page_title: Orion (Lacoste)
section_title: Literary posterity: Diana and Cupid
hierarchical_section_title: Orion (Lacoste) / Literary analysis / Literary posterity: Diana and Cupid
context_page_description: Orion is an opera by the French composer Louis Lacoste on a libretto by Joseph de Lafont and Simon-Joseph Pellegrin. It was first performed at the Paris Opera on 19 February 1728 and was performed for the last time on 12 March 1728. The reduced score was printed in quarto by Christophe Ballard and is today available for consulting on the website of the Bibliothèque nationale de France. Orion only received a modest success and was never staged nor performed again for another season. However, extracts have already been played by the ensemble Fuoco e Cenere in 2019.
  A libretto by La Font, Hypermnestre, won considerable success in 1716 with the music of Charles-Hubert Gervais. Pellegrin has made himself known in 1713 with the tragédie lyrique Médée & Jason but his most brilliant success would be Jephté in 1732, followed by Hippolyte & Aricie in 1733. La Font died in 1725 before the completion of Orion's libretto, which Pellegrin took care of. It was the second and final collaboration between Lacoste and Pellegrin, the first was Télégone.
context_section_description: The conflict between Diana and Cupid will be used again by Simon-Joseph Pellegrin in his libretto for Hippolyte & Aricie by Jean-Philippe Rameau. Lucian of Samosata evokes this opposition in his Dialogues of the Gods (IIⁿᵈ century CE) during a discussion between Venus and Cupid. In this dialogue, Cupid evokes his fear towards Minerva, who has "Eyes like Lightning, and wears upon her Breast a Gorgon's Head, with Snakes for Tresses, that frights me out of my Wits". Ironically, Minerva in the prologue of Orion is in favor of Cupid. Diana in the dialogue is mentioned as being more concerned about her love for hunting, which takes place in her forests where Cupid struggles to follow her. However, Diana shows a violent and jealous love in Orion, justified by the librettists by quoting Noël le Comte. Indeed, the grammarian Diocles (also known as "Tyrannion the Younger") reports that Diana would have liked to marry Orion.
  In Hippolyte & Aricie, Jupiter and Cupid appear again in the prologue, with Diana as the main character. This time it’s Diana’s place of worship which is invaded and challenged by Cupid. The goddess implores Jupiter to support her, but as in the prologue of Orion, he is favorable to Cupid and justifies himself with the edict of destiny. So, we find again Diana who grants her nymphs the freedom to love and the ballet dedicated to Cupid. The goddess swears to protect Hippolytus and Aricia, but refusing to "lower her pride", does not stay to observe the party. Throughout the opera, she plays the role of protector of love while remaining indifferent to that feeling.
caption: Diana & Cupid, 1761, oil on canvas, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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