It’s the start of another busy season at the West Yorkshire Playhouse. They’ve decided to bring into focus some of the most respected and cherished literary fables from those most iconic Yorkshire writers the Bronte sisters. Kicking off this season is Northern Ballet, with a revival of their acclaimed ballet adaptation of Wuthering Heights, featuring choreography from David Nixon OBE and a score by Claude-Michel Schönberg.

In case you’re not already familiar with it, Wuthering Heights follows the stories of two lovers in early nineteenth-century Yorkshire. Cathy and Heathcliff (Antoinette Brooks-Daw and Ashley Dixon) grow up together on the Yorkshire moors and share a special emotional bond, but when upper-class neighbour Edgar Linton (Matthew Koon) intervenes, there are devastating consequences for the pair and everyone around them.

There’s also a second part to Wuthering Heights, where Bronte details the consequences of the lovers’ children, but Nixon has taken this out to simplify the narrative for his ballet. Thankfully, this doesn’t take away any of the narrative’s original meaning and message, and makes things more relevant than ever. The narrative now becomes a blank canvas for him to masterfully layer over his choreography, direction and costume design to incredible effect.

Northern Ballet are renowned for nurturing and showcasing some of the best dancers out there, and their production of Wuthering Heights shows how they do this perfectly. Brooks-Daw and Dixon execute Nixon’s stunning choreography with precision and character; the former carefully draws out a conflicted, emotionally-charged performance while the latter creates a portrait of a man on a true, torturous journey of the self. Their young counterparts, played by Jenny Hackwell and Matthew Topliss, act as a pleasant innocent contrast to the impassioned, fierce atmosphere generated by their future selves, helped to create a shifting dynamic throughout the piece.

These central performances are firmly buffeted by the talents of Koon and the rest of the company, who gracefully help to establish Nixon’s vision of the moody, encroaching world from Bronte’s book. Further adding to this stunning vision is the sumptuous score from Schönberg, which aids the performers in conjuring up the maelstrom of emotions that Wuthering Heights has always been admired for.

Ali Allen’s set design is also a well-considered production value. With simple set pieces being sleekly brought and flown in at key moments, she has created a space that really allows the performers to breathe and fill the vast Quarry Theatre with emotion and a presence that keeps you engaged from the very beginning. For instance, the use of theatrical fog in scenes on the moors might not sound the most exciting – or innovative – thing in the world, but it’s the smallest touches that help to emphasise the magical undercurrent of this moving, captivating piece.

David Grill’s lighting design is a perfect complement to this, painting Allen and Nixon’s shared canvas with an array of washes and carefully selected effects that do everything to highlight the power of the company and Bronte’s narrative. It works in perfect harmony with the rest of the production values to create a stunning scenography that brims with atmosphere.

Wuthering Heights, like the previous shows I’ve seen from Northern Ballet, is nothing short of spectacular. It makes for a lovely evening of strong storytelling from a company that proves its worth and sheer talent time and time again. Moreover, it brings us closer to a respected story about the unrelenting power of love, and highlights a special connection with the emotional and physical through the stunning performances of its dancers. Wuthering Heights kicks off the Playhouse’s new season perfectly, and is an absolute must see.

Wuthering Heights is playing at the West Yorkshire Playhouse until September 10.