The others, though, the ones who didn’t accept the court’s decision, continued to chase me relentlessly until, once again I came to the sacred grounds of Apollo. Who knows what sort of Fate might befall anyone? They have sent me to murder my mother and avenge my father’s murder; and after that, they had me hunted down by the Furies whichever way I ran. Iphigenia among the Taurians tells a different story than the legends of Troy. Iphigeneia My Fate was black from birth, dear friends. I will pile a great many rich gifts upon your tomb, sprinkle golden oil upon your body to quell the fire and, over your pyre, I will pour the golden flower nectar gathered by the mountain bees. Each one of them had his own separate jug and drank his wine but I had nothing. 1110. 439, Chorus Here, she would know the feel of the sacrificial water, sprinkled all around her hair…. Messenger Guards! Her own son killed her with his own hands! Chorus O, Artemis! “Two young men have come to this land,” he says after being welcomed, “an offering and sacrifice pleasing to the goddess Artemis. Tears stream down my face! My mother is Klytaimnestra, Tyndareus’ daughter. Iphigeneia But what made you come here, in the first place? Let’s just move away from the temple, go into one of those caves, one that’s been battered by the black waves, away from the ship, in case someone sees it and tells their king. My heart! 170. Orestes His death was horrible. Chorus And the oars of the sea-cutting ship will turn wave into white foam and the sail cloth will spread across the wind, over the bows and onto the peak of the prow. Beyond miracles, beyond words! Go where you need to go. First produced in the late 5th century BCE in Athens, this play was one of the most influential of all the canonical classical dramas in antiquity until the fourth century CE and in the period between the Renaissance and the early 20th century. Chorus You are the neighbour to the Castalian waters. She had raised a miserable victim for that unholy sacrifice! Chorus Follow the paths of the Heavens above where the sun spreads his sweet light…. Only a fool would hear the words of a god and not obey them! Pylades You took the words right out of my mouth, Orestes but, still, everyone knows the story of those two suffering kings, at least, everyone who travels. Orestes You shouldn’t curse the man. 42. I think this woman is from there. Orestes I wasn’t there then, my sister but it’s as if I am there now. With Iphigénie, Gluck took his operatic reform to its logical conclusion. In that dream, I had escaped from this land and was back in Argos. Project Gutenberg's Iphigenia in Tauris, by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. LibriVox recording of Iphigenia in Tauris (Murray Translation) by Euripides. You too, are in on this conspiracy! Chorus Who are they who have left Dirke’s wild streams, to come to this untamed land? 920. Ask me no more questions! One of them had called the other, Pylades. Let the first words of my plea be these: We, women, are wise, we support and trust each other and we defend our common interests with all our might. It will be disclosed that the victims sacrificed on that altar are humans. Everything we came for, everything we were looking for when we sailed our way through the Clashing Rocks and into these hostile waters!”, At that, the men let out a huge roar of relief and hit the salty waters with their oars. 970. Orestes But why? We certainly don’t lack the will. If you do not agree with us then I am lost. She knows so much about Greece! I cry, dear friends, in grief of my brother’s death! The king enters wildly, ordering his guards to seize Orestes and promising to sacrifice both him and his sister. It is not proper for you to have your temple here when you could have it built in a city blessed by the gods. I saw a dreadful dream last night. How I wish that my one remaining brother were like you! They have a long journey ahead of them if they are to escape. She took the ropes herself and walked behind the strangers, something which looked suspicious to us, my lord but then again we, your servants, did not want to disobey your orders either, so we stayed behind. Was he a relative of yours? Orestes Now then, what else? You’ve done well! 1350. Orestes No, no one speaks of her. Meaningless, worthless! I will go with him to make sure that my sister’s holy statue is safe. Romantic interest is peripheral to Greek drama, but Iphigénie en Tauride, 'the first opera without love to exist in our theatres'[25] must be one of the few major operas to forego the theme altogether. Do you think we can enter it through the roof? She and the priestesses perform a funeral ceremony for Orestes (Contemplez ces tristes apprêts). Orestes Don’t think about your mother’s deeds. You have shouldered much of the pain of my miserable life. [15], As for the Da Ponte Italian version,[18] there was a "memorable" staging at the Teatro alla Scala in 1957, with Nino Sanzogno conducting the orchestra, Luchino Visconti as the director and Maria Callas in the title role.[19]. Scene: The entrance hall of the temple of Diana in Tauris. But the winds that bloat the sails of ships did not come and so Agamemnon checked the entrails of the burnt offerings. The dearest man in my life! My lady, a herdsman! No lyre accompanies these wails, my dear friends! De la Touche's work had been praised for its simplicity, but Gluck and his librettist simplified the drama even further. Chorus Leto wasted no time to leave her birthing place, there on the cliff by the sea, and brought her son to the peak of Parnassus with its rushing brooks and its frenzied celebrations of Dionysus. I can bear that one but I can’t bear another on top of it as well. Who’ll release us from these horrors? So, then, I ask you kindly to leave this land of the barbarians and go to Athens. Exit Iphigeneia, Orestes, Pylades and the attendants, SR; Chorus On the fertile plains of Delos, Leto gave birth to two great children: Apollo with the golden tresses and with his skill with the lyre and proud Artemis, who delighted in her unerring bow and arrows. Iphigeneia But, my brother, how could you do such a horrible thing to our mother? Let’s not miss the opportunity to escape by getting distracted by other joys from the path that Fate has shown us. 1469. And I don’t believe the story about that feast that Tantalus gave to the gods, where, supposedly, the gods had enjoyed eating the flesh of his own son. O, the wealth and the grandeur of the house you’ve left behind! Thoas That’s awful! I lay flat onto the ground, in front of his temple and, ate nothing, and I swore to Apollo there and then that unless he saved my life, the life he had destroyed, I would end it at that very moment! Orestes What will you gain by knowing that? Anyhow, after a while, to make us think that she was actually performing the rites, she gave out a loud scream and began singing barbarian religious hymns, as if she was a priestess in the process of purifying tainted blood. Unfortunate strangers, where are you from? Who’s making all this awful noise here, banging at the door like this? I simply suffered my pains silently, pretending not to notice anything. It is up to you to find a way. Now I’ve discovered that my pains have become a customary ritual in Athens. We have not crossed all these oceans so as to turn back just before we accomplish our deed. What name has your father given you? There’s no other word for it, is there? It was for him and for that very slaughter that my poor mother, Leda’s daughter, gave birth to me! No_Favorite. Chorus And so it was that Lord Apollo sped away on his quick feet to Olympus to wrap his young arms around Zeus’ throne and beg him to restore his Pythian temple to him, take it back from the anger of the goddess Earth. A hope beyond all hope! 980. Or, did you fall upon some misfortune? I think it’s improper for people who are about to slaughter someone, to try and sweeten that slaughter with pity. Iphigeneia No, you talk and I will listen. According to the most common tradition, a daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, 1 but, according to others, a daughter of Theseus and Helen, and brought up by Clytemnestra only as a foster-child. Then the goddess brought me here, in this land. 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