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).
[1] The opera is a telling of the story of Helen of Troy after her husband's (Menelaos) death.
Helen descends to the nether world to seek Achilles on the Island of the Blest.
But along comes a young fisherman who dances and convinces Helen to try at love again.