Les Contes d’Hoffmann

LES CONTES D'HOFFMAN, THE LEGENDARY GERMAN OPERA OF COMEDY AND TRAGEDY

The Opernhaus Zurich's version of the legendary German opera, translated into English as The Tales of Hoffmann brings one of the best loved works of the nineteenth century to the European stage.

This beloved opera by Jacques Offenbach is based on five short stories by the German romantic author E.T.A. Hoffmann. Premiering in 1881, Les contes d'Hoffmann has been a fixture of the opera circuit because of the interesting nature of the stories that make up the prologue, three acts and epilogue.

HISTORY

Les contes d'Hoffmann is set in the nineteenth century and focuses on the life of E.T.A. Hoffmann himself as the main character in the opera. Asked by his competitor, Lindorf to tell those gathered in a tavern about his three great loves, Hoffmann does so through portions of the stories he published during the nineteenth century romantic period of German literature.