Bass Oren Gradus and soprano Sari Gruber were radiant in the Pittsburgh Opera's production of Mozart's "Marriage of Figaro" Saturday night.

When Mozart and da Ponte's masterwork premiered in 1786, it had a subversive element that is hard to recreate today. Based on a Beaumarchais play that satirized the noble class in a European environment that would soon see royal heads rolling, the opera had an element of what we today call a roast. The jokes about a philandering, selfish Count (Almaviva, sung by Michael Todd Simpson), who is outfoxed by his servants, hit with a roaster's uncomfortable ring of truth back then and caused the Austrian Emperor to ban the play.

Productions these days can opt to try to recapture the dangerous subtext or simply have fun with its needling of marriage and love. Directed by Kristine McIntyre, this one went the latter direction, depicting an elegant, but simple 18th century house adorned with columns (compare with the production set in a Las Vegas hotel that the company presented in 2004). The only interpretive touch was a line from the libretto "chiseled" onto the set: "Perdono non merta chi agli altri non da." (He who can't forgive others doesn't deserve to be forgiven.) It was as if the set were saying it won't get in the way of the action.

But one gets the feeling that you could place Ms. Gruber and Mr. Gradus in any staging of the opera and they would make it work. Ms. Gruber, as the cunning bride Susanna, is to the manor and manner born. When last we saw her, she was pregnant (in her third trimester) yet still singing Despina in "Cosi fan tutte" and Pittsburgh audiences didn't witness her full powers. Speaking of that, she is the wife of the Pittsburgh Opera's director of artistic operations William J. Powers, but Ms. Gruber dispelled any thoughts of nepotism. She had the biting-her-lip vixen quality to go along with the feistiness that make for a winning Susanna. But throughout she displayed a tenderness to Figaro, the Countess (Pamela Armstrong), Cherubino (Zheng Cao) and even Marcellina (Lindsay Ammann), after she is discovered as her future mother in law (always the funniest moment in any production). She brought that to bear in that magical moment in Act III when that is discovered and Mozart almost pauses the opera to have Susanna exclaim, "Who could be as happy as I am?"

This is the second time this season we have heard Mr. Gradus. First was as Prince Gremin in "Eugene Onegin." But here was the better chance for Mr. Gradus, an alumnus of the Pittsburgh Opera artist training program, to shine as Figaro. And that he did, with a broad, oaken voice and a sharp and nimble presence on stage.

The betrothed set a standard that the Count and Countess couldn't quite match, but they kept pace well enough. Mr. Simpson's contentious Count had little of the noble qualities associated with the role (although I loved his sun-emblazoned formal outfit by Johann Stegmeir). But he certainly was authoritarian, and convincing as a sexual predator lurking beneath the veneer of his station.

Ms. Armstrong's Countess was too weepy at first, taking a while to assume to her aristocratic role. Her timbre was luminous, but occasionally she didn't sing with precision. But how much of that was due to guest conductor Gary Thor Wedow's giving -- or allowing -- the cast extra ornaments and flourishes? Sometimes these worked -- and I also particularly enjoyed the conductor's use of ritardando in key moments -- but at other times they somewhat undid the tension inherent in Mozart's score. But Mr. Wedow also actively crafted the orchestra, which paid off most in the pairing of instrumental lines with singers.

Those who follow the amazing case of Ms. Cao, who has battled a severe case of lung cancer to return to stage, will be happy to know she seemed as sprightly as ever on stage. But I must be frank and say her voice was not strong (leading Mr. Wedow to bring the orchestra down to an almost ridiculously low level at times). Here is hoping she continues to get back to full strength soon, bringing the artistry we have seen before.

Ms. Ammann projected an apt, cartoonish visage as Marcellina; local favorite Kevin Glavin (with hair, for once) was fabulously frumpy as Dr. Bartolo; Liam Moran's Antonio the gardener made me laugh every time he appeared with that broken flower pot; Lara Lynn Cottrill-Nelson was sweet and a bit sultry as Barbarina; and Joseph Gaines' Don Basilio was wonderfully wooden.

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