For too long it's been the preserve of the Royal Ballet Company, and is too seldom seen outside the capital.

So it's a compliment both to English National Ballet, and Manchester - as just one of five provincial venues on this tour - to finally see it hereabouts.

Expectations are accordingly high, and this is an interpretation that delivers on every level. By the time it reaches Italy, next spring, it could cause a sensation.

The story of an ill-used woman and her descent into depravity demands an acting technique as alert and skilled as the dancing.

On opening night Daria Kilmentova, in the title role, suggested a beguiling fragility that was certainly never evident in her dancing.

Manon is a woman literally thrown between the men in her life and Macmillan's choreography delivers a dazzling array of dance setpieces to vividly illustrate this cruelty.

The dramatic twists and turns are not reserved for the plot and Ms Kilmentova, again and again, suggests the lightness of a discarded doll.

She was partnered here by Friedemann Vogel and while some of the duets just occasionally border on the gymnastic, they are seldom less than fantastic.

There's room enough for a comic 'turn' with some adept clowning from Fabian Relmair and Sarah McIlroy and a panto villian worth anyone's boo, from Anthony Howson.

Mia Stensgaard's towering designs deliver everything from a bawdy boudoir to a Louisiana swamp, while the whole ensemble enrich this world-class performance.

This is a grown-up ballet for a grown-up company and it underscores ENB's reputation as an international troupe big enough to strut their stuff with anyone.

See it before Saturday, November 15 - or book an Italian holiday!

David Upton