The Ancient Greek Euripides wrote the play Hippolytus, a tragedy based on the myth of the son of Theseus, Hippolytus. The gods play a central part in Hippolytus, and Aphrodite and Artemis appear at the start and end respectively. It is thought they were also present throughout, as two statues onstage. The Bacchae, which is also called The Bacchantes is another of Euripides’ tragedies. It is based on the myth of King Pentheus of Thebes and his mother Agave who are punished Dionysus when they refuse to worship him.