The Scottish/Irish legend of the Selkie, or seal-woman, is an odd little tale. It can be a potent one as well, full of magical transformation, betrayal and regret, as demonstrated by "Ballad of the Pale Fisherman," the newest presentation in Illusion Theater's Lights Up! series.

Conceived and directed by Isabel Nelson and collectively created by the ensemble of Transatlantic Love Affair, "The Ballad of the Pale Fisherman" debuted to accolades and awards at the 2010 Fringe Festival. Its current production at Illusion is expanded and more fully staged, but retains the simplicity that's at the heart of its charm.

The play relates the story of a lonely young fisherman who catches a seal in his net one night. As he prepares to kill it, the seal suddenly slips out of its skin, revealing a woman. The fisherman and the Selkie ultimately fall in love, marry and have a child. But the Selkie's origins haunt her and, despite her human ties, she's compelled to don her seal skin and return to the sea.

An ensemble of seven actors spins out this "tall tale washed in from the sea" with economy, humor and grace. The only props are a stool and an accordion anchoring narrator Derek Lee Miller to the edge of the stage. Every other element is conjured by the actors' bodies and voices. Swaying in concert at the play's opening, they create a disconcertingly realistic sense of an ocean shoreline and hissing surf. Two actors shape themselves into a gonging town hall bell to humorous effect. When the Fisherman, played by Diogo Lopes, is out in his boat, his routine of casting and hauling his net and then cleaning his catch becomes a ballet of startling expressiveness.

Anna Reichert gives a luminous performance as the Selkie, ably capturing her initial awkward sense of being literally a fish out of water and then gradually becoming at ease in her human form. She imbues the role with humorous charm without losing the sense of the Selkie's essential otherworldliness.

Lopes provides a nice foil as her husband, approaching her with a hesitant vulnerability that's both poignant and endearing. Willie Gambucci is effective in a number of roles, while Heather Bunch, Adelin Phelps and Allison Witham provide a deliciously comic chorus and running commentary on the action as three old busybodies.

"Ballad of the Pale Fisherman" is a short piece of work, coming in at just over an hour, but a satisfying one as well. Director Isabel Nelson and a fine ensemble give this haunting tale a lyrical, almost balletic retelling that rarely takes a false step.