Don Carlos at the Project Arts centre

Theatre production in Ireland has come on in leaps and bounds since the turn of the millennium. The last few years have seen an upsurge in independent studios producing high-quality work in smaller theatres. One such independent company which has been developing plays since the early-1990s is Rough Magic. The adept producers of Improbable Frequency and The Taming of the Shrew – last year's Irish Times theatre awardwinner for best production – have just finished a run of Don Carlos, by German dramatist Friedrich Schiller, at the Project Arts Centre, itself a diamond in the literary landscape.

There is scarcely a more difficult piece of playwriting to produce in the annals of classic theatre. Schiller's original script sits at a  daunting nine-hour running time; Mike Poulton's whittling-down of script to an unhurried yet faithful three-and-a-half hours is a stroke of genius in its own right. Director Lynn Parker added to this development by focusing strongly on the period element, with brilliant costuming and a sparse stage which changes only a fraction through each new scene.

The subject material suits this setting. Set at the forefront of Spain's golden age, approximately 60 years after Columbus' fateful American landing, the play occurs in the heart of Philip II's iron-fisted post-Charles V reign. Schiller tracks the life of Phillip's first-born son, Don Carlos – who historically hated his father and bore a conscious revolutionary ambition – incorporating liberal dramatic amendments to infuse the play with two complex themes. The first theme is the fevered Oedipal love rivalry between the king and the prince where Phillip's queen Elizabeth, a daughter of France, has buried feelings for her stepson.

The second theme, more subtle, shifting and complex, explores liberal democracy and the abolition of monarchy. Don Carlos and his brotherly friend, Rodrigo the Marquis of Posa, grew to despise the reign of Phillip when they were children and formed the ideal of a better world, built upon the power of the people, which they could execute when the prince became king. As the king becomes ever-more vicious towards his subjects, Rodrigo initiates his plan of revolution early. A bitter malevolent conclusion draws together both themes in a masterfully dark series of scenes, where Spain's future and past collide on stage with only one victor.

A daring play, Poulton's wonderful version can only go so far to draw forth the clash of characters – the rest lies with the talent on stage. And Rough Magic does not disappoint, throwing forth some of the most remarkable acting in recent memory.

Unfortunately, Don Carlos had a limited run at the Project, but it is virtually certain to appear again in the future. Plays of this calibre do not often emerge and Mike Poulton's extraordinary adaptive work bears identification as an original piece. The jostling for next year's coveted theatre awards has begun in earnest. The Gate Theatre drew first blood with their sublime production of Salome but Rough Magic, fresh from their recent triumph, have their eyes set firmly on successive victories.