Helen of Troy to the underworld, the domain of Hades, to kidnap Persephone. Hades pretended to offer them hospitality and set a feast, but, as soon as the pair sat down, snakes coiled around their feet and held them there. Helen's abduction caused an invasion of Athens by Castor and Pollux, who captured Aethra in revenge, and returned their sister to Sparta. In most accounts of this event, Helen was quite young; Hellanicus of Lesbos said she was seven years old and Diodorus makes her ten years old. On the other hand, Stesichorus said that Iphigenia was the daughter of Theseus and Helen,
Helen Retires Helen Retires Helen Retires is the second opera by George Antheil. The libretto was written by John Erskine based on his novel "The Private Life of Helen of Troy" (1925). It was written in 1931 but not performed until 1934 when it was produced by the Juilliard School (where Erskine was president). The opera is a telling of the story of Helen of Troy after her husband's (Menelaos) death. It opens with his funeral banquet. Helen descends to the nether world to seek Achilles on the Island of the Blest. Finding Achilles the two return from Hades and proceed to