In his final opera, Jacques Offenbach made E.T.A. Hoffmann, the most famous poet of the Romantic period, into his main character. The poet explores the threshold between reality and fantasy in a fascinating way in his magical-surreal tales. The opera masterfully combines operetta, sentimental opéra comique and romantic-fantastic opera. Original melodic inventions merge with gripping drama and Offenbach’s subtle irony interrupts his main character’s rapturous states. Offenbach left his last opera unfinished. Since the posthumous premiere in 1881, different versions have been issued by various publishers. The Opernhaus Zürich has chosen the version published by the two editors Michael Kaye and Jean-Christophe Keck. First staged by Andreas Homoki in 2021 during the coronavirus pandemic, Zurich’s production now finally sees an audience in the Opernhaus and live online. Brought to Slippedisc’s readers courtesy of OperaVision. After his successful 2021 debut in the title role, Saimir Pirgu returns as Hoffmann with Antonino Fogliani conducting the Philharmonia Zürich.
The Plot: Hoffmann, the poet, is torn between art and life, love and fantasy, dream and reality. His love for Stella, the singer, remains unrequited, and he takes refuge in alcohol and the world of his imagination. Over the course of a wine-soaked evening, he tells his friends of three fantastical love affairs
Sung in French. Subtitles in German, English and French
Live stream on Saturday 12 July at 1900 CET / 1800 London / 1300 New York
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