Portland Opera's La Bohème goes for chemistry and substance rather than gimmicks and flash

Puccini the populist lures listeners with sweeping, operatic phrases and elegantly held lines (just short of saccharine) that reel in your emotions. Yet, in order for Puccini's La Bohème to truly cast its spell, it needs a strong ensemble cast, solid, realistic staging and few distractions. San Francisco Opera's Sandra Bernhard understands this, and has created a Bohème that's as good as Portland has seen and heard.

There is a welcome subtle and seamless flow to this two-and-a-half-hour work. The sets, designed by Michael Yeargen and on loan from the Baltimore Opera, don't tempt with flashy gimmickry or superfluous embellishment. The studio hovel of the four bohemian roommates is just that, bare-boned and rustic; the Parisian street of Act II is realistically cramped and alive. For the tavern exterior of Act III, the ambience is evoked from the simple, somber glow of Robert P. Hill's lighting against a snowy background.

Bernhard's skills as a director are evident in her handling of the movement. Though the action is minimal, there is little of the purposeless bustling commonly found on Portland's stages. The townspeople-choristers of Act II spill forth from the doorways and side streets of Paris as in everyday chaos. Musetta's wry humiliation of Alcindoro is a comic dance of a lover's quarrel that one might view outside a cafe on Hawthorne. Even the duet scenes shift and glide across the stage naturally.

All of this emphasizes the simple tale of friendship, love and loss of the libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Of course, it's the interpersonal chemistry between its main sextet of characters that lies at the heart of Bohème. From the opening quartet, we feel a familiarity with Rodolfo (Michael Hayes) and his three roommates Marcello (Jeffrey Morrissey), Schaunard (Don Davis) and Colline (Chester Patton). There's a Friends-like simpatico to their exchanges.

Likewise with the lovers. It helps that Hayes and Cassandra Riddle have worked together previously. Their bond is believably tender. Hayes recaptures in Rodolfo the innocent stung by love that he created in last season's Werther. His voice sounded strong and vibrant on "Che gelida manina,"
yet he still stiffens on his highs. Cassandra Riddle as the doomed Mimi encapsulates the battered innocence essential to the role. She has a big voice for her small frame, with outstanding projection that occasionally detracts from the warmth of her shimmering soprano. Yet, overall, she negotiates the delicacy of the highs of "Si. Mi chiamano Mimi," and its turn from innocence to melancholy.

In a good Bohème, Marcello and Musetta should threaten to steal the show with their stormy love and acid tongues. Morrissey's Marcello was a full-blooded carouser, and his rich, cognac-toned baritone was a vocal highlight. Juliana Rambaldi made a hilariously lustful and full-voiced Musetta taking on "Quando men' vo" with gusto.

In the competition for audience attention, opera tries, too often, to ape the flash of film. This La Bohème is a successful exception.