The world premiere of Damiano Michieletto's Tales of Hoffmann production is actually his second attempt at staging the opera in Sydney.
He travelled to Australia in 2021 to start rehearsals only to spend two weeks in a quarantine hotel (without so much as a view of the Opera House) before flying straight home.
"I want my revenge - now we have really to do something special and extraordinary," he told AAP.
The Tales of Hoffmann is Opera Australia's first co-production with London's Royal Opera House to originate in Australia and have its world premiere in Sydney.
Renowned Australian soprano Jessica Pratt is returning home to sing all four female lead roles, with an extra aria added in.
Michieletto said Pratt was fabulous to work with and made each role seem simple.
"Really that's astonishing because if you think about the difficulty she's facing with the score ... actually it's extremely complicated," he said.
"She's a great symbol for the art scene in Australia and it will be a very special night for her onstage in these big roles."
Pratt is one of few sopranos in the world capable of tackling Hoffmann's arduous repertoire.
She sings up to a high F in Offenbach's opera, which includes a famous, fiendishly difficult aria known as The Doll Song - arguably the most challenging piece ever written for soprano.
In taking on all four roles, she follows in the footsteps of Dame Joan Sutherland who starred in Hoffmann for her first performance at the Sydney Opera House in 1974.
Pratt is not only singing - at various times she's climbing on desks, writing on a blackboard and pretending to be a wind-up doll.
The opera is based on three short stories and follows the tipsy character of Hoffmann through a series of flashbacks as he remembers the four great loves of his life.
Peruvian tenor Ivan Ayon Rivas sings the title character and Marko Mimica the four villains, with Guillaume Tourniaire conducting.
The team behind the production of Il Viaggio a Reims has developed costumes and sets assembled by the company's Surry Hills workshop.
The set is composed of a series of rooms opening onto the stage that act as windows into Hoffmann's memories.
Michieletto believes developing productions is good for the national company and so far the in-demand director's vengeance on Sydney has been pretty enjoyable.
"I really like the people here, the attitude is very fresh, it's very energetic and gives me a lot of enthusiasm," he said.
The Tales of Hoffmann at the Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House, runs July 11 till July 22.
