Riccardo Drigo

Diana and Acteon (Pas de Deux)

The history behind the composition and implementation of the Diane et Actéon Pas de Deux can be confusing. The first version of this pas, with music by Riccardo Drigo (1846-1930), appears to have been used in the 1891 Marius Petipa revival of Le Roi Candaule (Tsar Kandavl), a ballet originally written in 1868. Drigo was asked to compose additional music to the add to the original score by Cesare Pugni, although this original version was titled as Pas de Diane and was originally a pas de trois. Alternatively, it is also thought that Drigo's Pas de Deux was written for inclusion as additional music in an 1886 Petipa revival of Pugni's La Esmeralda, though many consider this history to be erroneous. Whether it was written for Petipa revivals of one ballet or the other, it is certain that Agrippina Vaganova made this divertissement famous in her 1935 revival of La Esmeralda, and this is the version known today, which abandons much of the original mythological story. Where the original story has Actéon (Actaeon) accidentally discovering the goddess Diana (Diane) bathing at a pool, after which an enraged Diana turns the Greek hunter into a stag to have his own hunting dogs rip to pieces. In Vaganova's version, the pas is more of a rapturous dance between two lovers. This excerpt remains very popular on the international stage still today. Instrumentation: 2.2.2.2: 4.2.3.0: Timp.Perc(1): Hp: Str (4-4-3-3-3).