The Suppliant Women - Royal Exchange Theatre

THIS, I have to say, struck me as a strange choice by the RET, which marketed this ancient play as being very relevant to the world in which we live today.

Surely not? How can a piece, a 2,500 year old piece, have something to say to a 21st century audience living in a super fast, digital world?

But David Greig's vibrant adaptation of a work by one of the giants of ancient Greek drama feels very modern and in the band of exiled women we can so easily see the refugees and migrants, call them what you will, of today.

They experience the suspicion, hostility and vulnerability of the refugees searching for a better life and the play pricks our consciences with a plea for tolerance towards the so-called outsider.

A great deal of the story is told in song and the cast contains a gifted and dynamic group of young women who, vocally, give their all to provide what was forme, an unexpected and stunning theatrical spectacle.

The ladies in question work alongside a small group of actors. I'm not going to single out individual performances as this is a major triumph for the whole ensemble who tore up my preconceptions to create a theatre event that gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "in your face." Strongly recommended, as this production is anything but dry and boring.

* Until April 1. The box office is on 0161 833 9833. Star rating - ****