Where are the blockbusters of yesteryear? Case in point: Les Huguenots, Giacomo Meyerbeer’s sweeping fresco of the 16th-century French Wars of Religion, which premiered at the Paris Opéra on February 29, 1836. As late as 1912, The Victor Book of the Opera still cited its “beautiful arias and concerted numbers,” as well as its “thrilling dramatic situations.” Wrapping up, the uncredited author added: “The romance as well as the fanaticism of the period are faithfully pictured, and the whole presented on a magnificent scale.” New York fans called Les Huguenots “The Night Of the Seven Stars.”

Yet by this time, its days at the Met were numbered. In 1915, the company retired the title for good. At home in Paris, Les Huguenots soldiered on at the Opéra through the centenary in 1936, then went into eclipse for eight decades. The impressive live video from the Bastille dates to the revival of September 2018.

The drama revolves around an attempt by Queen Marguerite to end civil violence in France by means of an arranged marriage between the Catholic Valentine and the Calvinist, or Huguenot, Raoul. They’re total strangers, though Fate has crossed their paths before, under sensational circumstances that left them both smitten. Even so, the Queen’s gambit is an epic fail. In the climatic St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre, the Catholic faction mows down Huguenots by the thousands, including the heroic Raoul—and also Valentine, who has embraced his faith just in time to guarantee that whichever way God swings, she and Raoul will be united for eternity.

Even in the Met’s Golden Age, seven stars may have been too many to hope for. The Paris revival fields a highly satisfactory three and change. As the Queen, Lisette Oropesa tosses off bejeweled bel canto with the poise of a mischievous good fairy, while the more highly strung Ermonela Jaho lends Valentine the angular beauty and urgent projection of the born tragedienne. At the opposite end of the scale from the two sopranos, the bass Nicolas Testé—supernova #3—owns the stage as Raoul’s crusty old servant and protector Marcel.

Marcel’s utterances, often underscored by two snarling cellos and a double bass, mirror his Old Testament ethos; and his anti-Catholic war chant (“Piff! Paff!”) will scare the boots off you. Yet his loyalty to Raoul and tragic sense of honor touch a solemn and moving chord. In a duet at the exact midpoint of the opera, Valentine—now pawned off on a Catholic husband—seeks out Marcel after curfew, braving all to save the loose cannon who has upended her life. There are more brilliant pages in Les Huguenots but none more noble. The tenor Yosep Kang’s stiff Raoul, vocally sturdy but short on grace, seems an unlikely object of attachments that real.

Andreas Kriegenberg’s Cartesian production lays out purposeful action within a sparingly outfitted white box, which makes a flattering showcase for Tanja Hofmann’s smart—and in the case of the Queen’s, resplendent—neo-Renaissance finery. Michele Mariotti conducts.

Les Huguenots is available for streaming on Paris Opera Play

Matthew Gurewitsch writes about opera and classical music for AIR MAIL. He lives in Hawaii