Dido and Aeneas - wikipedia Dido and Aeneas For the myth on which the opera is based, see Aeneid. Dido and Aeneas Opera by Henry Purcell The composer, portrait by John Closterman, c. 1695 Librettist Nahum Tate Based on Book IV of Virgil 's Aeneid Premiere C. 1683 - 1688 Josias Priest 's girls ' school, London Dido and Aeneas ( Z. 626 ) is an opera in a prologue and three acts, written by the English Baroque composer Henry Purcell with a libretto by Nahum Tate. The dates of the composition and first performance of the opera are uncertain. It was composed no later than July 1688, and had been performed at Josias Priest 's girls ' school in London by the end of 1689. Some scholars argue for a date of composition as early as 1683. The story is based on Book IV of Virgil 's Aeneid. It recounts the love of Dido, Queen of Carthage, for the Trojan hero Aeneas, and her despair when he abandons her. A monumental work in Baroque opera, Dido and Aeneas is remembered as one of Purcell 's foremost theatrical works. It was also Purcell 's only true opera, as well as his only all - sung dramatic work. One of the earliest known English operas, it owes much to John Blow 's Venus and Adonis, both in structure and in overall effect. The influence of Cavalli 's opera Didone is also apparent. Contents 1 Background and context 1.1 Libretto 1.2 Score 2 Performance history 2.1 Premiere and early revivals 2.2 20th - and 21st - century performances 2.3 Adaptations 3 Roles 4 Synopsis 4.1 Act 1 4.2 Act 2 4.3 Act 3 5 Recordings 6 See also 7 References 8 External links Background and context Dido and Aeneas, from a Roman fresco, Pompeian Third Style ( 10 BC - 45 AD ), Pompeii, Italy Before Dido and Aeneas, Purcell had composed music for several stage works, including nine pieces for Nathaniel Lee 's Theodosius, or The Force of Love ( 1680 ) and eight songs for Thomas d'Urfey 's A Fool 's Preferment ( 1688 ). He also composed songs for two plays by Nahum Tate ( later the librettist of Dido and Aeneas ), The Sicilian Usurper ( 1680 ) and Cuckold - Haven ( 1685 ). Dido and Aeneas was Purcell 's first ( and only ) all - sung opera and derives from the English masque tradition. Libretto Originally based on Nahum Tate 's play Brutus of Alba, or The Enchanted Lovers ( 1678 ), the opera is likely, at least to some extent, to be allegorical. The prologue refers to the joy of a marriage between two monarchs, which could refer to the marriage between William and Mary. In a poem of about 1686, Tate alluded to James II as Aeneas, who is misled by the evil machinations of the Sorceress and her witches ( representing Roman Catholicism, a common metaphor at the time ) into abandoning Dido, who symbolises the British people. The same symbolism may apply to the opera. This explains the addition of the characters of the Sorceress and the witches, which do not appear in the original Aeneid. It would be noble, or at least acceptable, for Aeneas to follow the decree of the Gods, but not so acceptable for him to be tricked by ill - meaning spirits. Although the opera is a tragedy, there are numerous seemingly lighter scenes, such as the First Sailor 's song, `` Take a boozy short leave of your nymphs on the shore, and silence their mourning with vows of returning, though never intending to visit them more. '' Musicologist Ellen T. Harris considers the callousness and cynicism of the song to underline the `` moral '' of the story, that young women should not succumb to the advances and promises of ardent young men. Score No score in Purcell 's hand is extant, and the only seventeenth - century source is a libretto, possibly from the original performance. The earliest extant score, held in the Bodleian Library, was copied no earlier than 1750, well over sixty years after the opera was composed. No later sources follow the act divisions of the libretto, and the music to the prologue is