Diana and Actaeon the role of the Satyr, with Lydia Ivanova as Diana and Nicholas Efimov as Endymion. In 1886, Petipa incorporated a new "pas de deux," set to music by Riccardo Drigo, into his production of Pugni's "La Esmeralda" for the Maryinsky Ballet, as the Imperial Russian Ballet had come to be called. This "pas de deux" was based on the Greek myth of Artemis (predecessor to the Roman Diana), in her aspect of virgin goddess of the hunt, and Actaeon, a Theban hero. According to Ovid's "Metamorphoses," Actaeon, out on a hunt, stumbled upon Artemis while she was bathing at a
Greek mythology in popular culture Greek mythology in popular culture Elements of Greek mythology have appeared many times in culture and pop culture. The Greek myths had originally been adopted into the culture of ancient Rome, and have been frequently incorporated by Western cultural movements since then, particularly since the Renaissance. Mythological elements have been used in Renaissance art and English poems, as well as film and literature, and songs and commercials. Along with the Bible and the works of Shakespeare, the myths of Greece and Rome have been the major "touchstone" in Western culture for the past 500 years. These elements include the gods