Anneliese van der Pol had an early career in musical theater.
The Taurian Games -LRB- Latin Ludi Taurii or Ludi Taurei , rarely Taurilia -RRB- were games -LRB- ludi -RRB- held in ancient Rome in honor of the di inferi , the gods of the underworld .. ludi. ludi. ancient Rome. ancient Rome. di inferi. Di Inferi. They were not part of a regularly scheduled religious festival on the calendar , but were held as expiatory rites religionis causa , occasioned by religious concerns .. religious festival. Roman festival. calendar. Roman calendar. religious concerns. Glossary of ancient Roman religion#religio. Ludi Taurii are recorded in 186 BC as a two-day event .. Varro mentions them as occurring in the late Republic .. Varro. Varro. late Republic. Roman Republic#Late Republic ( 147 BC - 30 BC ). During the reign of Antoninus Pius , they were held every five years from 140 to 160 AD , within a period beginning on the day after the Ides of May and continuing through the Kalends of June .. Antoninus Pius. Antoninus Pius. Ides. Ides ( calendar ). Kalends. Kalends. Some scholars extrapolate that like the lustrum -LRB- purification ritual -RRB- , the Ludi Taurii were regularly quinquennial .. lustrum. lustrum. Others caution that the five-year schedule under Antoninus Pius , attested by the Fasti Ostienses , is never mentioned in other sources .. Antoninus Pius. Antoninus Pius. Fasti Ostienses. Fasti Ostienses. The limited evidence suggests the Ludi Taurii were important mainly in the context of religious revivalism during the Augustan and Antonine eras .. Augustan. Augustus. Antonine. Antonine. The Taurian Games were horse races , or less likely chariot races , on a course around turning posts -LRB- metae -RRB- .. chariot races. chariot races. metae. metae. In the 19th century , they were sometimes confused with the archaic Tarentine Games -LRB- ludi tarentini -RRB- , which were replaced by the Saecular Games .. ludi. ludi. Saecular Games. Saecular Games. Horse racing along with the propitiation of underworld gods was characteristic of `` old and obscure '' Roman festivals such as the Consualia , the October Horse , and sites in the Campus Martius such as the Tarentum -LRB- where the ludi tarentini originated -RRB- and the Trigarium .. ludi. ludi. propitiation. propitiation. Consualia. Consualia. October Horse. October Horse. Campus Martius. Campus Martius. Tarentum. Tarentum ( Campus Martius ). Trigarium. Trigarium. The Ludi Taurii were the only games held in the Circus Flaminius .. Circus Flaminius. Circus Flaminius. If the games are Etruscan in origin , as Festus and Servius claim , taurii probably comes from the Etruscan word tauru , `` tomb . ''. Etruscan. Etruscan civilization. Festus. Sextus Pompeius Festus. Servius. Servius. Etruscan word. Etruscan language. The design of the turning posts -LRB- metae -RRB- on a Roman race course was derived from Etruscan funerary monuments .. metae. metae. Etruscan. Etruscan civilization. Festus , however , offers an etiology based on Latin taurus , `` bull . ''. Festus. Sextus Pompeius Festus. etiology. aition