Historically speaking, this opera is based on Virgil's epic, The Aenead. After the fall of Troy, Aeneas is on his way to found a new empire. His ship’s route is diverted by a storm and he lands on the coast of northern Africa. There he meets Dido, the Queen of Carthage. They fall in love. The gods come and tell him not to get involved with this woman, as she will distract him from his mission. Aeneas obeys the gods’ command out of a sense of duty. When he tells Dido he must leave, she takes his sword and dramatically kills herself.

In Henry Purcell's version:
Dido does not kill herself. She implodes with grief upon hearing that Aeneas must leave. Instead of gods, there is a sorcerer and his witches who devise a plan for Dido's downfall. This is very much a reflection of the times in the year 1689 (50 years after Shakespeare's Macbeth).

FOR OUR PURPOSES:
Dido and Aeneas are a modern celebrity couple being destroyed by the media; the negative forces are corporate people who convince Aeneas he will have a better career without her. Dido leaves him. Dido does not kill herself or die of grief. In Jody’s version, Dido will discover her own heroic nature find her own will. Rather than dying, she sheds vestiges of her former life.

ENJOY THE SHOW!