Hippolyte et Aricie was the first opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau. It was premiered to great controversy by the Académie Royale de Musique at its theatre in the Palais-Royal in Paris on October 1, 1733. The French libretto, by Abbé Simon-Joseph Pellegrin, is based on Racine's tragedy Phèdre. The opera takes the traditional form of a tragédie en musique with an allegorical prologue followed by five acts. Early audiences found little else conventional about the work.
Portrait of Jean-Philippe Rameau by Joseph Aved in 1728
In Greek mythology, Hippolytus is the son of Theseus and either Hippolyta or Antiope. His downfall at the hands of Aphrodite is recounted by the playwright Euripides. Other versions of the story have also survived.
The Death of Hippolytus, by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema (1836–1912)
Hippolytus and Phaedra, antique fresco from Pompeii
The Death of Hippolytus, by Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne (1679–1731), Louvre
Diana returning to Aricia Hippolytus resuscitated by Aesculapius