THE female characters in the plays of Steven Berkoff never have it easy, but their lives are brought to life in the latest Library Theatre production.

Berkoff's Women sees acclaimed actress Linda Marlowe tackle a collection of some of the most exciting characters from a wide range of Berkoff's plays.

With the use of subtle lighting we are taken into the tragic Greek world of Clytemnestra in Agamemnon.

From there into the crude, seedy world of a matter-of-fact mum in East, who has a close liaison with someone she shouldn't in a darkened cinema.

Marlowe fills the stage with a powerful presence that draws the audience in, and sometimes spits them out with the impassioned vitriol of a wronged woman.

The eleven short pieces tackle many adult themes, including murder, a sex-less marriage and man's disastrous impact on the world.

The play is directed by Josie Lawrence and premiered in 1999 at the Edinburgh Fringe, before wowing audiences across the world.

Berkoff's Women is challenging and exciting theatre, bringing a snap-shot of one of the country's finest living writers, and presented by an actress at the height of her powers.

The production runs until Saturday.

Berkoff's Women

Library Theatre, Manchester