Riesen had won the role of Frederic in the Friday and Sunday performances of the upcoming “Pirates of Penzance” production, which opens at 8 p.m. Friday at Fairchild Theatre.

“Who is the other Frederic?” Riesen said, inquiring who would play the part for Saturday’s show. Nine of the 10 principal roles in the comedic opera are double cast.

“It’s me, of course,” Snyder said.

And then there was silence.

“It was a little moment of silence before a joyful tearing,” Riesen said. “When we got cast together, we were ecstatic.”

Associate professor of voice and director of “Pirates of Penzance” Melanie Helton said double casting is an usual practice for productions such as these.

“It’s just a way to give our students more opportunities,” Helton said.

Riesen and Snyder have been friends for about two years, hanging out almost every day, Riesen said. They prepared for “Pirates of Penzance” together, and now they play the same character.

For three months leading up to the auditions, Riesen and Snyder ended their daily workouts by singing the end of the aria “Oh Is There Not One Maiden Breast?” Each held the last B-flat as long as they could, trying to see who would outlast the other, Riesen said.

Snyder said he and Riesen push each other as well as help each other, and the experience working together has been a good one.

“We bounce ideas back and forth,” he said. “I like the collaboration there.”

Snyder and Riesen take cues from each other, taking bits and pieces of their different portrayals of Frederic and incorporating it into their own performances. Their interpretations of the male lead are different, Riesen said.

“Evan likes to bring out the serious side of Frederic, whereas I like to bring out the fact that he’s just this silly person,” he said.

With different senses of humor come different portrayals of Frederic, Snyder said.

“I have a little drier sense of humor,” Snyder said. “He sometimes approaches things more over the top and I more reserved. It’s been good for us to see where that works and where that doesn’t.”

Each performance will be drastically different because of all the differing character approaches from the double casting, Riesen said.

“If you see one (performance), you have no idea what the other is going to be like,” Riesen said. “It’s night and day.”

Music performance sophomore Schyler Sheltrown, who will play Mabel in Saturday’s performance, said she has enjoyed watching how the double casting has affected the overall production.

“Since I watched all the double castings, it makes it so fun,” she said. “I think it makes (each show) more complex and interesting to watch.”

During one of the rehearsals, Riesen sparked a new approach to Frederic for Snyder when he delivered a line debating the beauty of another character, Ruth, Snyder said.

“(Riesen’s) Frederic said, ‘Do you really think (Ruth is beautiful)?’” Snyder said. “When I first read that line, it felt innocent. (But) he said it sort of disbelievingly, and it was funnier. I liked it better.”

Snyder, who is younger than Riesen, has appreciated being able to work with someone experienced in the MSU Opera Theatre. This is Riesen’s sixth lead. It’s Snyder’s first.

“I have asked him for advice on what’s kosher for rehearsal,” he said.

Riesen and Snyder look to each other for advice and for support, Riesen said.

“It really does help to have someone who’s going through it with you,” he said. “It’s amazing to have someone sharing the responsibility with you.”