My reaction to the HD TV live broadcast of Offenbach’s The Tales of Hoffmann from the Metropolitan Opera House yesterday is rather mixed. I already am aware that some of you loved it, whereas others did not. With a group as diverse as ours, such disparity is not too surprising.
In any event, on the positive side, the performances by Anna Netrebko (Antonia), Kim (Olympia), and Lindsey (Nicklausse), as well as the Orchestra, were excellent. On the other hand, Calleja (Hoffmann) was very disappointing, although at times he sang beautifully. Held (Lindorf, etc.) was insufficiently sinister. The other principal singers were only OK.
Overall I found this particular production boring. In attempting to explain why, I must point primarily to the integration of what in other performances [...]