lost. The prologue, the end of the act 2 ' Grove ' scene, and several dances, were almost certainly lost when the opera was divided into parts to be performed as interludes between the acts of spoken plays in the first decade of the eighteenth century. The first of the arias to be published separately was `` Ah, Belinda '' in Orpheus Britannicus. The most famous aria of the work is `` When I am laid in earth '', popularly known as `` Dido 's Lament ''. Both arias are formed on a lamento ground bass. `` Dido 's Lament '' has been performed or recorded by artists far from the typical operatic school, such as Klaus Nomi ( as `` Death '' ), Ane Brun and Jeff Buckley. It has also been transcribed or used in many scores, including the soundtrack to the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers ( renamed `` Nixon 's Walk '' ). It is played annually by a military band at the Cenotaph remembrance ceremony, which takes place on the Sunday nearest to 11 November ( Armistice Day ) in London 's Whitehall. The music is thought by some to be too simple for Purcell in 1689, but this may simply reflect that the intended performers were schoolchildren. The work is scored for four - part strings and continuo. The fact that the libretto from the Chelsea School performance indicates two dances for guitar, the `` Dance Gittars Chacony '' in act 1, and the `` Gittar Ground a Dance '' in the ' Grove ' scene of act 2, has led one scholar to suggest that Purcell envisioned a guitar as a primary member of the continuo group for the opera. Music for neither of these dances is extant, and it seems likely that Purcell did not compose them, but rather left them to be improvised by the guitarist. Several editions of the opera have been made and have been provided with a continuo realisation ; a notable, if rather idiosyncratic edition being that made by Imogen Holst and Benjamin Britten. There are a number of editions with realisations, and the opera 's accessibility to amateur performers is a feature that has greatly abetted the growth of its popularity in the latter half of the twentieth century. While the Prologue 's music has been lost and has not been reconstructed, several realisations of the opera include a solution to the missing ritornello at the end of the second act. Known to have been part of the score, it is now performed as a dance taken from other, similar works by Purcell, or invented outright in the same vein, to keep the integrity and continuity of the performance. Performance history Premiere and early revivals A letter from the Levant merchant Rowland Sherman associates Dido and Aeneas with Josias Priest 's girls ' school in Chelsea, London no later than the summer of 1688. The first performance may have taken place as early as 1 December 1687, and evidence suggests that the opera was performed at the school again in 1689. Several scholars have argued that the work was composed for the English court, either for Charles II ( and perhaps as early as 1684 ) or for James II. Following the Chelsea performances, the opera was not staged again in Purcell 's lifetime. Its next performance was in 1700 as a masque incorporated into an adapted version of Shakespeare 's Measure for Measure at Thomas Betterton 's theatre in London. After 1705 it disappeared as a staged work, with only sporadic concert performances, until 1895 when the first staged version in modern times was performed by students of the Royal College of Music at London 's Lyceum Theatre to mark the bicentenary of Purcell 's death. Dido and Aeneas received its first performance outside England on 14 December 1895 in a concert version at the University Society in Dublin. 