Alas, Hercules has been banished from Mount Olympus for committing a series of acts that have offended the Gods. Not entirely his fault you see, for his evil and jealous stepmother Hera has placed a curse on the legendary hero which is the cause of his unfavorable behavior. Eventually, word gets around that Hera is the one who placed the curse on Hercules and she is forced by Zeus and the other Gods to remove the curse. Small problem for our hero Hercules, though is he now has to appease the Gods for all of his misdoings while under the curse. In order to redeem himself, Hercules must perform twelve labors successfully. So, Hercules and his clumsy sidekick Theseus set out to prove that Hercules is indeed a hero and not the zero that Hera has tried to set him up as being. Sounds easy enough doesn't it? But with Hera still on his tail determined to foul up Hercules' chance of redemption, Hercules soon discovers that becoming a hero isn't as easy as it seems.

Leonard Bernstein's 1952 opera is a biting satire on the emptiness of materialist values and the false promise of suburban comforts. This production, conducted by the composer himself, presents a live-action cast performing on an animated set. Inspired by jazz and American musical comedy, the score is a path-breaking fusion of lyric art with popular entertainment.