Opera on a shoestring often scores highly on clarity and emotional impact and Mid-Wales Opera is one of those companies who do sterling work in bringing opera to people for whom the full works are beyond reach, financially and geographically.

MWO's new La Bohème is clearly chosen for accessibility and, with a strong cast singing in louder-than-life verismo mode, it generally succeeds. The milieu of the Henri Murger play Puccini set is firmly mid-19th century, but director Martin Lloyd-Evans makes his bohemians followers of Daniel Cohn-Bendit in the Paris student riots of 1968; the posters in their garret are emblazoned with the slogan "Sois Jeune et Tais Toi", also the title of Cohn-Bendit's more recent book.

The concept seems to work quite well until everyone repairs to the Cafe Momus to celebrate Christmas Eve, when it becomes clear that MWO's budget is as restricted as that of the impecunious students. No chorus means no crowd scene. Two tables are set with cloths and candle and no amount of high spirits can disguise the fact that this is still the garret set. Not only does this deprive audiences of the wider social context against which the students need to be viewed, but musically, too, there are problems, with motifs relating to the numbers that have been cut no longer making sense.

Musical director Keith Darlingon nevertheless pushes things on in brisk fashion and manages to allow Rebecca van Lipinski and Christopher Steele the lyrical expanse needed to express the bliss and, ultimately, the tragedy of Mimi and Rodolfo. The wonderfully comic portrayals by Ian Jervis of both the landlord Benoit and Musetta's sugar-daddy Alcindoro add an extra kick to the proceedings.

· At Lawrence Batley Theatre, Huddersfield (01484 430528), on Thursday. Then touring.