20th - and 21st - century performances Dido and Aeneas premiered in the United States at the Plaza Hotel in New York City on 10 February 1923 performed by the girls of the Rosemary School, although The New York Times noted that `` considerable liberties '' had been taken with the score. A concert version with professional musicians organised by the Society of Friends of Music took place on 13 January 1924 at the New York City Town Hall, using a score edited by Artur Bodanzky, who also conducted the performance. As new critical editions of the score appeared, and with the revival of interest in Baroque music, the number of productions steadily increased. After Jonathan Miller 's visit to Bornholm, Denmark, Dido was performed in 2008 at the Rønne Theatre ( which had been built in 1823 ). Devin Duggan conducted. Amongst the new productions of the opera in 2009 ( the 350th anniversary of Purcell 's birth ) were those staged by the De Nederlandse Opera, the Royal Opera, London, the Divertimento Baroque Opera Company, and Glimmerglass Opera in Cooperstown, New York. The Royal Opera production, which featured contemporary dance by Wayne McGregor Random Dance and animated effects by Mark Hatchard, formed part of a double bill with Handel 's Acis and Galatea. In 2011 the opera was revived by City Wall Productions and set during World War II. A new Opera North production of the opera opened at Leeds Grand Theatre in February 2013 Opera Up Close performed a truncated version in 2011, setting it in an American high school in the 1950s. Adaptations A version of the opera adapted to modern dance was choreographed by the American Mark Morris, who originally danced both the roles of Dido and the Sorceress. It premiered on 11 March 1989 at the Théâtre Varia in Brussels. It has since been performed many times and was filmed in 1995 by Canadian director Barbara Willis Sweete, with Morris in the roles of Dido and the Sorceress. Another dance version, choreographed by Sasha Waltz, premiered at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin on 29 January 2005 and opened with the dancers performing underwater in an enormous tank. The production was subsequently seen at the Grand Théâtre in Luxembourg, Opéra national de Montpellier, and Sadler 's Wells Theatre in London. In both the Morris and the Waltz adaptations, the characters are each portrayed by both a singer and a dancer, with the dancers onstage and the singers performing from the side of the stage or the orchestra pit. Roles Role Voice type Dido ( also known as Elissa ), Queen of Carthage soprano or mezzo - soprano Belinda, Dido 's sister and handmaid light soprano Second Woman, Another Handmaiden soprano or mezzo - soprano Aeneas, Trojan Prince tenor or high baritone Sorceress / Sorcerer mezzo - soprano, contralto, countertenor or bass First Witch / Enchantress mezzo - soprano Second Witch / Enchantress mezzo - soprano Spirit, in form of Mercury soprano or countertenor First Sailor tenor Chorus, SATB : all members at one point or another represent courtiers, witches, cupids, and sailors. Synopsis The Meeting of Dido and Aeneas by Nathaniel Dance - Holland Act 1 Dido 's court The opera opens with Dido in her court with her attendants. Belinda is trying to cheer up Dido, but Dido is full of sorrow, saying ' Peace and I are strangers grown '. Belinda believes the source of this grief to be the Trojan Aeneas, and suggests that Carthage 's troubles could be resolved by a marriage between the two. Dido and Belinda talk for a time -- Dido fears that her love will make her a weak monarch, but Belinda and the Second Woman reassure her that `` The hero loves as well. '' Aeneas enters the court, and is at first received coldly by Dido, but she eventually accepts his proposal of marriage. Act 2 Scene 1 : The cave of the Sorceress The Sorceress / Sorcerer is plotting the destruction of Carthage and its queen, and summons companions to help with evil plans. The plan is to send her `` trusted elf '' disguised as Mercury, someone to whom Aeneas will surely listen, to tempt him to leave Dido and sail to Italy. This