One problem with mounting a rare opera to serve a star rather than for its artistic strength is that things can happen to stars. That possibility became a reality for the Metropolitan Opera on Thursday evening when Franco Alfano’s “Cyrano de Bergerac” returned to the repertoire bereft of Placido Domingo. Having fallen victim to tracheitis, the ageless tenor ceded the title role to Antonio Barasorda.

The substitution may well have deprived many audience members of their reason for being there, but it was effectuated smoothly. An experienced artist, Mr. Barasorda covered the role for Mr. Domingo when the production was new last spring and this season had the benefit of the dress rehearsal. It would be foolish to pretend his voice has the beauty of Mr. Domingo’s: He produces a strong, hefty sound, but one that lacks ideal resonance and sometimes sounds worn. After some unsteady singing at the start, however, he settled into the part with assurance, and showed a good command of the French text.

To Mr. Barasorda’s credit, the opera’s moments of tedium seemed scarcely more numerous than they did last sea son with Mr. Domingo. Alfano was an able composer best known for taking on the thankless task of finishing Puccini’s “Turandot,” and got a bum rap when Toscanini opted to give the opera’s premiere without Alfano’s completion. Like Respighi, Montemezzi, and Zandonai, Alfano was part of an interesting generation of post-Puccini composers that embraced modernism yet upheld the traditions of Italian opera. You can’t blame them for moving ahead stylistically, but the musical language is often so close to that of Puccini that most operagoers will be bothered by the absence of similarly juicy tunes.

The score, from 1936, is full of late Romantic sumptuousness and Debussy-like Impressionism, and Alfano was an able orchestrator. Henri Cain’s adaptation of Edmond Rostand’s play about the guardsman with a big nose is skillful, and Alfano tells the story efficiently. But he’s no Janacek: As a musical dramatist, he exudes competence rather than brilliance.

Sondra Radvanovsky’s opulent voice and attractive manner made for a fine Roxane, the object of Cyrano’s affections as well as those of the cadet Christian. Roxane has some of the opera’s most sensuous music and Ms. Radvanovsky delivered it with full-bodied tone, although the quality sometimes turned strident. She and Mr. Barasorda made much of the touching final scene, when Roxane acknowledges to the dying Cyrano that she loves him, notwithstanding his physical peculiarity.

As Christian, to whose courtship of Roxane Cyrano against his own interests lends his poetic gifts, Raymond Very sang with a smooth tenor that contrasted nicely with Mr. Barasorda’s. The fine baritone Anthony Michaels-Moore brought a touch of sympathy to De Guiche, the nominal villain who also loves Roxane. Roberto de Candia was a bright presence as the pastry chef Ragueneau, and Julien Robbins and Louis Otey sang strongly as Le Bret and Carbon. Marco Armiliato’s alert conducting appeared determined to show Alfano’s score to best advantage.

Francesca Zambello’s production treats the action straightforwardly and benefits considerably from Peter Davison’s stylish sets. Every scene is treated imaginatively, from the cross section of a theater in the first scene to the cloistered convent, bathed in the orangey hue of Natasha Katz’s lighting in the last. Anita Yavich’s elaborate costumes colorfully establish the 17th-century setting.

“Cyrano de Bergerac” will be performed again on January 31, February 4, and March 8, 11 & 16 at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center, 212-362-6000).