Under the leadership of its outgoing director, Paul Kellogg, the New York City Opera has made many ventures into repertoire traditionally neglected by New York’s major opera houses. But for opera-goers of a certain inclination, none is more important than its investigation of serious operas by Rossini. Three years ago, the company presented “Ermione,” another product of the composer’s fruitful Neapolitan years, and Thursday evening it offered a stimulating new production of “La donna del lago.”

These are works of great musical finesse and vitality with some of the most technically demanding vocal writing imaginable, though they may strike modern listeners as somewhat tame dramatically. “La donna del lago,” resurfaced soon after Maria Callas spearheaded the bel canto revival. Yet despite the familiarity, at least by name, of the opera’s source by Sir Walter Scott (the narrative poem “The Lady of the Lake”), it has heretofore been associated with venues more hospitable to the bel canto repertoire than New York. Operagoers with long memories, however, will remember a 1982 concert performance in Carnegie Hall with Frederica von Stade and Marilyn Horne; a staged version with the same artists followed in Houston.

Although Rossini remains true to his essentially classical orientation in “La donna del lago,” the opera contains unmistakable harbingers of Romanticism, especially in its evocation of Scottish local color. But the composer’s mastery of musical form and melodic invention are at the heart of the opera’s appeal.

Bravura singing is central as well, and City Opera’s cast does not disappoint. Soprano Alexandrina Pendatchanska and tenor Barry Banks, stars of “Ermione,” returned here in compelling form. She has a voice of body and resonance, and, like her colleagues, sang the florid music dazzlingly. The role of Elena, like Elvira in Verdi’s “Ernani,” is one in which the soprano is sought after by three men, one of whom is a king. This gives rise to many anguished moments for her, and Ms. Pendatchanska handled them with assurance. Her singing was a bit reticent early on, but she sang with vigor in the fiery Act II confrontation with Uberto, one of her suitors, who turns out to be Giacomo, otherwise known as King James V of Scotland. Ms. Pendatchanska made a keen dramatic moment of Elena’s attempt to prevent hostilities between her two other pursuers, Malcolm and Rodrigo. Best of all was the sparkling finale, the famous “Tanti affetti in tal momento,” with its captivating variations, in which the dazed but elated Elena reacts to Giacomo’s magnanimity in pardoning her father and Malcolm, rebels against the king, and, in blessing, her marriage to Malcolm (Rodrigo having been conveniently dispatched on the battlefield). Unfortunately, Ms Pendatchanska’s Italian diction is not the best.

Laura Vlasak Nolen excelled as Malcolm. Hers is not the juiciest mezzo ever to assay the role, but it is a strong, well produced sound, and her strapping appearance made her credible in this trouser role. She brought a formidable technique to her great virtuosic entrance aria, “Mura felici,” but I fault her for omitting notes at the end to prepare for an unnecessary interpolated high note.

Mr. Banks, who made a wonderful impression when he filled in for Juan Diego Florez in Act III of the premiere of the Metropolitan Opera’s new “Don Pasquale” last season, has established himself as a major exponent of the bel canto repertoire and was in robust voice and vigorous dramatic form. But he overplayed the role of Giacomo, pushing when he could have been singing more elegantly. An unfortunate moment came at a point of real intensity, when, in essence, Giacomo accuses Elena of leading him on. When Mr. Banks finished a roulade, the audience laughed, a sign of Mr. Banks’s over-the-top portrayal. One hopes he will recalibrate his approach to the role as the current run continues.

The work requires two star tenors, and in his City Opera debut Robert McPherson sang Rodrigo with an intense, slightly gritty sound that contrasted effectively with that of Mr. Banks. Both tenors rose to the occasion, literally, in the exciting Act II trio in which they trade high Cs. Daniel Mobbs’s handsome baritone made a nice moment of the Mozartean aria Rossini allotted to Douglas, Elena’s father.

Chas Rader-Shieber is apparently one of those directors who believe that a little-known opera ought to be performed with a minimum of interpretive gloss. The action flows surely if unremarkably. David Zinn’s sets aim for a kind of ruined look with exposed bricks, and apart from a kilt for Rodrigo, his costumes were not especially Scottish; warriors, in uniforms of different colors, wore caps like those of American Civil War soldiers. A striking moment came at the end when Giacomo discloses his identity to Elena and courtiers dressed in evening clothes are bathed in a golden aura by Lenore Doxsee’s lighting.

George Manahan conducted with vigor and stylistic assurance, and the singers applied ornamentation liberally. Considering the pyrotechnics Rossini himself supplied, more discretion in this regard would have been welcome; I felt a little worn by the end of this show. Still, “La donna del lago” is mandatory for devotees of bel canto.

Until April 7 (Lincoln Center, 212-721-6500).