice. Iphigenia asks Orestes his origins, but Orestes refuses to tell Iphigenia his name. Iphigenia finds out which of the two is Pylades and that they are from Argos. Iphigenia asks Orestes many questions, especially of Greeks who fought in Troy. She asks if Helen has returned home to the house of Menelaus, and of the fates of Calchas, Odysseus, Achilles, and Agamemnon. Orestes informs Iphigenia that Agamemnon is dead, but that his son lives. Upon hearing this, Iphigenia decides that she wants one of the strangers to return a letter to Argos, and that she will only sacrifice one of them. Orestes demands that he be sacrificed, and that Pylades be sent home with the letter, because Orestes brought Pylades on this trip, and it would not be right for Pylades to die while Orestes lives.
Pylades promises to deliver the letter unless his boat is shipwrecked and the letter is lost. Iphigenia then recites the letter to Pylades so that, if it is lost, he can still relay the message. She recites:
She that was sacrificed in Aulis send this message, Iphigenia, still alive, though dead to those at Argos. Fetch me back to Argos, my brother, before I die. Rescue me from this barbarian land, free me from this slaughterous priesthood, in which it is my office to kill strangers. Else I shall become a curse upon your house, Orestes. Goddess Artemis saved me and substituted a deer, which my father sacrificed believing he was thrusting the sharp blade into me. Then she brought me to stay in this land.
During this recitation, Orestes asks Pylades what he should do, having realized that he was standing in front of his sister.
Orestes reveals his identity to Iphigenia, who demands proof. First, Orestes recounts how Iphigenia embroidered the scene of the quarrel between Atreus
Atreus
In Greek mythology, Atreus was a king of Mycenae, the son of Pelops and Hippodamia, and the father of Agamemnon and Menelaus. Collectively, his descendants are known as Atreidai or Atreidae....
and Thyestes
Thyestes
In Greek mythology, Thyestes was the son of Pelops and Hippodamia, King of Olympia, and father of Pelopia and Aegisthus. Thyestes and his twin brother, Atreus, were exiled by their father for having murdered their half-brother, Chrysippus, in their desire for the throne of Olympia...
on a fine web. Orestes also spoke of Pelops’ ancient spear, which he brandished in his hands when he killed Oenomaus and won Hippodamia, the maid of Pisa, which was hidden away in Iphigenia’s maiden chamber. This is evidence enough for Iphigenia, who embraces Orestes. Orestes explains that he has come to this land by the bidding of Phoebus’s oracle, and that if he is successful, he might finally be free of the haunting Erinyes
Erinyes
In Greek mythology the Erinyes from Greek ἐρίνειν " pursue, persecute"--sometimes referred to as "infernal goddesses" -- were female chthonic deities of vengeance. A formulaic oath in the Iliad invokes them as "those who beneath the earth punish whosoever has sworn a false oath"...
.
Orestes, Pylades, and Iphigenia plan an escape whereby Iphigenia will claim that the strangers need to be cleansed in order to be sacrificed and will take them to the bay where their ship is anchored. Additionally, Iphigenia will bring the idol that Orestes was sent to retrieve. Orestes and Pylades exit into the temple. Thoas, king of the Taurians, enters and asks whether or not the first rites have been performed over the strangers. Iphigenia has just retrieved the idol from the temple and explains that when the strangers were brought in front of the idol, the idol turned and closed its eyes. Iphigenia interprets it thusly to Thoas: The strangers arrived with the blood of kin on their hands and they must be cleansed. Also, the idol must be cleansed. Iphigenia explains that she would like to clean the strangers and the idol in the sea, to make for a purer sacrifice. Thoas agrees that this must be done, and suspects nothing. Iphigenia tells Thoas that he must remain at the temple and cleanse the hall with torches, and that she may take a long time. All three exit the stage.
