Opera guides
Les contes d'Hoffmann: synopsis, roles, arias and diction notes
Offenbach's Les contes d'Hoffmann in one page: librettist, premiere, voice types, the three tales, famous numbers and French diction notes.
Diction Desk editors · Checked 19 October 2026 against 4 sources
Les contes d'Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann) is an opéra fantastique by Jacques Offenbach to a French libretto by Jules Barbier, based on three short stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann1. It premiered on 10 February 1881 at the Opéra-Comique in Paris, four months after Offenbach's death1. Its best-known numbers are the Doll Song and the barcarolle of the Venetian act1.
- Composer
- Jacques Offenbach1
- Librettist
- Jules Barbier1
- Premiere
- 10 February 1881, Opéra-Comique, Paris1
- Language
- French1
- Genre
- Opéra fantastique1
- Structure
- Prologue, three tales, epilogue1
Contents
Offenbach died on 5 October 1880, before the opera was staged3. He had completed the piano score and some orchestration1. The version performed at the premiere was by Ernest Guiraud, without the Giulietta act1. This page gives the facts to have in hand before you open the score; it is one of many guides in the operas section.
At a glance
The French libretto was written by Jules Barbier, based on three short stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann, who is the protagonist1. Barbier (died 16 January 1901, aged 75) was a French poet and librettist who often wrote with Michel Carré2. Barbier and Carré’s 1851 play Les contes fantastiques d’Hoffmann was produced at the Odéon Theatre in Paris1.
The premiere took place on 10 February 1881 at the Opéra-Comique in Paris1. Offenbach had a premonition, like Antonia, that he would die before the opera was complete1. Shortly before his death he wrote to Carvalho to hurry up and stage the opera1. The structure is a prologue, three tales and an epilogue1.
Who’s who
| Role | Voice type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hoffmann, a poet | Tenor | Jean-Alexandre Talazac in the premiere1,4 |
| Nicklausse / the Muse | Mezzo-soprano (either gender) | Zoé Molé-Truffier as the Muse in the premiere1,4 |
| Lindorf, Coppélius, Miracle, Dapertutto | Bass-baritone | The four villains; Émile-Alexandre Taskin sang Lindorf in the premiere1,4 |
| Olympia, a mechanical doll | Coloratura soprano | Hoffmann’s first love1,3 |
| Stella, a singer | Soprano | Adèle Isaac in the premiere1 |
| Crespel, Antonia’s father | Baritone | Hippolyte Belhomme in the premiere1 |
Offenbach intended the four soprano roles to be taken by one singer, as three facets of Stella1. The four villains (Lindorf, Coppélius, Miracle and Dapertutto) would be the same bass-baritone, representing the evil forces Hoffmann faces1. De Almeida considered the main improvement in later editions to be the emergence of Nicklausse/Muse as the most important character after the title role1.
Synopsis
Prologue
The opera is set during the interval of a performance of Don Giovanni, with Hoffmann telling students his three great loves in Luther’s Tavern4. The prima donna Stella sends Hoffmann a letter requesting a meeting1. Councillor Lindorf intercepts the letter and the key to the room1.
Act 1: Olympia
Hoffmann’s first love is Olympia, an automaton created by the scientist Spalanzani1. Coppélius sells Hoffmann magic glasses to make Olympia appear as a real woman1. She winds down during her song and must be wound up by Spalanzani before she can continue1. Coppélius tears Olympia apart in revenge against Spalanzani, who had cheated him of his fees1. This act is based on a portion of Der Sandmann1.
Act 2: Antonia
Antonia inherited her mother’s talent for singing, but her father forbids her to sing because of her mysterious illness1. Hoffmann, eavesdropping, learns that Antonia may die if she sings too much1. Dr Miracle raises a vision of Antonia’s dead mother and induces Antonia to sing, causing her death1. This act is based on Rath Krespel1.
Act 3: Giulietta
Giulietta seduces Hoffmann on the orders of Captain Dapertutto, who promises her a diamond if she steals Hoffmann’s reflection from a mirror1. Schlemil is killed in a duel with Hoffmann, thanks to the magic sword Dapertutto gave him1. In Bonynge’s version Giulietta is poisoned by accidentally drinking the philter Dapertutto prepared for Nicklausse1. This act is loosely based on Die Abenteuer der Silvester-Nacht1.
Epilogue
Hoffmann explains that Olympia, Antonia and Giulietta are three facets of the same person, Stella1. The Muse reclaims him: Be reborn a poet!1 Hoffmann tells Stella that he will not follow her, the spectre of the past1.
The famous numbers
| Number | Role | Act | First line |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Doll Song | Olympia | 1 | Les oiseaux dans la charmille1 |
| Barcarolle | Act 3 opening | 3 | Belle nuit, ô nuit d’amour1 |
Olympia’s Les oiseaux dans la charmille, often called The Doll Song, is one of the opera’s most famous arias1. The barcarolle of the Venetian act is the opera’s famous number, borrowed by Offenbach from his earlier opera Rheinnixen1.
Lines to read aloud
| Original | Our translation |
|---|---|
| Les oiseaux dans la charmille1 | The birds in the arbor |
| Belle nuit, ô nuit d’amour1 | Lovely night, O night of love |
Background, premiere and versions
The first public performance was at the Opéra-Comique on 10 February 18811. The opera reached its hundredth performance at the Salle Favart on 15 December 18811. A fire at the Opéra-Comique in 1887 destroyed the orchestral parts1. Choudens published at least four divergent scores in 1881 and 18821.
Albert Carré’s 1911 Opéra-Comique production, with the Venice act, ran until World War II with 700 performances1. Local premieres included Buenos Aires in 1894, St Petersburg in 1899, Barcelona in 1905 and London in 19101. The Paris Opera first staged the work in October 1974, directed by Patrice Chéreau with Nicolai Gedda in the title role1.
On 5 October 1880 Offenbach died with the manuscript in his hand, just four months before the opening1. The 1881 version leaves out the Venice act1. In 2016 Jean-Christophe Keck announced that he had traced and identified the full manuscript of the Prologue and the Olympia act1. A 1951 British film adaptation was written, produced and directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger1.
Language and diction notes
The libretto is in French, so the rules in French diction for singers apply throughout. Because the score exists in several divergent editions, check which text your coach is using before you mark the lines1. Transcribe the first lines in the table above into IPA, then check them with a coach.
_-_Les_contes_d%27Hoffmann_by_Jacques_Offenbach,_Olympia_act.jpg){kind=link}