would leave Dido heartbroken, and she would surely die. The chorus join in with terrible laughter, and the Enchantresses decide to conjure up a storm to make Dido and her train leave the grove and return to the palace. When the spell is prepared, the witches vanish in a thunderclap. Scene 2 : A grove during the middle of a hunt Stay, Prince and hear The Sorceress ' messenger, in form of Mercury, attempts to convince Aeneas to leave Carthage. Problems playing this file ? See media help. Dido and Aeneas are accompanied by their train. They stop at the grove to take in its beauty. A lot of action is going on, with attendants carrying goods from the hunt and a picnic possibly taking place, and Dido and Aeneas are together within the activity. This is all stopped when Dido hears distant thunder, prompting Belinda to tell the servants to prepare for a return to shelter as soon as possible. As every other character leaves the stage, Aeneas is stopped by the Sorceress 's elf, who is disguised as Mercury. This pretend Mercury brings the command of Jove that Aeneas is to wait no longer in beginning his task of creating a new Troy on Latin soil. Aeneas consents to the wishes of what he believes are the gods, but is heart - broken that he will have to leave Dido. He then goes off - stage to prepare for his departure from Carthage. Act 3 The harbour at Carthage Preparations are being made for the departure of the Trojan fleet. The sailors sing a song, which is followed shortly by the Sorceress and her companions ' sudden appearance. The group is pleased at how well their plan has worked, and the Sorceress sings a solo describing her further plans for the destruction of Aeneas `` on the ocean ''. All the characters begin to clear the stage after a dance in three sections, and then disperse. The palace Dido and Belinda enter, shocked at Aeneas ' disappearance. Dido is distraught and Belinda comforts her. Suddenly Aeneas returns, but Dido is full of fear before Aeneas speaks, and his words only serve to confirm her suspicions. She derides his reasons for leaving, and even when Aeneas says he will defy the gods and not leave Carthage, Dido rejects him for having once thought of leaving her. After Dido forces Aeneas to leave, she states that `` Death must come when he is gone. '' The opera and Dido 's life both slowly come to a conclusion, as the Queen of Carthage sings her last aria, `` When I am laid in Earth '', also known as `` Dido 's Lament. '' The chorus and orchestra then conclude the opera once Dido is dead by ordering the `` cupids to scatter roses on her tomb, soft and gentle as her heart. Keep here your watch, and never, never part. '' Recordings Main article : Dido and Aeneas discography The first complete recording of the opera was made by Decca Records in 1935 with Nancy Evans as Dido and Roy Henderson as Aeneas, followed in 1945 by HMV 's release with Joan Hammond and Dennis Noble. Kirsten Flagstad, who had sung the role at the Mermaid Theatre in London, recorded it in 1951 for EMI with Thomas Hemsley as Aeneas. Dido and Aeneas has been recorded many times since the 1960s with Dido sung by mezzo - sopranos such as Janet Baker ( 1961 ), Tatiana Troyanos ( 1968 ), Teresa Berganza ( 1986 ), Anne Sofie von Otter ( 1989 ) and Susan Graham ( 2003 ). In addition to Joan Hammond and Kirsten Flagstad, sopranos who have recorded the role include Victoria de los Ángeles ( 1965 ), Emma Kirkby ( 1981 ), Jessye Norman ( 1986 ), Catherine Bott ( 1992 ), Lynne Dawson ( 1998 ), and Evelyn Tubb ( 2004 ). Beginning with Andrew Parrott 's 1981 recording for Chandos with the Taverner Consort and Players, there was an increasing preference for a more genuine period sound. Further recordings by conductors and ensembles using this approach include those by Christopher Hogwood and The Academy of Ancient Music, William Christie and Les Arts Florissants ( 1986 ) ; Trevor Pinnock and The English Concert ( 1989 ) ; René Jacobs and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment ( 1998 ) ; Emmanuelle Haïm and Le Concert d'Astrée ( 2003 ) ; and Predrag Gosta and New Trinity Baroque ( 2004 ). The Haïm recording with Susan Graham as Dido and Ian Bostridge as Aeneas was nominated for the Best Opera Recording in the 2005 Grammy Awards. Several performances of the opera have been filmed and are available on DVD, most recently the 2008 performance at the Opéra - Comique in Paris conducted by William Christie and directed by Deborah Warner ( FRA Musica FRA001 ) and the 2009 performance at London 's Royal Opera House conducted by Christopher Hogwood and directed by Wayne McGregor ( OpusArte OA1018D ). The Mark Morris dance version of the opera is also preserved on DVD ( recorded 1995, Image Entertainment 8741 ) as is the dance version by Sasha Waltz ( recorded 2005, Arthaus Musik 101311 ). Leopold Stokowski made a string orchestra arrangement of `` Dido 's Lament '' and in addition to his own recordings, others who have recorded it include Matthias Bamert, Jose Serebrier, Richard Egarr and Iona Brown. See also List of compositions by Henry Purcell References Notes Jump up ^ `` Z '' refers to the Zimmerman catalogue of Purcell 's works by the American musicologist Franklin B. Zimmerman Jump up ^ White, Bryan, ' Letter from Aleppo : dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas ', 426 ^ Jump up to : White, Bryan, ' Letter from Aleppo : dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas ', 417 ^ Jump up to : Pinnock, Andrew, ' Which Genial Day ? More on the court origin of Purcell 's Dido and Aeneas, with a shortlist of dates for its possible performance before King Charles II ', Early Music 43 ( 2015 ), 199 -- 212 ^ Jump up to : Bruce Wood and Andrew Pinnock, `` ' Unscared by turning times ' ? The dating of Purcell 's Dido and Aeneas, '' ^ Jump up to : Price in Grove Jump up ^ Harris ( 1990 ) p. 17 Jump up ^ Price, Henry Purcell and the London Stage, 239 Jump up ^ Price, Henry Purcell and the London Stage, 239 -- 245 Jump up ^ Holman, Henry Purcell, 200 -- 201 Jump up ^ Holman, Henry Purcell, 200 Jump up ^ Purcell ( 1991 ) p. iv Jump up ^ White, Bryan, ' Letter from Aleppo : dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas ', 420 Jump up ^ White, Bryan, ' Letter from Aleppo : dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas ', 422 Jump up ^ Keates ( 1996 ) p. 179 and Walkling ( August 1994 ) p. 469 Jump up ^ Crozier ( 1987 ) p. 114 Jump up ^ Rosenthal and Warrack ( 1979 ) p. 134 ; The New York Times ( 11 February 1923 ) p. 19 Jump up ^ Harris ( 1990 ) p. 157 lists this performance as the US premiere Jump up ^ Melanie Eskenazi, The Royal Opera & The Royal Ballet -- Dido and Aeneas / Acis and Galatea '' on classicalsource.com Jump up ^ City Wall Productions ' website Archived 8 January 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ `` What 's On : Details on Opera North 's website operanorth.co.uk Jump up ^ Mark Morris Dance Group Jump up ^ Walker ( 9 July 1995 ) p. C1 Jump up ^ Daily Mail ( 15 March 2007 ) Jump up ^ The original score was written for soprano, but can be performed by mezzo - sopranos. See Price ( 1984 ) p. 247 Jump up ^ The original score was written for tenor, but is often performed by high baritones. See Harris ( 1990 ) pp. 60 -- 62 Jump up ^ Price and Cholij, ' Dido 's Bass Sorceress ' Jump up ^ The part was originally played by a woman, although as early as 1700 the part was customarily played by a tenor. See Purcell ( 1971 ) p. v Jump up ^ Synopsis based on Kobbé ( 1987 ) pp. 1010 -- 1014. Jump up ^ Darrell ( 1936 ) p. 371 Jump up ^ Boyden et al. ( 2002 ) p. 30 Jump up ^ Associated Press ( 7 December 2004 ) Jump up ^ Jordy ( 9 December 2009 ) Sources Boyden, Matthew et al., `` Dido and Aeneas '', The rough guide to opera 3rd