I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that the University of Michigan’s production of “Macbeth” is the only one ever to open with a young man in a nun’s habit playing violin.

Believe it or not, there’s a reason for this. Director Philip Kerr has set Shakespeare’s regicide tragedy in an old church that’s been re-purposed as a military hospital in the early 20th century, so the nuns are attending to the sick as audience members find their way to their seats.

Yet with the flip of a sheer, dark veil, the nuns also — in a move that may give former Catholic school students nightmares — become the play’s creepy, prophesying witches, who brew up trouble by telling Macbeth (Tom Wolfson), just returned from a heroic turn on the battlefield, that he’s destined for the throne. After being strong-armed into action by his ambitious wife (Anna Robinson), Macbeth murders the king, Duncan (Paul Koch), as he sleeps; but neither Macbeth nor his wife is prepared for the psychological consequences of this violent act.

As is often true when the setting for a Shakespeare play is altered, the play sometimes strains against the production’s concept. Whole families appear to reside, curiously, in this makeshift combat hospital; the famous banquet scene — in which Macbeth sees the ghost of his murdered friend Banquo (Joey Richter) — plays out awkwardly; the crowd scenes look self-conscious, in that there seems to be a gang of people traveling around the facility in a pack; and when Macbeth demands his armor, he gets his worn jacket. (And Lady Macbeth as a nurse? Let's just say I hope she’s never in charge of my care.)

Other moments, however, work quite well with the setting. A wounded soldier at the opening, telling of Macbeth’s valor, enters the hospital on a gurney; and the groans of the wounded that audibly permeate the show perfectly fit the mood of this haunting tale.

Indeed, the atmosphere of Kerr’s two-hour production is unbroken by an intermission, so the audience gets a palpable sense of accompanying Macbeth and his wife on their fast-track journey into the heart of darkness. This seems appropriate, since a nightmare interrupted is a nightmare de-fanged; but patrons should nonetheless take note of this unusual choice (and perhaps plan for a pre-show restroom visit accordingly).

Another unusual choice concerns Wolfson’s intermittent drum-playing in the show. The accompaniment itself worked well with select textual moments, but having Wolfson provide it on-stage did not. Seeing a king strapping a drum on just seems odd.

Otherwise, Wolfson does a decent job with the challenging lead role; and while Robinson’s performance would benefit from greater variation in her line delivery, she did her best work on opening night while delivering Lady Macbeth’s “Out damned spot” speech. Meanwhile, Erin Cousins as Lady MacDuff, and Richter as Macbeth’s betrayed friend Banquo, provide excellent supporting performances.

And despite the challenges of the production's military hospital backdrop, the set is nonetheless well-realized by scenic designer Vincent Mountain. Plus, Rob Murphy's lighting design proves itself to be absolutely crucial to the telling of this shadowy ghost story. For Murphy establishes and maintains the play’s supernatural atmosphere while also externalizing the main characters’ descent into moral darkness.

So when the lights come up, it really is as though we’ve witnessed and woken from a frightening dream that will continue to haunt us in the coming days of winter. (As will the thought of how ridiculously cold the kilt-wearing bagpiper in the lobby must have been before and after the show. Yikes!)

Jenn McKee is the entertainment digital journalist for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at jennmckee@annarbor.com or 734-623-2546, and follow her on Twitter @jennmckee.