By Aaron Keebaugh

What emerged was a lithe, almost Shakespearean rendition, complete with moments of unexpected humor and an infectious dramatic vitality.

Dido and Aeneas performed by The Boston Camerata in Pickman Hall at Longy School of Music of Bard College. Photo: Dan Busler

The Boston Camerata has taken a fresh look at Henry Purcell’s Dido And Aeneas, a seminal opera usually experienced with all the trappings of large-scale productions.

But Boston Camerata’s smart and economical take on the composer’s only fully sung drama, heard at Pickman Hall Saturday night, provided a glimpse into the very nature of Baroque spectacle.

For starters, director and scholar Anne Azéma recast the opera to reflect how it would have been a more intimate presentation during Purcell’s era. The orchestra was pared down to a string quintet, suggesting the smaller scale of seventeenth-century English masques. And the singers delivered their parts in period English. Even the inclusion of small roles found in the manuscript sources — such as the Second Woman — which are normally left out of stagings after the opera’s 1689 premiere were used to balance the dramatic structure.

Musically, Saturday’s production was a feast for the ears. Azéma whipped up terpsichorean zest as she shaped the lyrical splendors of the arias and choruses. Her tempos were brighter than what is heard in the more “big-band” performances. And the fleet energy generated by the ensemble of strings and harpsichord injected a live-wire verve.

Dido and Aeneas performed by The Boston Camerata in Pickman Hall at Longy School of Music of Bard College. Photo: Dan Busler

What emerged was a lithe, almost Shakespearean rendition, complete with moments of unexpected humor and an infectious dramatic vitality.

Of course, many of those elements are baked into Nahum Tate’s libretto. Based on Virgil’s Aeneid, Tate’s version of the relationship between Dido, Queen of Carthage, and Aeneas, the defeated Trojan prince, is no passionate and lengthy affair.This is a steamy one-night stand. Tate also includes a coven of witches that plot Dido’s downfall by making Aeneas choose duty rather than remain at Dido’s side. If the libretto feels accelerated to the point of caricature, that’s because Tate covers the entire momentous entanglement in less than an hour.

Leaning into the libretto’s spirit of wham, bam, thank you ma’am, the Boston Camerata’s staging, also directed by Azéma, was swift and effectively minimalist, alert to the coupling’s latent humor. Presented in the round, with nothing more than a wooden frame as a stand-in for Dido’s throne, the performers made use of every corner of Pickman Hall. The singers personified the full range of their respective roles, popping up from the rear and sides of the audience. The witches even crawled along the floor, which generated shock and laughs.

The singing from the stellar cast conveyed fully the opera’s spare human tragedy.

As Dido, soprano Tahanee Aluwihare richly embodied the internal struggles of a smitten monarch wrestling against fate. Her voice was deep but agile, and she spun subtle vocal embellishments, making “Ah! Belinda” into a fervent call for release and comfort.

Aluwihare made a perfect companion to Luke Scott, who sang the role of Aeneas with a bold, oaken baritone. The couple ignited their brief fling with the explosive intensity of a torrid school-age romance. What’s more, their love scene in Act 2 carried enough emotional gravity to make the final plot twist feel unexpected, even for those who know this opera well. Scott sang sensitively, softening his voice for “Stay, Prince” to show that Aeneas was deeply torn between love and commitment to his country.

After forcing her beloved to leave, Aluwihare delivered “When I am Laid in Earth” with an airy grace that adroitly tipped the balance from desperation to fatal resolve. This production tastefully suggested that the queen died of heartbreak.

Soprano Camila Parias was equally affecting as Belinda. Her elegant melismas and vocal twists injected palpable fire into “Shake the Cloud from off your Brow” and “Thanks to these Lonesome Vales.”

Dido and Aeneas performed by The Boston Camerata in Pickman Hall at Longy School of Music of Bard College. Photo: Dan Busler

Tenor Jordan Weatherston Pitts brought a charming vocal bravado to the role of the Sorcerer, adding a sardonic edge to this dangerous figure. As the witches, Monica Rajan and Regina Stroncek sang with a sneaky blend of darkness and humor.

Even the smaller roles were performed compellingly. Azéma tossed off vibrant vocal flourishes in the brief role of Mercury. And Clare McNamara’s dark and resonant alto made the Second Woman a sympathetic partner to Parias in “Fear no Danger to Ensue.”

The chorus, comprising Janet Stone, Corey Dalton Hart, and David Mather, sang with spring-water clarity.

The instrumentalists also played with appropriate levity and tension. Violinists Sarah Darling and Danillo Bonina joined violist Jenny Sterling in robust sonorities that made each scene unfold with snappy urgency. Cellist Phoebe Carrai and harpsichordist John McKean provided sturdy continuo support.

This production follows in a long line of successes for the Boston Camerata. Basing their productions in historical research is intriguing enough in itself. But they reimagine early music with a performative flair that includes plenty of contemporary razzmatazz.

Aaron Keebaugh has been a classical music critic in Boston since 2012. His work has been featured in the Musical Times, Corymbus, Boston Classical Review, Early Music America, and BBC Radio 3. A musicologist, he teaches at North Shore Community College in both Danvers and Lynn.