Hoffmann tells a story of the title subject's three great loves — Olympia, Giulietta and Antonia. Olympia is revealed to be a mechanical doll, setting the scene for one of the opera's most famous and challenging arias, "The Doll Song." Giulietta turns out to be a real woman, but unfortunately, she is a courtesan on hire to seduce him. Finally, he arrives at Antonia and as his luck would have it, she sings herself to death.

This action-packed opera was written by Jacques Offenbach and is sung in French. It has remained a favorite among opera fans for decades.