Nikolai Leskov 
Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk 

Bored and childless, Katerina Ismailov lives with her husband, Zinovy, under the cruel rule of her father-in-law, Boris. When Boris and Zinovy are both called away from their estate on urgent business, Katerina s attentions soon turn to Sergei, the newly-arrived farmhand and thus begins Nikolai Leskov s perfectly formed tale of lust, murder, guilt and revenge.