BAM Harvey Theatre in Brooklyn hosted a delightful late afternoon double bill on Sunday, March 21 of two Baroque operas that were just right for early Spring delectation. This was the last of three performances of this pairing. The BAM Opera Festival continues through April 7 with a host of William Christie delights-but back to balmy Sunday.

These two are classic tales and a most excellent pairing. "Actéon," by Marc-Antoine Charpentier, revolves around a youthful hunter who possesses great beauty and skill, and the forgetfulness of authority and power that brings about his demise. The stage is black perfection, in the shabby chic harmony of the Harvey Theatre, and is dominated monolithically by a multi-paneled mirror. This is the only set. Junon, played and sung with great gravitas and skill by Hilary Summers, glides in her deconstructed, Miss Havisham-esque, black and silver outfit that might have been borrowed from Stevie Nicks. Her buff-and-silver train wafts behind her, as a scent sometimes might in a room, and she occasionally fixes someone in the audience with her gimlet gaze, before gliding off to plot someone's misfortune.

We then have an experience in the round, when handsome hunters and comely nymphs file in on bare, pounding feet. The men are clad in white shirts, varying cummerbunds and soft earth-toned velvet slacks, and the women, in silky pale tan floor-length dresses, with a sort of stomacher, or brocaded panel, providing a suggestion of a much fuller gown. Beautiful voices with excellent dynamic command introduce us to Les Arts Florissants, conductor, musical director and harpsichordist William Christie's brainchild and what a febrile, fertile brain it is!

Actéon, played by Ed Lyons, sings his role with the vigor and energy of youth. He's lithe and skilled, enjoys the love and loyalty of his friends and neighbors, and is out to rid the neighborhood of a bear, who is laying plunder to the town. He settles back for a rest in a glade, making a bed of his coat, not realizing that he's about to stumble into a bear trap of his own, and his own making. He sings of never experiencing love, prior to falling asleep in a fashion worthy of Frederic Leighton-kudos to Vincent Boussard's direction-and then Diana and her nymphs and satyrs do a sexy strip-tease during their song, ending up only slightly en déshabille, and we see the genius of costumer Chantal de la Coste Messelière and Gloria Montesinos' brilliant lighting. Men unbuttoning their shirts and women unlacing a brocaded, be-ribboned costume piece while singing French? OooohROWR, la la! Remember that sex and erotica are not invented by each generation, though we all feel we invent them anew.

Diane, the beautiful Katherine Watson, attended by Arthébuze (Emmanuelle de Negri), Hyale (Céline Ricci), and Daphné (Ana Quintans), are all lissome and in the full flower of their youth. Their dresses flow, as they move and evoke many of the rites of Spring that rise to mind from the outdoor experience of arriving at the theatre, and the shared experience keeping us presently occupied. When Diane turns deaf ears on Actéon's protestations, the stylized hands-on act of turning him to his quarry is stag-gering, beautiful, and reminiscent of Twilight. Actéon's realization that he has his cervine quarry become, however, is well-acted well-sung and wrenching. When Junon does her final reveal of the story, our end is our beginning and the evening well begun.

After a brief intermission, we then saw the addition of a giant pink puff, looking to my companion and me like a bath puff for a VERY large person, immediately over the mirror. Again we have Hilary Summers as Villainess, or in this case, Sorceress, and the atmosphere is already rich and heavy.

Dido is sung by Sonya Yoncheva, singing to her maid, Belinda (Emmanuelle di Negri), of something she cannot reveal. Belinda slowly extracts the reason and lets her know that Aeneas (Andreas Wolf) returns her feelings. The stage is thus set for unwitting tragedy, as the Sorceress has plans for them and stirs the pot with glee.

Céline Ricci and Ana Quintans are the First and Second Witches, holding Summers' coat while she makes some mayhem and some light moments, in a ragingly heavy story, result. Great voices singing in nasal character style and interpretation are delightful and add a great deal to the telling. Ed Lyon is the Spirit, who is the Sorceress' minion, and the undoing of the loving pair.

Highly stylized movements are used to provide suggestions of adult situations, all the more exciting for both participants, being fully clothed. Also brilliant are the ways the witches encourage the sleeping lovers in a less tender battle, still sexy, still stylized, and delightful.

Amusing also is the scene where the delighted courtiers are singing of their happiness for their Queen, and Spirit moves among them, trying to get to the happy couple, and then gives up, mocking the proceedings to the guilty laughter of the audience, as the mocking gets more and more broad. Then, such a beautiful moment happens. As the courtiers pair off and walk off, Katherine Watson, a second ladies' maid of Dido's, pairs off with Spirit, and they re-enact a bit of their previous Actéon/Diane seduction/transformation-delicious! Then he sweeps her up, carries her behind the mirror and in perfect timing, Aeneas carries Dido out from behind in similar fashion. Pure delight!

When the solo Sailor, Damian Whitely, whips his fellow sailors into a frenzy, we remember why Henry Purcell's works continue their popularity, even to the present day. And the opportunities for fun in staging are well advantaged and lighten the proceedings considerably.

The ultimate betrayal happens-Spirit masquerades as Mercury and bids Aeneas move on, lest he incur further anger from Jove, and Aeneas feels he has no choice. Dido feels very morning-after-the-night-before and sees but one choice, as the Sorceress knew she would. Dido's Lament is sung with heart-wringing, hand-wringing pathos, and expert dynamic skill.

A visual and aural treat also were the period instruments-theorbo, violone and viola da gamba-and our walk back in time was complete, or to use period spelling "compleat."

An evening of baroque opera was complete delight. New staging, new approaches, basic staging and spare costuming put the voices in high spaces and these voices all are welcome to return.

Make plans to attend the next performances in this Inaugural Opera Festival. You'll put dates for the next festival on your 2011 calendar now!