Phaedra

The Chorus wonders what Phaedra will do, observing that “she plans a horrible crime against an innocent youth” (825). They suddenly see Theseus, who enters and reveals that he has just escaped from the Underworld. Hercules rescued him after he and his friend Pirithous were caught trying to abduct Proserpina. Hearing wailing from the palace, he demands to know what the matter is. The Nurse tells Theseus that Phaedra has resolved to kill herself but will tell nobody the reason for her grief.

Theseus enters the palace and confronts Phaedra, asking her why she is intent on killing herself. At first, Phaedra refuses to give Theseus an answer. But when Theseus grows angry and threatens to torture the Nurse until she tells him what he wants to know, Phaedra finally agrees to speak. She tells Theseus that Hippolytus raped her, using his sword to threaten her and dropping it when he fled, and displays Hippolytus’s sword as “proof.” Theseus is furious to hear this. He denounces his son and asks his father Neptune to grant one of the three prayers he had granted him by destroying Hippolytus.

The Chorus sings the third choral

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