A messenger enters, shouting that the strangers have escaped. Thoas enters from the temple, asking what all the noise is about. The messenger explains Iphigenia’s lies and that the strangers fought some of the natives, then escaped on their Hellene ship with the priestess and the idol. Thoas calls upon the citizens of his land to run along the shore and catch the ship. Athena
Athena
In Greek mythology, Athena, Athenê, or Athene , also referred to as Pallas Athena/Athene , is the goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, warfare, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, justice, and skill. Minerva, Athena's Roman incarnation, embodies similar attributes. Athena is...
enters and explains to Thoas that he shouldn’t be angry. She addresses Iphigenia, telling her to be priestess at the sacred terraces of Brauron, and she tells Orestes that she is saving him again. Thoas heeds Athena’s words, because whoever hears the words of the gods and heeds them not is out of his mind.
Translations
- Robert Potter, 1781 – verse: full text
- Edward P. Coleridge, 1891 – prose
- Gilbert MurrayGilbert MurrayGeorge Gilbert Aimé Murray, OM was an Australian born British classical scholar and public intellectual, with connections in many spheres. He was an outstanding scholar of the language and culture of Ancient Greece, perhaps the leading authority in the first half of the twentieth century...
, 1910 – verse: full text - Arthur S. Way, 1912 – verse
- Augustus T. Murray, 1931 – prose
- Robert Potter, 1938 – prose: full text
- Witter BynnerWitter BynnerHarold Witter Bynner was an American poet, writer and scholar, known for his long residence in Santa Fe, New Mexico, at what is now the Inn of the Turquoise Bear.-Early life:...
, 1956 – verse - Moses HadasMoses HadasMoses Hadas was an American teacher, one of the leading classical scholars of the twentieth century, and a translator of numerous works....
and John McLeanJohn McLeanJohn McLean was an American jurist and politician who served in the United States Congress, as U.S. Postmaster General, and as a justice on the Ohio and U.S...
, 1960 - Philip Vellacott, 1974 – prose and verse
- David KovacsDávid KovácsDávid Kovács is a Hungarian politician, former founding member of the Movement for a Better Hungary. He served as chairman of the party since the beginnings until 2006...
, 1999 – prose - J. Davie, 2002
- J. Morwood, 2002
- G.Theodoridis, 2009 – prose: full text
Plays
- Guimond de la Touche Iphigénie en Tauride (1757)
- GoetheJohann Wolfgang von GoetheJohann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German writer, pictorial artist, biologist, theoretical physicist, and polymath. He is considered the supreme genius of modern German literature. His works span the fields of poetry, drama, prose, philosophy, and science. His Faust has been called the greatest long...
Iphigenie auf Tauris (1787)
Operas
- André CampraAndré CampraAndré Campra was a French composer and conductor.Campra was one of the leading French opera composers in the period between Jean-Baptiste Lully and Jean-Philippe Rameau. He wrote several tragédies en musique, but his chief claim to fame is as the creator of a new genre, opéra-ballet...
and Henri DesmaretsHenri DesmaretsHenri Desmarets was a French composer of the Baroque period primarily known for his stage works, although he also composed sacred music as well as secular cantatas, songs and instrumental works....
Iphigénie en Tauride (1704) - Tommaso TraettaTommaso TraettaTommaso Michele Francesco Saverio Traetta was an Italian composer.-Biography:Traetta was born in Bitonto, a town near Bari, near the top of the heel of the boot of Italy. He eventually became a pupil of the composer, singer and teacher Nicola Porpora in Naples, and scored a first success with his...
Ifigenia in Tauride (1763) - Gluck Iphigénie en TaurideIphigénie en TaurideIphigénie en Tauride is an opera by Christoph Willibald Gluck in four acts. It was his fifth opera for the French stage. The libretto was written by Nicolas-François Guillard....
(1779), the most famous operatic version of the story - Niccolò PiccinniNiccolò PiccinniNiccolò Piccinni was an Italian composer of symphonies, sacred music, chamber music, and opera. Although he is somewhat obscure, even to music lovers today, Piccinni was one of the most popular composers of opera—particularly the Neapolitan opera buffa—of his day...
Iphigénie en TaurideIphigénie en Tauride (Piccinni)Iphigénie en Tauride is a tragédie lyrique in four acts by Niccolò Piccinni, which was first performed at the Académie royale de musique on January 23, 1781...
(1781)