Ariadne the labyrinth designer is named for the daughter of King Minos of Crete and Queen Pasiphaë. She aided Theseus in overcoming the Minotaur by giving him a ball of red fleece thread to find his way out of the Minotaur's labyrinth. The name is also a reference this opera which is a play within a play, just as the movie is a dream within a dream.