Using an adaptation of Euripides' Trojan Women by Mariem Omari and the experiences of the cast, The Trojans aims to integrate classical Athenian tragedy and the contemporary crises of Syrian displaced people. A series of alternating monologues and choral interludes from Omari's version and the personal stories of the performers, it uses the defeat of the Trojans as a framework for an intimate and moving understanding of how forced migration is more than just headlines and statistics.

The individual recollections of the consequences of the civil war in Syria – the politics of the uprising are replaced by descriptions of oppression, violence, fear and escape – and the optimism of those who have found themselves in Scotland. The production's emphasis on powerful visual tableaux, including the arrival of cheerful children at the finale, and the cultivation of plants, brings home the relief of the Syrians at finding a new home, despite their horrific experiences and memories of their motherland. This positivity, hard won and poignant, counters the misery of displacement and lifts the narrative above the potentially tragic horror that drives Euripides' drama and the performers' flight from Syria.

The use of The Trojan Women as a template, despite Omari's emotive and eloquent script, is less effective: much of the rage and fatalism that runs through Euripides is replaced by the detailed description of the Syrian conflict's impact on the individuals. And while both The Trojans and The Trojan Women were written in response to the humanitarian disasters caused by war – Euripides was critiquing the behaviour of the Athenian democracy in their war with Sparta – the intention to reveal the universality of 'the effects of war', the specific circumstances of the conflicts do not mesh easily. The issues of displacement and the violence directed at civilians remain a constant, but Euripides' attack on imperialism and sexual slavery is occluded by the contemporary state's assaults on its own citizens. Colonialism and imperialism undeniably play a part in the situation in the Middle East, but the stories of the cast expose the paranoid mechanisms of a government under threat and, ultimately, the movement away from the wholesale degradation of the defeated nation towards an inclusive internationalism.

However, the importance of The Trojans remains with its startling use of theatre as a medium for measured commentary: breaking apart the predictable and monolithic narratives about displaced people, it speaks of family, hope and inclusion without ignoring the anguish and the tyranny. Victoria Beesley's direction is lithe and direct, adopting the ritualistic ensemble of the classical choral ensemble to provide space for the individual tales. The cast express their stories eloquently and with charm. Part of the Trojan Women Project, which includes radio drama, musicals and stage productions across the UK, it argues for theatre's inclusive potential and ability to provoke conversation and engage in political debates.

Platform, Glasgow: run ended