Event
Actéon — Marc-Antoine Charpentier (c. 1684)
Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris
This production of Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s “Hunting Opera” in six scenes, retracing the story of Acteon in Ovid’s Metamorphoses, is directed by Benjamin Lazar. It was filmed in a single sequence shot in December 2020 in the Théâtre du Châtelet during the closure of the theatres.
The filmed version (directed by Corentin Leconte) is available on arte.TV from 16 February 2021 through 19 January 2022.This elegant, sensitive version of the opera is framed by a single “spectator” in the empty theatre, whose solitariness mirrors Acteon’s after his transformation. The music and singers (conducted by Geoffroy Jourdain) are well served by the stripped-back design, consisting essentially of a backcloth reproducing Le Douanier Rousseau's “Jaguar attacking a horse” in 1910, and soft lighting.
On Acteon in Shakespeare and his contemporaries, see Agnès Lafont’s entry in this dictionary: http://shakmyth.org/myth/4/actaeon
Troy: Myth and reality
British Museum, London
Exhibition: 21 November 2019—8 March 2020
The legend of Troy has endured for more than 3,000 years.
The story of a great city, plunged into a 10-year war over the abduction of the most beautiful woman in the world, is irresistibly dramatic and tragic. This allure has sent adventurers and archaeologists in quest of the lost city, which is now widely believed to have existed.
But what of the heroes and heartbroken, women and wanderers, who are said to have played a part in the Trojan War? Why have they inspired so many retellings, from Homer to Shakespeare to Hollywood?
More information here.
Website of the Week (WoW) #157 (4 August 2014): A Dictionary of Shakespeare’s Classical Mythology
“This website is an ongoing research project on the interactions of Shakespeare and his contemporaries with classical mythology and includes not only a dictionary of mythological figures referenced in Shakespeare’s works but also Early English Mythological Texts, and Studies in Early Modern Mythology, an online collection of peer-reviewed essays.”
Visit MLA International Bibliography’s Facebook page
Sleeping Eros at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
January 29–June 23, 2013
The exhibition is organised around the Metropolitan’s bronze statue Sleeping Eros, which seems to have been among the most popular ever produced in Roman Imperial times. It was also among the earliest of the ancient statues rediscovered during the Renaissance, when artists revisited the theme.
More information at netmuseum.org
Metamorphosis: Titian - 2012
A major celebration, organised by the National Gallery, of Titian’s mythological works, inspired by Ovid’s Metamorphoses.
This year-long celebration will be in two stages:
1/ “Diana and Actaeon” on Tour in the UK from the National Gallery
Titian’s celebrated painting, “Diana and Actaeon” (1556-1559), which tells the story from Book III of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, goes on tour to:
• Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool (13 January – 26 February 2012)
• Norwich Castle Museum and Art Gallery (3 March – 15 April 2012)
• National Museum Cardiff (19 April – 17 June 2012)
More about the touring exhibition
More about Titian’s “Diana and Actaeon”
2/ Metamorphosis: Titian (11 July - 23 September 2012)
The painting returns to the National Gallery in time for the exhibition Metamorphosis: Titian 2012.
The exhibition will focus on three of Titian’s Ovidian paintings: “Diana and Actaeon”, “The Death of Actaeon” (1559-1575) and “Diana and Callisto” (1556-1559), which depicts another episode involving Diana from Ovid’s Metamorphoses (Book II).
The idea behind the event is a creative celebration of Ovid’s poetry and Titian’s art. Leading British choreographers, dancers, poets, composers and artists have been invited to respond both to Ovid’s text and Titian’s paintings. Events include readings, showcasing set designs for three new ballets and a special performance at the Royal Opera House on 16 July 2012 that will relayed on a large screen on Trafalgar Square.
Recent additions to this website
Thomas Heywood:
Troia Britanica (1609). The first unabridged, annotated, modern-spelling edition.
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