Seattle Opera’s luminous and vital ‘Pearl Fishers’

Companies that present Bizet’s early opera “The Pearl Fishers” have many options, but these fall mainly into three categories.

They can go all high concept and stage the opera on one of the moons of Saturn, or at a luau in Maui, or among the Egyptian pyramids. They can present the opera as written, in a series of straightforward tableaux — but, despite the beauty of the music, many in the audience will be asleep by intermission.

Or, they can do as Seattle Opera thankfully has done in its current production: Stick to the score and the period staging, but add visual elements with so much vitality that the music is consistently enhanced by exciting theater and choreography. And it doesn’t hurt to line up a cast of first-rate performers who look great, and whose singing is admirably supported by the lyrical conductor Emmanuel Joel-Hornak and the shimmering textures of the orchestra.

Forget the clichés about portly, aged singers trying to act like youngsters: This is a cast of handsome men and beautiful women who know how to act, as well as deliver an aria.

Saturday’s opening-night cast was headed by baritone Brett Polegato (Zurga) and tenor John Tessier (Nadir), two buddies who get the opera’s best tune (the duet “Au fond du temple saint”) but are in love with the same woman (the celestial soprano Maureen McKay). Polegato’s Zurga quickly became the opera’s most interesting character — richly sung and deeply conflicted about his forbidden love for Leila, the beautiful priestess who loves his friend. Tessier’s lyrical, soaring tenor was an excellent match for the delicacy and purity of McKay’s Leila.

On Sunday, Keith Phares and Anthony Kalil took over as Zurga and Nadir, with Elizabeth Zharoff as Léila. This trio was completely different from the opening-night cast, yet they also found their own balance: Zharoff was a more powerful and focused Léila, Kalil a lighter and more lyrical Nadir, and Phares a strong, conflicted Zurga.

Jonathan Lemalu sang the role of the high priest Nourabad on Saturday; the alternate cast featured Joo Won Kang.

“The Pearl Fishers” is an opera that needs a little help; the music is beautiful, but seldom really memorable. This production received a tremendous boost from the imaginative and colorful staging of director Andrew Sinclair. There wasn’t a static moment to be found: This was an opera constantly on the move, with one vividly presented scene after another.

Much of the acting was illuminated by the choreography of John Malashock, whose dance sequences ran the gamut from ethereal beauty to threatening, murderous mob scenes. The dancers, pliant and primitive and highly athletic, used long sticks and bright airborne ribbons to marvelously expressive effect. The entire troupe was excellent, but the three principals — Kyle Bernbach, Roxanne Foster and Kyle Johnson — deserve an extra round of applause.

The brightly colored “exotic isle” sets looked as if they had come straight out of a Maurice Sendak storybook. Kudos to their designer, the British fashion icon Zandra Rhodes, whose fantasy costumes made you want to conduct a backstage raid for those brilliant saris and colorful fabrics. (Dame Zandra, equally colorful with her bright pink hair, was in the house on opening night.) The production was highlighted (and discreetly shaded) by the excellent lighting designer Ron Vodicka, whose sure sense of drama was a major contribution to the look of the show.