''Achilles'' is a

ballad opera The ballad opera is a genre of English stage entertainment that originated in the early 18th century, and continued to develop over the following century and later. Like the earlier '' comédie en vaudeville'' and the later ''Singspiel'', its dist ...

by John Gay, first performed at the

Theatre Royal, Covent Garden The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal O ...

in 1733, a year after Gay's death, with Gay's associate John Rich as producer.

Background

The opera is a burlesque parody of the story of Achilles on

Skyros Skyros ( el, Σκύρος, ), in some historical contexts Latinized Scyros ( grc, Σκῦρος, ), is an island in Greece, the southernmost of the Sporades, an archipelago in the Aegean Sea. Around the 2nd millennium BC and slightly later, the ...

, based on legends of Achilles as related by Bion,

Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...

, and

Statius Publius Papinius Statius ( Greek: Πόπλιος Παπίνιος Στάτιος; ; ) was a Greco-Roman poet of the 1st century CE. His surviving Latin poetry includes an epic in twelve books, the ''Thebaid''; a collection of occasional poetry, ...

(notably the latter's ''

Achilleid The ''Achilleid'' ( la, Achilleis) is an unfinished epic poem by Publius Papinius Statius that was intended to present the life of Achilles from his youth to his death at Troy. Only about one and a half books (1,127 dactylic hexameters) were co ...

''). Unsuccessful attempts were made at the time to interpret the work as a political satire (as was Gay's ''

The Beggar's Opera ''The Beggar's Opera'' is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of satiri ...

'') but no convincing case has been made for this. Unlike ''The Beggar's Opera'' and Gay's other ballad opera, ''

Polly Polly is a given name, most often feminine, which originated as a variant of Molly (name), Molly (a diminutive of Mary (name), Mary). Polly may also be a short form of names such as Polina (given name), Polina, Polona (given name), Polona, Paula (g ...

'', ''Achilles'' uses not only tunes from popular music, but also employs melodies from

concertante Sinfonia concertante (; also called ''symphonie concertante'') is an orchestral work, normally in several movements, in which one or more solo instruments contrast with the full orchestra.Collins: ''Encyclopedia of Music'', William Collins Sons & C ...

works of

Arcangelo Corelli Arcangelo Corelli (, also , , ; 17 February 1653 – 8 January 1713) was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque era. His music was key in the development of the modern genres of sonata and concerto, in establishing the preeminence of th ...

. ''Achilles'' proved popular; the first performance alone brought John Rich over £200, and the opera ran for over a month after its premiere on 10 February 1733.

Roles

Synopsis

The opera takes place on the isle of

, (called "Scyros" in the

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

Achilles In Greek mythology, Achilles ( ) or Achilleus ( grc-gre, Ἀχιλλεύς) was a hero of the Trojan War, the greatest of all the Greek warriors, and the central character of Homer's ''Iliad''. He was the son of the Nereid Thetis and Peleus, k ...

is disguised by his mother the goddess

Thetis Thetis (; grc-gre, Θέτις ), is a figure from Greek mythology with varying mythological roles. She mainly appears as a sea nymph, a goddess of water, or one of the 50 Nereids, daughters of the ancient sea god Nereus. When described as ...

as Pyrrha, a woman, in an attempt to prevent him going to

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...

, where she is convinced he will die. However, he falls in love with Deidamia, the daughter of the island's king,

Lycomedes In Greek mythology, Lycomedes ( grc, Λυκομήδης), also known as Lycurgus, was the most prominent king of the Dolopians in the island of Scyros near Euboea during the Trojan War. Family Lycomedes was the father of seven daughters inc ...

. Various misunderstandings follow, including an attempt by Lycomedes to rape "Pyrrha". Lycomedes's wife, Theaspe, seeks to dispose of "Pyrrha" by marrying "her" to her nephew Periphas; at which Achilles complains "I have no sooner escap'd being ravish'd but I am immediately to be made a Wife". Deidamia becomes pregnant, and Ulysses recognizes Achilles. The truth is out and Achilles and Deidamia marry; Achilles then leaves to take part in the

Trojan Wars In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans (Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and has ...

.Lewis (1972), pp. 20–21.

References

Citations Sources *Baldwin, Olive and Thelma Wilson (2008)
"Norsa, Hannah"
in ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'' online, accessed 3 July 2017 . *Gay, John (1733)
''Achilles: an opera''
London: J. Watts. In

University of North Texas The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 years later."Denton Normal School," ...

digital library, accessed 4 July 2017. *Lewis, Peter Elfed (1972)
"John Gay's 'Achilles': The Burlesque Element"
in ''Ariel'', vol. 3 no. 1, pp. 17-28, accessed 4 July 2017. *Winton, Calhoun (2015). ''John Gay and the London Theatre.'' Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. {{ISBN, 9780813159362 Operas Works by John Gay 1733 operas Ballad operas English-language operas Operas with mythological or folkloric settings Opera world premieres at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden Cultural depictions of Achilles Works based on the Iliad Operas based on works by Homer Operas based on Metamorphoses