The RNCM presents The Tales of Hoffmann, a fantasy opera by the 19th Century composer Jacques Offenbach. Produced by the City of Manchester Opera, it will be staged with a full orchestral ensemble, in the intimate setting of the RNCM’s Studio Theatre. The opera is based on three short stories by the acclaimed author E.T.A. Hoffmann, who appears in the play in a heavily fictionalised form. Offenbach worked on the piece for many years, and died with the manuscript in his hand, without ever seeing it performed for an audience. The work includes some of his best-loved pieces, including Barcarolle, The Doll’s Song, and The Students’ Chorus. In this adaptation, the action is transported to the period of decadence and unrest that was Berlin in the 1930s.
Sat 13 – Sun 14 Jun, RNCM Studio Theatre, 124 Oxford Road, M13 9RD, 7.30pm (Sat), 2.30pm (Sun), £18, www.rncm.ac.uk
- Words:
- A. James Simpkin
- Published on:
- Sun 7 Jun 2015