Tales of Hoffmann

The Tales of Hoffmann is a widely beloved opera. It was Jacques Offenbach's final opera. Offenbach died before the premiere in Paris in 1881. The text is composed of three short stories written by the real-life ETA Hoffmann. The stories are each about a failed love:

• Olympia - an automaton that Hoffmann mistakes for a real woman.
• Guilietta - a Venetian courtesan
• Antonia - an opera singer suffering from a fatal illness

The opera begins with a prologue that describes that a famous soprano, Stella, is performing in Mozart's "Don Giovanni". Tickets were hard to come by and many opera goers could not get in. Hoffmann is one of the unfortunate and decides to visit the bar next door to drink his dissappointment away. He is joined by local students who have come to hear his stories. He begins with the story of Kleinzach, a deformed and grotesque charachter (in real life, Offenbach's Borzoi pet dog was named Kleinzach).

ETA Hoffmann was a Renaissance man as well as a rogue. He died of syphillis at the age of 46. Hoffmann wrote short stories, novels, music, opera and is tied to the emergence of science fiction. Among his stories are the three that make up Tales of Hoffman and The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. His character, Dr. Coppelius, comes from his short story, "Der Sandman." who appears both in Tales of Hoffman as the maker of the automaton, Olympia, and as the creator of the ballerina in Delibes ballet, Coppelia. "Der Sandman" was the analyzed by Sigmund Freud in a 1919 essay titled, "The Uncanny".

We will present a film version of Tales of Hoffmann by the Archers (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger). This 1951 film fits well within the golden era of the Broadway musical. This production was a reward project from the Rank Organisation for Powell & Pressburger's great success with The Red Shoes. But, Arthur Rank hated it and tried to quash it. Despite Rank's opinion, celebrated film directors loved it, including Cecile B. DeMille, George Romero and Martin Scorcese. Full disclosure, the Powell/Pressburger version may vary from opera house versions you may have seen before. It is a well established fact that there is no definitive version of this work. One reason is that Offenbach died four years before the premiere, and early in its production run a fire destroyed the opera house and all of the scores. Thus, the work has been re-interpreted from the very beginning.

The film version of Tales of Hoffmann was a critical success. Hein Heckroth won two 1952 Academy Awards, one for artistic direction and another for set design. The soundtrack was recorded entirely in advance with the opera conducted by Sir Thomas Beecham using then currently performing opera singers. Beecham was considered a ballet friendly conductor, and all of the dance scenes were set to the pre-recorded soundtrack. The cast also included real ballet dancers -- Moira Shearer and Ludmilla Tcherina -- who also appeared in The Red Shoes. It is fair to label this film version of Tales of Hoffman "high art". Heckroth and the Archers collaborated with Picasso, Matisse and other artists in the artistic stylings. Those influences have led to artistic decisions that may clash with traditional operatic sensibilities. But what is also certain is that this film greatly influenced fine arts culture and film-making in particular for decades following.

Please bring an open mind and enjoy a different version of an opera you have likely seen before and a great film you may not have yet experienced.