After a season of “reimaginings” of classic works that completely overhaul original concepts, it is somewhat refreshing to have a more traditional revival of Ghosts, Henrik Ibsen’s classic that is ending its run next weekend at Lincoln Center’s Mitzi Newhouse Theater.

The 1882 play tackles infidelity, sexually transmitted diseases, incest and euthanasia across different levels of Norwegian society, following a mother, her son and other people in their orbit as devastating family secrets come to light. The salacious subject matter was shocking for its time, and sparked a vitriolic pushback from the public — including royalty — before it was eventually recognized as a masterpiece in later years.

The titular ghosts are somewhat misnamed, as Ibsen reportedly disliked the translation from the original Gengangere. In Norwegian, the word more accurately means “revenants,” or people who have returned — and the play’s Alving family are haunted not by ghosts but by the legacy of the late Captain Alving’s corruption and immorality. His widow Helen and her son Oswald are virtuous and kind to those around them, but the dead man’s sins still threaten to destroy his family even decades later.

Censorship forced Ibsen to carefully dance around the play’s subject matter, forcing the audience to pay attention in order to understand what the characters are — and are not — talking about. This gives the actors plenty of subtext to work with. Fortunately, director Jack O’Brien selected a top-notch cast for this revival who know how to speak volumes with expressions and reactions.

Lily Rabe perfectly captures the matriarch’s conflicting kindness and classism as well as the simmering rage she barely keeps under control. Much like Nora Helmer, Ibsen’s more famous heroine in A Doll’s House, Mrs. Alving is a woman wronged by the men around her, but unlike Nora, she has chosen the socially acceptable route of remaining with her unfaithful and abusive husband and not rocking any boats. As the truths are exposed, Rabe maintains the demeanour of a proper upper-class society lady while barely hiding her resentment and bitterness. Levon Hawke, as her son, likewise beautifully conveys Oswald’s gentleness and his fear for his future. He makes the character kind without being sentimental, making it easy to sympathize with his plight.

Ella Beatty is quietly powerful as a young servant who, much like Mrs. Alving, is beginning to recognize how the men in her life have wronged her. Her Regina lives up to her name, dignified and determined and not willing to accept less in life than she feels she is worth. Hamish Linklater — Rabe’s husband in real life — gets a shower role as the alcoholic Jacob, Regina’s working-class father, but finds nuance in the character as his own secrets get exposed over the course of the evening. And Billy Crudup makes Pastor Manders’ hypocrisy and corruption fascinating to behold — rather than being enlightened by the truth, he only becomes more corrupt as the play goes on. It’s a frightening transformation, but a painfully believable one.

Jack O’Brien’s direction ranges between oddly stylized and casually natural, particularly in the beginning, when Linklater and Beatty begin the play multiple times in different tones, starting in normal, almost bored voices before projecting and conveying emotion. This sets the show off on a somewhat unsure foot, but the energy picks up quickly once the show proper gets going. Mark O’Rowe’s translation is sparse and natural, making the play feel frighteningly contemporary and prescient.

John Lee Beatty’s sparse set is minimal and effective, making good use of the Newhouse’s thrust stage, and Japhy Weideman’s lights nicely set the mood for each moment. Jess Goldstein’s costumes similarly convey each character’s social station while not pinning the play down in one particular time or place. By making Ghosts universal, the creative team and cast have helped bring Ibsen’s message to a new generation: Nothing happens in a vacuum, every action can have devastating consequences and our dead never truly leave us alone.