There are many reasons not to miss the production of Monteverdi's "Incoronazione di Poppea" that opened the Juilliard Opera season on Wednesday night at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater. Beyond the musical excellence and dramatic effectiveness of the production, it is inspiring to see a new generation of musicians so captivated by this seminal work, first produced in Venice in 1643. Monteverdi's opera emerges vividly in this impressive production, as musically stunning as ever, with its all-too-pertinent tale of power grabs and political corruption driven by sex.

The British conductor Harry Bicket, a renowned Baroque music champion who made his Metropolitan Opera debut conducting Handel's "Rodelinda" in 2004, drew an insightful, urgent performance from a cast of appealing singers and a fine period-instrument ensemble. The players are from Juilliard415, the school's early-music group, complemented by guest artists on the Baroque harp and theorbos.

Mr. Bicket has brought his authoritative knowledge to the entire project. No original version of this work survives; operas from this period were presented in versions that catered to the casts and circumstances of each production. The Juilliard Opera is offering, essentially, Mr. Bicket's version, with his ideas regarding scoring, assignment of vocal parts and, most crucial, trims. Performed in two acts with an intermission, the opera lasts more than three hours.

This modern-dress production by the director Edward Berkeley, with costumes by Kim Krumm Sorenson and an effective set of tiered platforms by John Kasarda, is inventive and engrossing. Here the emperor Nero (Cecelia Hall, a rich-voiced mezzo-soprano in a role that was probably first sung by a castrato) is a preening, baby-faced, impulsive ruler in a smartly tailored suit, and his savvy mistress Poppea (Haeran Hong, a sweet-toned lyric soprano), works her sexual wiles in a series of alluring lacy gowns. Ottavia, the abandoned empress (Naomi O'Connell, a radiant mezzo-soprano) comes across as a regal and attractive woman, too trusting to see her rapacious husband's betrayal coming.

Ottone, a nobleman and Poppea's former lover, now thrown aside for Nero, is sung by a bright-voiced countertenor, Nick Zammit. He gives a poignant portrayal of this hapless character, adored by the good-hearted, flighty Drusilla (the perky soprano Devon Guthrie). The philosopher Seneca, Nero's tutor, is Liam Moran, a sturdy bass, who sings with affecting gravity in the scene in which Nero, tired of listening to the philosopher's ethical objections, orders his once-trusted adviser to take his own life.

Arnalta, Poppea's wizened nurse, is essentially a comic role that in the Baroque era might have been performed by a male singer in female dress. With a nod to that concept, this production casts a tenor, Daniel T. Curran, who plays Arnalta as a possessive, all-purpose personal secretary to Poppea in a sensible dress and high heels. Mr. Curran is funny but also touching, especially during the lullaby Arnalta sings over the sleeping Poppea, one of the gems of the score.

The bad guys win in this cynical opera. Ottavia is banished, Poppea is crowned empress, and the Roman court falls right in line. The opera even ends with the maniacal ruling couple singing "Pur ti miro," one of the most haunting of all love duets.

For a long time musicologists thought that this duet might have been written by some other composer and inserted into later productions of the work. In informative program notes the Baroque violinist and Juilliard faculty member Robert Mealy reports that Monteverdi has again entered the musicological speculation as the composer of this ravishing finale. Who could not root for him to win? Even if he loses, what Monteverdi accomplished in this landmark opera, his final work, is astonishing.