Leos Janacek’s harrowing opera, Jenufa, makes for an uncomfortable evening in the theatre, but, in Tom Cairns’ pared down and intensely moving production – with inspired conducting from Aleksandar Markovic – it can be a thrilling experience, too.

Cairns’ production is 20 years old but Opera North, with its preference for only reviving when the original director is available, has brought him back to breathe vibrant life into his original concept – and, as a mark of its freshness, two of the most memorable contributions come from company debutants.

The opera is a sort of antidote to the scenes of jolly village life we find in earlier Czech operas. Grandmother Buryjovka heads a family that, because of early deaths and second marriages, contains a mess of cousins, half-brothers and step-relations. Steva has inherited the family mill, Laca is forced to work for him as an ordinary employee, both love Jenufa, she loves Steva. Unfortunately Steva is a selfish drunken wastrel, not averse to a bit of social climbing, and Jenufa is already pregnant with his child. As the story unfolds, her stepmother, the Kostelnicka, is tortured by the conflicting demands of her stepdaughter’s happiness, social respectability, family pride and a desire for justice and ends up choosing the most tragic and unforgivable course of action.

Susan Bickley gives a performance of searing intensity as the Kostelnicka.

A formidable figure in Act 1, self-contained, morally secure, she brings enormous emotional power to the defining Act 2 duologues with Jenufa, Steva and Laca, riding the great orchestral climaxes with vocal authority even as the character’s moral certainty slips agonisingly away.

David Butt Philip makes a hugely impressive company debut as Laca. The power and commitment of his singing is matched by his characterisation of the brother who, from a slouching trouble-maker consumed by jealousy, uses guilt positively to breed kindness and consideration – a performance that demands attention from his first prowling entrance onwards.

Ed Lyon (Steva) has a less interesting journey to make as a character, but is believably self-centred, from his riotously drunken first entrance to his refusal to take responsibility for his child. Ylva Kihlberg, a highly strung Jenufa, conveys all the vulnerability and agony of the character, sings the lyrical passages beautifully, but seems underpowered at times. The chorus and a whole string of well-taken small parts provide a vivid picture of the village community.

Making his debut in an opera for the company, Aleksandar Markovic, who has already conducted two Kirklees concerts, conducts as idiomatically as you would expect from the ex-music director of Brno Philharmonic and obtains stunning playing from the orchestra. Tom Cairns directs like the best sort of director/designer, combining striking expressionist images with convincing characterisation.

Jenufa runs at Leeds Grand until October 28 and will be at The Lowry in Salford Quays on November 11.