Dancing with dexterity around the known facts, Douglas Maxwell sees the key moment of James II of Scotland’s reign as a battle between two women. On the one hand his mother Joan Beaufort, powerful in his regency, and on the other his wife Mary of Gueldres, powerful as his consort. Both of the powers behind James’ throne were complicit in his murder of the Earl of Douglas in 1452.

The staging - in the round in the cramped nave of Rosslyn Chapel - makes for an intimate production under Bruce Strachan’s direction. If there’s nowhere for the actors to hide, neither is there for the audience when the swords come out under Joel Houck’s thrilling fight choreography.

Such intimacy only energises a set of splendid performances, which pick out Maxwell’s ballading rhymes with strong emotion. The battle of wits between Lois Creasy as Mary and Lori McLean as Joan is well played-out and developed, although Scott Hoatson needs more subtlety as James, enfeebled by his look and predicament. Creasy and Hoatson’s bedroom scene is, however, a fantastically powerful piece of theatre.

Charles Donnelly as abbot, balladeer and historian, Walter Bowen, and Neil Smith as Douglas, round out this memorable production which needs just a little more space to fully realise the play’s potential.