A Russian delegation of one held her own summit at the Benedum Center Saturday night as soprano Anna Samuil put on a remarkable performance in Pittsburgh Opera's production of Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin." And the other delegates, as it were, in the cast held up their end of the bargain excellently.

Pittsburgh Opera took a risk in choosing not to postpone the opera that opened its 2009-10 season. The real possibility existed that fallout from the G-20 summit would keep patrons away. As it stood, Benedum Center was the least full it has been for a gala opening night I have ever seen, but it was still a good two-thirds full, and the crowd was vocal. It seems it takes more than threat of lingering protests and police lockdown to scare off a passionate opera crowd.

Based on a novel by Alexander Pushkin, the plot of "Eugene Onegin" (which premiered in 1879), hinges not on a villain but on more of a jerk: the Mr. Darcy-like Onegin. Rather than billow out into romantic conceptions of love, the opera focuses on the common infatuation of a bookish girl, Tatiana, in love with a loner type in Onegin. While she and Onegin are members of the idle rich class in pre-revolutionary Russian, the opera has a modern ambience to it. It could easily be updated as a teen movie.

The music lifts the story to its great heights. Tchaikovsky poured his heart into this score, which opens with an unsettled and then sighing phrase that is a metaphor for the entire opera. It also includes great dance pieces, led by the justly famed Polonaise. Unfortunately the orchestra, under the able direction of Antony Walker, never captured the roundness of tone and delicate playing that the score demands. The strings fought intonation and ensemble issues throughout the performance.

But on stage, Walker and the cast found harmony. This was certainly among the best assemblage of talent Pittsburgh Opera has offered. Samuil was brilliant in her debut, moving from a girlish to a regal Tatiana while always singing with an elegant energy to the notes. And what commitment to her role! She was almost more convincing when not singing, from downward-cast shyness to barely held back tears when Onegin first rejects her.

Dwayne Croft's Onegin brought a needed humanity to haughty character with his acting and his crafting of an airy texture to his rich baritone. Stage director Sam Helfrich went for an unaffected approach to the drama that allowed for full characters to emerge instead of operatic stereotypes. Raymond Very's portrayal of Lensky continued the standard. Singing with remarkable clarity and precision, the Brookline native was able to transform the character from a naive boy to a regretful man as he approaches a duel with Onegin that neither of the former friends wants.

The smaller roles were treated with no less artistry than the leads: Susanne Mentzer's Madame Larina, Lindsay Ammann's Olga, Joseph Franks' Monsieur Triquet, Susan Toth Shafer's Filipyevna and Oren Gradus' Prince Gremin.

The set from Vancouver Opera was an effective mix of real and surreal elements. The opening portrayed a pleasant setting in the country amid birch trees while the last act took place in a splendid St. Petersburg mansion characterized by oversized columns.

The chorus was outstanding throughout, a credit to the work of chorus master Mark Trawka. While the choreography by Peter Kope and Michele de la Reza was imaginative, the dancers were often not in sync.

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