MUCH is written about and made of the horrors contained in Titus Andronicus.

Rape, mutilation, cannibalism and murder have deterred many - and indeed this reviewer until now.

It was with genuine trepidation that I sat before the Royal Shakespeare Theatre stage, worrying at what graphic representations of truly horrific acts director Bill Alexander had devised for us.

But in this towering sweep of revenge and retribution, the gore remains mercifully slight.

True, there are stabbings, true a hand is cut off on stage and there's a shockingly realistic neck-breaking.

Yet, these and others are acts cleverly carried out so you don't actually see the "nitty gritty". Bill Alexander has reined in any Peckinpah-ish tendencies, relying on the terribleness of the events themselves to carry the horror through.

So much so that, by the climatic banquet, where the queen unknowingly eats her sons who have been baked in a pie and, along with four characters is killed at the "feast", one is left wondering what the fuss over gore is all about.

Unfortunately, also lacking is David Bradley's Titus.

His is a world-weary old man, seemingly bowed by the weight of his grief rather than, what one would expect, a soldier general, turned into a relentless and avenging force of hatred by the horrendous destruction of his family.

Overall, however, this is a powerful production with heart-stopping moments: the agony of Eve Myles's raped and mutilated Lavinia, the final unravelling of evil, unrepentant Joe Dixon's Aron as he confesses his deeds and the cruelly cold, but magnificent warrior queen, from Maureen Beattie.

When things are at their darkest, there's even humour. In other hands this could be a graphically repulsive play, which is a shame if, like me, you're faint hearted.

This version - and it has its moments - lets you put all that aside and just enjoy Shakespeare's story. JH