European Opera-Directing Prize 2025

The memories of Hoffmann – Jacques Offenbach

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Benedikt Arnold | Director

Lex Hymer | Stage and Costume Design (www.lexhymer.com)

Nikita Dubov | Dramaturge

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This concept was developed for the European Opera-Directing Prize competition and was presented in the semi-finals at the Staatstheater Wiesbaden (May 2025) and in the finals at the Grand Théâtre de Genève (October 2025). 

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The jury consisted of chairwoman Barbara Minghetti (Teatro Sociale di Como/Teatro Regio di Parma), artistic director Dorothea Hartmann, representing the host theater (Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden), as well as Chrysoline Dupont (Opéra Comique), Ina Karr (Luzerner Theater), Thomas de Mallet Burgess (Finnish National Opera and Ballet), and Fergus Sheil (Irish National Opera).

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Short summary of the concept:

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• Hoffmann‘s three stories are presented as a chronology of an outsider’s life and brought to the stage in nightmarish flashbacks.

• While Hoffmann is confronted with the processing of his memories and behaviors, our concept focuses also scenically and musically on his lifelong companion Nicklausse – a developing figure ‚in-between,‘ with strong feelings and longings of their own.

• We depict a possibly missed queer love story between the two protagonists due to Hoffmann‘s distorted and problematic views on women:

• In his encounters with Olympia, Antonia, and Giulietta, he only sees clichéd surfaces and combines them into a constructed and unattainable ‚Stella‘ projection.

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Download our full concept presentation