Les contes d'Hoffmann

The opera premiered on February 10, 1881, at the Opéra-Comique in Paris, roughly four months after Offenbach's death in October 1880. Offenbach had been working on it intensively in his final years, knowing it would be his most ambitious and serious work.

The most celebrated coloratura showpiece is 'Les oiseaux dans la charmille,' commonly known as 'The Doll Aria,' sung by the mechanical doll Olympia in the first act. It requires extraordinary vocal agility, including rapid scales and high notes, and is one of the most demanding coloratura soprano arias in the repertoire.

The opera is based on three tales by the German Romantic author E.T.A. Hoffmann, framed by a prologue and epilogue set in a tavern where Hoffmann himself appears as a character. The three acts feature the mechanical doll Olympia, the Venetian courtesan Giulietta, and the doomed singer Antonia, each representing a different facet of Hoffmann's romantic obsessions.

No, Offenbach died before fully completing the score, and the opera has existed in multiple performing editions since its 1881 premiere. The question of which version most faithfully reflects Offenbach's final intentions remains a subject of ongoing scholarly debate, and several critical editions have been published attempting to reconstruct his original plans.