THEATRE REVIEW Equus, Playgoers Society of Dartington Hall

★★★★★

IT'S been a while since I've caught a Dartington Playgoers production and if this fiercely brave effort is any kind of benchmark, I'll be quick to return.

Peter Shaffer's engrossing take on the themes of power and passion contains the very essence of the subject it is exploring.

Director Leon Winston served up a masterclass, utilising the stage of the Barn and the great depth to be found in the writing.

The Playgoers seemed to have hunted high and low to assemble one the all-round strongest casts I've seen for quite some time. And the audience saw a lot of them, those brave souls committed to their art and the realisation that nudity, thankfully, still has the power to knock an audience off their feet.

Leading the unusual journey into the equine world child psychologist Martin Dysart (James Harper) tackles why Alan Strang (Duncan Moore) behaves the way he does.

Based on a true story it is an extraordinary set of events, laced with layer upon layer of subtext.

Choose your poison: power, love, worship, freedom; all are explored within the confines of almost a black box theatre style.

Chilling, thought-provoking, sometimes even humorous, there wasn't a dull moment throughout the 90 minutes.

James Harper is confident and utterly believable as the doctor. Duncan Moore will surely go onto bigger and better things after this compelling portrayal of troubled Alan. The same could be said for brave Katie Bottoms as stable girl Jill.

Backed by a strong set of horse actors, who could have so easily been the production's weak spot, long may these high-quality, boundary-questioning productions continue.

JONPAUL HEDGE