The director has taken an experimental, expressionistic, approach to the project, saying his eureka moment came while reading Orlando Figes’ study of Russian cultural history, Natasha’s Dance, which suggested the aristocracy of late 19th century Russia lived as if they were on a stage.

He ambitiously decided to shoot the majority of the film on and around a single location, a rundown theatre built from scratch at Shepperton Studios outside London, with remarkable visual results.

Full-sized trains run through the set one moment, then the ‘stage’ converts into an ice rink the next. The film has a dream-like quality that only intensifies the romance and tragedy of the classic tale.

Bafta-winning costume designer Jacqueline Durran, who has worked with Wright before, created a sumptuous look in which 1870s style meets fitted Fifties couture – and the impact is spectacular.

Keira's career-defining new role