Now in its fifth season, Winter Opera St. Louis is stretching beyond its Italianate roots. With Richard Strauss' "Ariadne auf Naxos," seen Friday night at the St. Louis Women's Club, WOSL took on its first German opera. The production underlined both the strengths and weaknesses of Gina Galati's young company.

Soprano Meredith Hoffmann-Thomson's Prima Donna/Ariadne has the goods for this demanding role, with a big, soaring voice that never stinted with the high notes. She has fine acting skills, moving effortlessly from the Prima Donna's easily affronted hauteur to Ariadne's heartfelt grief, and she looked beautiful.

Scott Six, the Tenor/Bacchus, has an important voice, and sang with clear stentorian tones. Sarah Heltzel, the Composer, has a gorgeous instrument and was a believably angst-ridden young man. Soprano Mary Thorne brought the requisite knowing sexiness, effortless coloratura runs and solid acting skills to the role of Zerbinetta.

The comic quartet — John-Andrew Fernandez as Harlequin, Charles Martinez as Scaramuccio, Zack Rabin as Truffaldino and Jon Garrett as Brighella — were done up as the Marx Brothers in this 1930s update and had some nice in-character comic bits. Fernandez, appropriately handsome and swaggering, sang well; Garrett's and Rubin's duel with conductor Timothy Semanik was a hoot. Most of the other roles in this ensemble opera were well-done.

The women's trio of Naiad, Dryad and Echo was poorly cast. The voices of Megan Higgins, Sara Gottman and Rachel L. Smith didn't blend, and Smith, in the pivotal middle part, had intonation and timing issues.

The auditorium of the Women's Club is a problematic venue; there's no pit, putting the orchestra literally in the audience's collective face. The instrumentalists were not up to the standard of the singers, with far too many wrong notes and harsh sounds. Semanik provided good singing tempos.

Director Marie Allyn King had some great ideas, and some that weren't so great. Leaving a grand piano on one side of the tiny stage was among the latter; so was bringing back characters from the Prologue to gawk and interact in the Opera. Most of costumer Teresa Doggett's designs worked; those of the nymphs underlined their other difficulties.

Winter Opera St. Louis presents Richard Strauss' "Ariadne auf Naxos"

Where • St. Louis Women's Club, 4600 Lindell Boulevard

When • 3 p.m. Sunday

How much • $36 to $51

More info• www.winteroperastl.org or 314-865-0038