Therese Raquin is an upsetting thriller of love, passion and murder going through three stages; from boredom to passion and from passion to guilt. Trapped in a marriage and inspired by the lust she feels for her husband's best friend, Therese, together with her lover, kills her husband and is then destroyed by guilt.

The directorial debut for Citizens' Theatre Artistic Director, Jeremy Raison could have not been in a better style. A fresh performance, which used filmic imagery, together with stylised movement to give a mainstream audience a fresh view of Emile Zola's 1868 novel.

It stroke on heavy cords of entertainment, filling the stage with sounds, dance, colours but never being obvious (although the soundtrack has some very Hollywood-style moments). The fine ensemble cast; brought a sense of stability and never a moment of over-the-top acting despite the impassioned nature of the text. Above all there was a sensation of quality and respect for what was being done on stage and for the story itself. The audience was not treated in the old clichéd formats but still was able to have the feeling of a simple enjoyable show.

It is a well-paid ticket when one can go to the theatre and find out that entertainment can still mean quality.