Thank goodness for Mary Dunleavy and Zandra Rhodes.

Without Rhodes' designs, Opera Colorado's staging of The Pearl Fishers would have oozed dullness. Without Dunleavy, Saturday's opening in the Ellie Caulkins Opera House might not have happened at all.

Soprano Heidi Stober was set to sing the lead in Bizet's rarely staged tale of exotic romance. But a late illness forced her to bow out on opening night. Since Opera Colorado can't afford to hire pinch-hitting understudies, the company found itself scrambling for a replacement two days before the opening.

Enter Dunleavy - who had, miracle of miracles, sung the role in Seattle this year. She was flown into Denver Thursday night, guided through a couple of quick rehearsals and sent out onto the Ellie's stage.

Yet, even with the last-minute heroics of Dunleavy, it still wouldn't have been much of a show without the eye candy supplied by Rhodes. England's flamboyant fashion maven transferred the bright pink of her hair and bright turquoise of her eye shadow to the stage.

Pearl Fishers' island paradise of Ceylon (these days, the troubled land of Sri Lanka) was festooned with gaily painted palms, a bright blue ocean and an orange sky. The fishermen and their families sported similarly cheerful hues: flowing pinks, yellows and blues - the way you'd expect impoverished peasants to dress.

Not that there's any reason for realism in this fluffy, melodramatic, ridiculously convoluted tale. In Bizet's soap opera, the lost object of desire of Nadir and Zurga glides onto the stage right on cue. This lovely femme fatale is LeÃla, a very reluctant virgin priestess. And, I'll be darned, she is the same girl who had saved the life of Zurga long ago.

All of this silliness leads to a final scene in which the fishing village is set ablaze - a brilliant effect that would have won Rhodes an operatic Oscar, if they gave out such awards.

And the singing? On a night when Technicolor set designs and a last-second casting change took center stage, the principals would seem to be only marginally important.

As it turned out, their singing was only marginally interesting. As LeÃla, Dunleavy won us over just by being there. And though her voice was secure, it was hardly distinctive, lacking a fullness and warmth. The soprano's impressive resume includes an apprenticeship with Central City Opera in 1992. But she still has a ways to go. (Stober, incidentally, is hoping to return to action tonight.)

LeÃla's suitors were handled effectively. Brian Mulligan (Zurga) displayed a powerful baritone, though his onstage movements came from the lurch-and-stagger school. As Nadir, Sean Panikkar (whose family actually hails from Sri Lanka) was a virile presence, uniting wonderfully with Mulligan in the famous duet, but losing some focus in his tenor later on. David Cushing (Nourabad) proved uninteresting and vocally wobbly.

The less said about John Malashock's cliche-heavy choreography the better - though the dancers gave it their all. John Baril's chorus sang well, and moved busily under Andrew Sinclair's stage direction.

In the pit, Sebastian Lang- Lessing was an enthusiastic leader of the Colorado Symphony. The orchestra delivered lovely accompaniment, providing magic with every reprise of that baritone-tenor duet melody.

Shulgoldm@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5296

The Pearl Fishers

* Grade: C

* When and where: 7:30 p.m. today and Friday, 2 p.m. Sunday; Ellie Caulkins Opera House

* Information: 303-982-2787