Brutal, Bloody and Brilliant.

Best bit: Klytemnestra's harrowing speech about the murder of her husband - Lia Williams, I salute you!

Any boring bits? The production is 3 hours and 40 mins long, yet there aren't any lulls in the action, just building tension and release.

Who would like it? Those who appreciate the art of Greek Tragedy and a good cry.

Who wouldn't like it? Those who prefer feel-good musicals. I repeat, this is NOT a feel-good musical.

Morning after effect: A bittersweet melancholy and a great deal of thought about the nature of life, death and politics.

Verdict: 5 out of 5 stars

Upon taking my place in the front row I was immediately struck by the foreboding presence of a digital clock suspended above the stage, audibly counting down the seconds until show time. The monotonous electronic beeps of its ticking would march on to punctuate pivotal scenes that at first slowly unfurled to present a nation at war, then spiralled quickly and brutally to expose a family at war with themselves, all the while giving the action a time and place; right here and right now.

In this retelling, the historical Greek ruler Agamemnon is cast as a modern man of war, a right wing politico who is deeply religious under a poised surface. His wife Klytemnestra provides the perfect foil to his steely demeanour, warm and motherly, yet also cool and calculating. At first, the two make the perfect power duo in front of the cameras which project their facades on video screens throughout the theatre; another clever thematic device that constantly reminds us audience members of the mise en scene. Their daughters Electra and Iphigenia, and son Orestes complete the picture of a happy home life. Yet, as with all Greek tragedies, suffering and pain is on the horizon, approaching swiftly.

In one of the most heart-wrenching scenes throughout (take tissues with you), little Iphigenia's life is ended by poison administered by her father's own hand. Caught on those ever-present cameras and disturbingly sterile compared to the bloodshed to come, her quiet death heralds a rift that echoes through the generations, damning each family member.

From here on out, death is the order of the day. As such, this isn't a family-friendly show and if the sight of blood makes you feel faint, then perhaps it's best to sit this one out. Part crime-drama, part thriller, part shockingly real allusion to modern politics, this Oresteia is brutal, bloody and brilliant.

The ensemble cast is a triumph, with arresting turns by Angus Wright as the commanding yet conflicted Agamemnon, Lia Williams as the heartbroken, scorned and vengeful Klytemnestra (hell hath no fury...), Jessica Brown Findlay as the mournful Electra and Luke Thomson as Orestes, maddened by grief and a traumatic childhood.

The revamped script is pure poetry, and each of these doomed family members has their fare share of the melancholic monologues that quite often moved me to tears. Whether it's the grief stricken Electra's conversation with her dead father or Klytemnestra's impassioned and gruesome recounting of the moment she killed her husband, the audience is held in rapture. You could hear a pin drop in the pregnant pauses, in fact I could hear the man next to me exhale loudly at the conclusion of each scene, reminding me that I'd also been holding my breath.

By the time the third act rolls around, (take note, the production does last approximately three hours and forty minutes) I feel as if I've outlived the cataclysmic collapse of the House of Atreus, an ancient story portrayed by a very real and modern family. Thanks to the intimacy of the Trafalgar Studios Stage 1 and a stunning twist that makes the audience complicit in the drama, I don't emerge wholly unscathed. With a great sense of catharsis I exit the theatre, yet my thoughts remain provoked and my emotions raw. This is Greek tragedy at its finest.

Reviewed by Teia Fregona

Saturday 3rd September 2015
Trafalgar Studios, London
Find me on Twitter: @_londontheatre_

View our show pages for more information about Oresteia, Trafalgar Studios 1.