LES CONTES D'HOFFMANN to Return to The Metropolitan Opera This Fall

Offenbach's Les Contes d'Hoffmann returns to the Met Opera on September 26 with tenor Vittorio Grigolo reprising the title role of the tortured poet.

Johannes Debus conducts all performances featuring soprano Erin Morley as the mechanical doll Olympia, soprano Anita Hartig as both the consumptive artist Antonia and the self-absorbed diva Stella, and mezzo-soprano Oksana Volkova as the Venetian courtesan Giulietta.

Irish mezzo-soprano Tara Erraught makes her company debut as Nicklausse and the Muse with bass-baritone Laurent Naouri reprising the role of the Four Villians and tenor Christophe Mortagne as the Four Servants.

For prices and ticket information, call (212) 362-6000 or visit www.metopera.org.

Vittorio Grigolo has previously sung the title role of Hoffmann during the Met's 2014-15 season, as well as for Zurich Opera and Los Angeles Opera. He made his company debut in 2010 as Rodolfo in Puccini's La Bohe?me followed by performances as the Duke in Verdi's Rigoletto, Nemorino in Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore, des Grieux in Massenet's Manon, Rome?o in the Met's new production of Gounod's Rome?o et Juliette, and the title role of Massenet's Werther. Later this season, he will star as Cavaradossi in the company's new production of Puccini's Tosca and Rodolfo in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor.

Erin Morley made her role debut singing Olympia during the Met's 2014-15 season. As a graduate of the Met's Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, she has sung 11 roles at the Met, including Sophie in the new production of Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier, Constance in Poulenc's Dialogues des Carme?lites, Woglinde and the Forest Bird in Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, Madame Podtochina's daughter in the Met premiere of Shostakovich's The Nose, Echo in Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos, and the Dew Fairy in Humperdinck's Hansel and Gretel. After her performances in Les Contes d'Hoffmann, she will sing Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos and Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier at the Vienna State Opera, Cunegonde in Bernstein's Candide at the Los Angeles Opera, Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier at the Glyndebourne Festival, and Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos at the Santa Fe Opera.

Anita Hartig makes her role debut as Antonia and Stella. She made her Met debut in 2013 as Mimi? in La Bohe?me followed by performances as Micae?la in Bizet's Carmen, Liu? in Puccini's Turandot, and her role debut as Susanna in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro. She can be seen reprising the role of Mimi? in La Bohe?me with the company later this season, as well as the Vienna State Opera, Teatro Real in Madrid, and Rome Opera, and then Marguerite in Gounod's Faust at the Vienna State Opera and Hamburg State Opera.

Oksana Volkova adds a new role to her repertory as Giulietta. She made her Met debut in 2013 as Maddalena in Rigoletto and has also sung Olga in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin and Sonyetka in Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk with the company. Her other credits include the title role of Carmen at the Lithuanian National Opera, Lola in Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana at La Scala, and Olga in Eugene Onegin at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden. Later this season, she will reprise Olga in Eugene Onegin at the Hamburg State Opera.

Tara Erraught makes her company debut as Nicklausse and the Muse, roles she has previously sung at the Bavarian State Opera. Other recent opera credits include Rosina in Rossini's IL Barbiere di Siviglia at the Berlin State Opera and Salzburg Festival, the Composer in Ariadne auf Naxos at the Bavarian State Opera, Angelina in Rossini's La Cenerentola at the Washington National Opera, and Octavian in Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier at the Glyndebourne Festival. She can be seen as Hansel in the holiday presentation of Hansel and Gretel at the Met later this season.

Christophe Mortagne adds a new role to his Met repertory as the Four Servants. He made his company debut as Guillot de Morfontaine in Massenet's Manon, and his credits with other companies include reprising his interpretation of Guillot de Morfontaine at La Scala and Royal Opera Covent Garden; Monsieur Triquet in Eugene Onegin at Ope?ra de Lyon and Royal Opera, Covent Garden; and King Ouf I in Chabrier's L'E?toile at the Frankfurt Opera and Dutch National Opera.

Laurent Naouri has previously sung the Four Villians at the Met during the 2014- 15 season, as well as Paris Opera, Gran Teatre del Liceu, and Zurich Opera. He made his company debut in 2012 as Sharpless in Puccini's Madama Butterfly and has also sung Capulet in the Met's new production of Rome?o et Juliette. Later this season, he will sing Pandolfe in the company premiere of Massenet's Cendrillon followed by the High Priest in Saint-Sae?ns's Samson et Dalila at The?a?tre des Champs-E?lyse?es.

Johannes Debus made his company debut last season conducting Strauss's Salome. The German maestro has conducted multiple European opera companies, including the Frankfurt Opera, Bavarian State Opera, Berlin State Opera, English National Opera, and Ope?ra National de Lyon. Following the Met, he will lead Mozart's Die Entfu?hrung aus dem Serail and Stravinsky's The Nightingale and Other Short Fables at the Canadian Opera Company, where he has been the Music Director since 2009.

LES CONTES D'HOFFMANN FUN FACTS:

French writers and opera librettists Jules Barbier and Michel Carre? wrote the play Les contes fantastiques d'Hoffmann. Following the play's opening, Barbier began to adapt a libretto for an opera based on his work. Offenbach was commisioned to adapt the score; however, he composed very slowly and was interrupted to write other works prior to finishing Les Contes d'Hoffmann. He oddly predicted that he would not live to see the work staged, similar to Antonia's premonition that she would die in Les Contes d'Hoffmann. The opera was to be his last. He died several months before the premiere at the Ope?ra-Comique in 1881.

Today, this opera has been staged at the Met 268 times to date. Notable tenors who have sung the title role with the company include Richard Tucker, Nicolai Gedda, and Pla?cido Domingo, who has sung the role a record 32 times at the Met.

LES CONTES D'HOFFMANN RADIO BROADCASTS:

The September 26 performance will be broadcast live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on SIRIUS XM Channel 75, as will the performances on October 24. The October 24 performances will also be streamed live on the Met's Web site, www.metopera.org.

Pictured: Erin Morley as Olympia and Vittorio Grigolo in the title role of Offenbach's "Les Contes d'Hoffmann." Photo by Marty Sohl/Metropolitan Opera.

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