Les Contes d’Hoffmann

Three love stories leading to three rejections, which together lead to Hoffmann’s biggest love and ultimate rejection, the one by prima donna Stella. This is, in short, the plot of Jacques Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann) one of the most popular French operas, alongside Carmen, Faust, and Manon. More than a story about love, the emancipation of an enigmatic woman, or the woes of an author in crisis, it is a complex and fascinating work which blends history and fiction, leaving a lot open to various interpretations. 

The French libretto tells the woes and passions of the 19th century German writer and composer E.T.A. Hoffmann. The libretto, written by Jules Barbier, is based on three short stories by Hoffmann, the story’s protagonist. It was Offenbach's final work, who died in October 1880, four months before the premiere. With an epilogue practically unfinished, each opera house decides which version of an ending to go for. Director Krzysztof Warlikowski, acclaimed reinventor of opera direction as a form, presents the opera as it appears in its most recent critical edition and draws inspiration from cinematic works, such as A Star Is Born, The Shining, and Inland Empire.