edition, Rough Guides, 2002. ISBN 1 - 85828 - 749 - 9 Darrell, R.D., The Gramophone Shop Encyclopedia of Recorded Music, The Gramophone Shop, Inc., 1936 Harris, Ellen T., Henry Purcell 's Dido and Aeneas, Oxford University Press, 1990. ISBN 0 - 19 - 315252 - 5 Holman, Peter, Henry Purcell ( Oxford, 1995 ). Holst, Imogen, `` Purcell 's librettist, Nahum Tate '' Henry Purcell 1659 -- 1695 Essays On His Music, Imogen Holst ( ed. ), Oxford University Press, 1959, pp. 35 -- 41 Jordy, Catherine, `` Flamboyante tragédie au Comique '', Forum Opéra, 9 December 2009 ( accessed 19 January 2010, in French ) Keates, Jonathan, Purcell : A biography, Northeastern University Press, 1996. ISBN 1 - 55553 - 287 - X Kobbé, Gustav, The Definitive Kobbé 's Book of Opera. The Earl of Harewood ( ed. ), 1st American ed., G.P. Putnam 's and Sons, 1987, pp. 1010 -- 1014. Mark Morris Dance Group, Work details : Dido and Aeneas Price, Curtis, `` Dido and Aeneas '', Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy ( accessed 31 December 2005 ), grovemusic.com ( subscription access ) Price, Curtis, Henry Purcell and the London stage, Cambridge University Press, 1984. ISBN 0 - 521 - 23831 - 5 Price, Curtis and Irena Cholij, ' Dido 's Bass Sorceress ', The Musical Times, Vol. 127 ( Nov. 1986 ), 615 -- 618 Pinnock, Andrew, ' Deus ex machina : A royal witness to the court origin of Purcell 's Dido and Aeneas. ' Early Music, 40 ( 2012 ) : 265 -- 278. Pinnock, Andrew, ' Which Genial Day ? More on the court origin of Purcell 's Dido and Aeneas, with a shortlist of dates for its possible performance before King Charles II ', Early Music 43 ( 2015 ), 199 - 212 Purcell, Henry, Dido and Aeneas ( vocal score ), Edward Dent and Ellen Harris ( eds. ), Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1991. Purcell, Henry, Dido and Aeneas ( vocal and full score ), Margaret Laurie and Thurston Dart ( eds. ), Novello, 1971 Walker, Susan, `` Every inch a diva. Opposites attract dancer Mark Morris. They define his life and his art '', Toronto Star, 9 July 1995, p. C1 Walkling, Andrew ( 1995 ). `` Political Allegory in Purcell 's Dido and Aeneas ''. Music & Letters. 76 ( 4 ) : 540 -- 571. doi : 10.1093 / ml / 76.4. 540. White, Bryan, ' Letter from Aleppo : dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas ', Early Music 37 ( 2009 ), 417 -- 428. doi.org/10.1093/em/cap041 White, Eric Walter, `` New Light on Dido and Aeneas '' Henry Purcell 1659 -- 1695 Essays On His Music, Imogen Holst ( ed. ), Oxford University Press, 1959, pp. 14 -- 34 Wood, Bruce and Andrew Pinnock, `` ' Unscared by turning times ' ? The dating of Purcell 's Dido and Aeneas, '' Early Music 20 ( 1992 ), 372 -- 90 External links Analysis in French Libretto at Stanford University Free excerpts from a recording by the New Trinity Baroque orchestra Internet Movie Database listing Free scores by Dido and Aeneas in the Choral Public Domain Library ( ChoralWiki ) BBC Radio 4 programme about `` Dido 's Lament '' Dido and Aeneas : Scores at the International Music Score Library Project ( IMSLP ) The Purcell Society Public domain recording, 1951, ( mp3 files ) on www.liberliber.it. Henry Purcell Opera Dido and Aeneas ( 1689 ) ( `` Dido 's Lament '', Dido and Aeneas discography ) Dioclesian ( 1690 ) King Arthur ( 1691 ) The Fairy - Queen ( 1692 ) The Indian Queen ( 1695 ) Sacred choral Remember not, Lord, our offences ( c. 1679 -- 82 ) Hear my prayer, O Lord ( c. 1682 ) Ode to St. Cecilia ( 1692 ) Funeral Sentences and Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary ( 1695 ) Secular choral Come Ye Sons of Art ( 1694 ) Incidental music Music for a While ( 1692 ) Nymphs and Shepherds ( 1692 ) Abdelazer ( 1695 ) Related articles The Moor 's Pavane `` Lillibullero '' List of compositions by Henry Purcell `` Dido and Aeneas '' from Virgil 's Aeneid Characters Dido Aeneas Operas Didone ( 1641, Cavalli ) Dido and