Verdi’s life-long love affair with Shakespeare’s works began with Macbeth, a play he considered to be ‘one of the greatest creations of man’. With his librettist, Francesco Maria Piave, Verdi set out to create ‘something out of the ordinary’. Their success is borne out in every bar of a score that sees Verdi at his most theatrical: it bristles with demonic energy.

A father and son live in a caravan in the middle of nowhere. When the son burns down the caravan, his father decides to kill him in a bizarre and convoluted execution pact. Having agreed to 'the terms' of the pact, the son plays out his father's game with unpredictable consequences.