La Cenerentola, a Met first (seen Oct. 24), enlisted designer Maurizio Baló and director Cesare Lievi, who modernized the period and relied heavily on slapstick, respectively. Angelina (the Cinderella figure) is a signature role of Cecilia Bartoli, who delivered it securely and with unflappable verve, though James Levine's tempos sometimes drove her to machine-gun delivery of staccato coloratura. The awful sisters, played with lots of shtick but without undue caricature by Joyce Guyer and Wendy White, shone in their turn. Ramón Vargas' delivery as Prince Ramiro sometimes grew pinched, when he belted lines clearly meant to be sung in head voice; still, the top notes were there. Michele Pertusi made somewhat less of a rolling bel canto Alidoro than the role invites, but Alessandro Corbelli (in his Met debut, as Dandini) and Simone Alaimo (Don Magnifico) had a field day with their duet.

Because of busy, campy staging, La Cenerentola didn't score all its points: in addition to its farcical elements, this is a touching work. Wistfulness was missing from Bartoli's impatient acceptance of her stepsister lot. On matching her bracelets, Vargas did briefly suggest the wonder of discovering that a fantasy of love can enter the world of reality. But the finale was too bustling for Cenerentola's cathartic, forgiving happiness to warm everybody up.

- JOHN W. FREEMAN