Aeneas ( 1688, Purcell ) discography `` Dido 's Lament '' Didon ( 1693, Desmarets ) Didone abbandonata ( 1724, Metastasio ) Didone abbandonata ( 1724, Sarro ) Didone abbandonata ( 1724, Albinoni ) Didone abbandonata ( 1762, Sarti ) Didon ( 1783, Piccinni ) Dido, Queen of Carthage ( 1792, Storace ) Les Troyens ( 1863, Berlioz ) Plays Dido, Queen of Carthage ( c. 1593 ) Poetry Roman d'Enéas ( 1160 ) Music Simple Man Art Dido building Carthage Related Low Ham Roman Villa Amelia Virgil 's Aeneid ( 19 BC ) Characters Deities Alecto Crinisus Cupid Hecate Hymen Juno Jupiter Mars Mercury Saturn Tiberinus Venus Humans Acestes Achaemenides Achates Actor Aeneads Aeneas Aeolus Ajax the Lesser Aletes Amata Anchises Androgeos Andromache Anna Perenna Antiphates Ascanius Automedon Aventinus Butes Caieta Camilla Capys Cassandra Catillus Clonius Clytius Creusa Cydon Cydonians Dardanus Dares Phrygius Deiphobus Diomedes Elymus Entellus Erulus Euryalus Evander of Pallene Halaesus Halys Helenus Hippocoon Iarbas Ilioneus Juturna Laocoön Latinus Lausus Lavinia Macar Messapus Metabus Mezentius Mimas Misenus Mnestheus Neoptolemus Nisus and Euryalus Ornytus Palinurus Pallas Pandarus Panthous Paris Picus Polites Priam Ripheus Rutuli Salius Sinon Theano Thymoetes Turnus Ucalegon Ufens Phoenicians Acerbas Belus II Dido Mattan I Pygmalion of Tyre Films The Avenger ( 1962 ) Literature Roman d'Enéas ( 1160 poem ) Dido, Queen of Carthage ( c. 1593 play ) Amelia ( 1751 novel ) The Dunciad ( 1729 novel ) Lavinia ( 2008 novel ) Opera Didone ( 1641 Cavalli ) Achille et Polyxène ( 1687 Lully / Collasse ) Dido and Aeneas ( 1688 Purcell ) Didon ( 1693 Desmarets ) Didone abbandonata ( 1724 libretto Metastasio ) Didone abbandonata ( 1724 Sarro ) Didone abbandonata ( 1724 Albinoni ) Didone abbandonata ( 1726 Vinci ) Didone abbandonata ( 1762 Sarti ) Didon ( 1783 Piccinni ) Dido, Queen of Carthage ( 1792 Storace ) Les Troyens ( 1858 Berlioz ) Manuscripts Book of Ballymote Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 31 Vergilius Augusteus Vergilius Romanus Vergilius Vaticanus Phrases Ad astra Annuit cœptis Experto crede Lacrimae rerum Obscuris vera involvens Quos ego Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes Art Laocoön and His Sons ( 25 BC ) Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius ( 1619 ) Ascanius Shooting the Stag of Sylvia ( 1689 ) Dido building Carthage ( 1815 ) Music `` And Then There Was Silence '' Gates of Fire Study Aposiopesis Dactylic hexameter Hysteron proteron Sortes Vergilianae Related Trojan Horse The Golden Bough Eneados Sulpicius Apollinaris `` Fortune favours the bold '' `` Mind over matter '' Opera portal BNF : cb13921232z ( data ) GND : 300122802 LCCN : n83176115 SUDOC : 11088888X VIAF : 204903120 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dido_and_Aeneas&oldid=847985558 '' Categories : Operas by Henry Purcell English - language operas Operas 1688 operas Operas based on Greco - Roman mythology Works based on the Aeneid Operas set in Africa Music based on poems Cultural depictions of Dido Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links EngvarB from September 2013 Use dmy dates from September 2013 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from August 2014 Articles with hAudio microformats Works with IMSLP links Articles with International Music Score Library Project links Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Български Brezhoneg Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español Français Galego 한국어 Հայերեն Italiano עברית Magyar Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Română Русский Simple English Slovenščina Suomi Svenska Türkçe Українська 18 more Edit links This page was last edited on 29 June 2018, at 02 : 51 ( UTC ). 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Question: what was the source for dido and aeneas
Answer: Book IV of Virgil's Aeneid.