1536 Moves to the West End: Ava Pickett’s Tudor Thriller Transfers to the Ambassadors Theatre
After a sold-out Almeida run and major critical acclaim, Ava Pickett’s debut play brings its razor-sharp take on power, rumour and friendship to the West End this spring.
Following a sold-out run at the Almeida Theatre, Ava Pickett’s award-winning debut play 1536 transfers to the West End this spring. Directed by Lyndsey Turner, the production opens at the Ambassadors Theatre, bringing its original cast and creative team with it.
Set in Tudor England, 1536 centres on three women who gather in a field in Essex as news spreads of the growing conflict between King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. What begins as gossip quickly takes on sharper edges, as events at court start to echo unsettlingly close to home. The play explores friendship, fear and power at a moment when women’s lives can be overturned without warning, blending historical drama with a distinctly modern perspective.
The West End transfer follows strong critical and audience response at the Almeida, where the production was praised for its clarity, tension and the strength of its central performances. Pickett’s writing, which earned her the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and Best Writer at the 2025 Stage Debut Awards, marks one of the most closely watched playwriting debuts of recent years.
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Liv Hill, Siena Kelly and Tanya Reynolds reprise their roles as Jane, Anna and Mariella, continuing a collaboration widely noted for its precision and intensity. Direction comes from Lyndsey Turner, whose recent work includes Chimerica and The Crucible, bringing a stripped-back focus to a story driven by language, rumour and shifting loyalties.
The West End production is presented by the Almeida Theatre alongside Sonia Friedman Productions, Annapurna Theatre and LuckyChap, marking LuckyChap’s involvement in a major UK stage transfer following its recent move into theatre.
Cast
Liv Hill (Jane)
Siena Kelly (Anna)
Tanya Reynolds (Mariella)
Creative team
Writer: Ava Pickett
Director: Lyndsey Turner
Set and Costume Designer: Max Jones
Lighting Designer: Jack Knowles
Sound Designer: Tingying Dong
Composer and Arranger: Will Stuart
Movement and Intimacy Director: Anna Morrissey
Casting Director: Amy Ball CDG
Listings
1536
Ambassadors Theatre, London
02 May – 01 August 2026
Performances:
Monday to Saturday at 7.30pm
Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm
Tickets from £20
Age guidance: Contains strong language, violence and sexual content
Tickets and further information:
www.1536onstage.com
Elena Leo is the Culture & Lifestyle Editor of Ikon London Magazine.
