Madison Opera to Present THE TALES OF HOFFMANN, 4/15-17

Madison Opera presents Jacques Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffmann on Friday, April 15 and Sunday, April 17 in Overture Hall at the Overture Center for the Arts. This will be the company's first production in twenty years of Offenbach's masterpiece, which moves in a fantasy world. It offers showpiece arias for the bravura cast, the gorgeous "Barcarolle," and a truly moving tribute to what it means to be an artist.

As he sits in a tavern, the poet Hoffmann drinks, smokes, and encounters Lindorf, his rival for his current lover, the opera singer Stella. He recalls how his nemesis seems to appear constantly in his life, and urged on by his fellow bar patrons, tells the three tales of his loves: Olympia, who turns out to be a mechanical doll; Antonia, a singer who dies of a mysterious illness; and Giulietta, a courtesan who steals his reflection. His adventures take him from Munich to Venice, always accompanied by his most faithful love, his muse. The opera ends back in the tavern, as Hoffmann's muse consoles him and urges him on to the higher purpose of art.

"The Tales of Hoffmann is one of my absolute favorite operas," says Kathryn Smith, Madison Opera's general director. "I love the music, the story, the myriad facets to the characters, and the fact that no two productions of this opera are identical. It has comedy, tragedy, drinking songs, lyrical arias, and even some magic tricks."

Offenbach's final opera, The Tales of Hoffmann premiered in 1881 at the Ope?ra-Comique in Paris. The title character was based on the writer E.T.A. Hoffmann, now most famous as the author of the original Nutcracker story; the different acts were adaptations of Hoffmann's own short stories. Offenbach was celebrated for over 100 comic operettas such as Orpheus in the Underworld; Hoffmann was intended to be his first grand opera. Unfortunately, he died before completing the opera, and other composers finished it. Over the past century, there have been many different versions of the opera, with different arias, different plot points, and even different orders of the acts.

"The Tales of Hoffmann, for me, is the perfect blend of great music and
great theater," says John DeMain, Madison Opera's artistic director. "It's particularly fun to conduct because the orchestra plays a central role in
the moment to moment unfolding of the drama, and Offenbach achieves
this at the same time as he is spinning out one gorgeous melody after another."

Performances:

Friday, April 15, 2016 • 8 p.m.
Sunday, April 17, 2016 • 2:30 p.m. Overture Hall, Overture Center for the Arts Sung in French with projected English translations

Box Office:

201 State St., Madison, WI (608) 258-4141 www.madisonopera.org

Tickets:

$18 - $129

Student and group discounts available

Madison Opera's cast features a quartet of debuts in the leading roles. Harold Meers, who sang at Opera in the Park 2015, makes his mainstage debut as Hoffmann, the poet. Sia?n Davies makes her debut singing all four of Hoffmann's loves - Olympia, Antonia, Giulietta, and Stella - a true vocal and dramatic feat. Baritone Morgan Smith makes his debut as Hoffmann's nemesis, who appears in forms both sinister and comic. Making her debut as Hoffmann's sidekick Nicklausse, who also turns out to be his Muse, is mezzo Adriana Zabala.

Returning to Madison Opera as the four servants is Jared Rogers, who sang Beadle Bamford in Sweeney Todd. Thomas Forde, last here as Don Basilio in The Barber of Seville, sings the dual roles of Luther and Crespel. Robert Goderich, who sang Pirelli in Sweeney Todd, sings Spalanzani, the mad inventor. Tyler Alessi makes his debut as Schlemil. Three Madison Opera Studio Artists round out the cast: Kelsey Park as the voice of Antonia's dead mother and William Ottow and Nathaniel Hill as two students.

Madison Opera's production is set in the 1920s, with stylish costumes that are perfect for Offenbach's fantasy that travels time and location. Kristine McIntyre, who directed Dead Man Walking and A Masked Ball for Madison Opera, stages this complex story that has a vast dramatic scope.

The public has many ways to learn more about The Tales of Hoffmann, starting on March 18 with Opera Novice, which focuses on "unfinished" operas, as Offenbach was not the only composer who died before his work was completed. A community preview will be held at Capitol Lakes Retirement Community on April 1. Madison Opera and Cinematheque co-present Powell and Pressburger's celebrated 1951 film adaptation of the opera on April 2. Opera Up Close provides an in-depth discussion of the piece, including a roundtable with Hoffmann artists, on April 10.

Related event details and full cast and production information are enclosed. For production photos, to schedule artist interviews, or for more information, please contact Marketing Manager Steffanie Berg at berg@madisonopera.org or 608.238.8085.

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