The Tales of Hoffman

The Royal Opera House

A fantastical opera, filled with voices so talented it feels like a dream and the Royal Opera House remains in the top spot with their high quality set design. Shadows of Hoffman's memories dance across the stage and you will be guided on a journey into his past.

"Love makes you great, suffering makes you greater still"

Damiano Michieletto is the director of this enchanted adaptation of Jacques Offenbach's writing and he is no stranger to directing an opera. He has an abundance of previous works including; La bohéme, Roméo et Juliette, and for The Royal Opera House he has directed; the Olivier award winning Cavalleria Rusticana/Paliacci. This is only a section of his work and it's safe to say it's not his first rodeo and it shows through the epic quality of this opera.

'The Tales of Hoffman', written by Jaques Offenback, follows the poet 'Hoffman' who is nostalgic of his past and takes the audience on a whistle stop tour of his love life. Each of the three women vastly different from the next, they symbolise lessons of love for Hoffman and lead him to being the broken man he is in the present day. It is a melancholic story of loss of love and each woman is snatched from Hoffman one way or another by the devil, the tragedy gets more dramatic as the piece goes on. Hoffman's muse is disguised as Nicklausse, his parrot companion and follows him on this journey through his memories. She almost plays the role of a guardian angel: desperately trying to save Hoffman from danger. Each woman symbolises an aspect of his new love 'Stella', the woman his muse is jealous of. The piece is all Hoffman's mind and it's hard to distinguish what is the reality. It seems like nothing is, is it just him alone in his attic trying to craft the next poem?

Hoffman is played by the iconic Juan Diago Flórez, who plays young Hoffman with charm and charisma that enchants each of his love interests to fall for him. He contrasts this when he plays the older poet who is wise, aged and clearly cut off from the world following his loss of love over the years. His young character is committed and determined, but his old character is slow and almost seems like he is unsure of what happiness is or how to feel it. His voice varies between the two ages and his characterisation is unmatched. Olympia, played by Olga Pudova, blew the audience out of their seats with her oozing talent. Her performance should have been kept till the end and not so close to the beginning, but that would not be possible, as this is just how Hoffman's story begins. What a beginning. She plays a doll; her voice was unlike anything I have ever heard and quite clearly from the audience's reaction they all were as astounded as myself. Nicklausse played by Julie Boulianne plays the parrot companion, her portrayal of this animal was interesting to watch, but her voice whilst it did have a bird-like elements, was not easy to listen to nor did it vary throughout the piece. Her character was given a lot more attention at times than other more prominent characters.

The piece fuses dance and opera. This is an interesting concept. However, considering the quality of dance that the Royal Opera House shows, the dance in this show did not match its usual quality. The styles varied, from ballet, to lyrical/contemporary. The ballet was not at the usual standard and felt weak. Whilst the story told about Antonia, played by Ermonela Jaho; is this gut wrenching tale of a girl who dreams of following her ballerina mother's foot steps and loses her ability to follow this dream after illness. The mother's choreography takes your attention from this sad story, because of the quality and insignificance to the story. The demons that follow the devil also perform in a provocative and satirical manner, this tone does not feel fitting to the devil, who brings fear and power. They do not seem to fit the aesthetic of the devil. The dance fusion into opera is such a majestic and fitting concept for this opera and it feels the choreography lacks the true tone of the piece. That being said there are still some lovely moments, like the dance teacher instructing the young children's ballet. This simultaeneously symbolises Antonia's past and adds some brief comic levity to distract you from the sad story.

Set design was the best I have witnessed at The Royal Opera House. It cleverly matches the fantasy and dream like story line. Moments match Hoffman's senses giving the audience the story fully from Hoffman's Perspective. Such as, in Act One he is given glasses and there is a huge eye in the corner of the staging that moves and the lighting matches the colour of the glasses. This is so clever, because you see what Hoffman sees! Another use of set is the bedroom of Antonia, it is pink and child like to show how she is struggling to come to terms with her condition and longs to go back to a time that was easier. As the devil is enchanting her you can see her on her bed and the set moves to show the dark magic he is using to put a curse on her, almost like she is trapped in this room. There are so many ways you can interpret every setting and each is as incredible as the next.

There is so much more to analyse, but maybe you should see for yourself! This opera has such an abundance of avenues that can be taken when directing. Damiano Michieletto has shown Offenbach's last written opera in all of its glory, showcasing it's thought provoking story line in a way that enhances its fantastical theme. Hoffman is a character that is difficult to understand, which is what makes him so entrancing, and each audience member will have a different idea of Hoffman's mind set and story. He is a mystery. The piece merges comedy, tragedy and poetry in such an epic way. It's big, interesting and it's story is a mystery that you will enjoy unlocking. This story clearly tells of Hoffman's love and suffering. The opera seems to symbolise the poetry that came from the story of his past and its vast beauty. What a magical experience.