Ava Pickett’s 1536 to transfer to the Ambassadors Theatre in London

The Almeida Theatre’s critically acclaimed production of Ava Pickett’s award-winning play 1536 is transferring to the West End’s Ambassadors Theatre in London.

1536 is playing at the Ambassadors Theatre from 2 May to 1 August 2026.

The play won the prestigious Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, and Ava Pickett won Best Writer for 1536 at this year’s The Stage Debut Awards.

1536 is directed by Lyndsey Turner (Chimerica).

The world premiere of 1536 took place at the Almeida Theatre in May this year, starring Sex Education’s Tanya Reynolds, Liv Hill (Black Mirror, The Serpent Queen) and BAFTA-nominated Siena Kelly (Adult Material). Casting for the West End production is to be announced.

Set in the tumultuous year of Anne Boleyn’s execution, 1536 explores the intersection of personal and political turmoil through the eyes of three women in rural Tudor England. As rumours of Henry VIII’s conflict with his queen spread, the women begin to recognise unsettling parallels between their lives and the power struggles at court. The play questions whether female solidarity can endure in a society where misogyny and violence are the norm.

The creative team also includes set and costume designer Max Jones, lighting designer Tim Lutkin, sound designer Tingying Dong, and movement and intimacy director Anna Morrissey.

1536 will be produced in the West End by Sonia Friedman Productions, Annapurna Theatre, and the Almeida Theatre.

Ava Pickett is currently co-writing, alongside Baz Luhrmann, his Jehanne D’Arc film.

Coming up next at the Ambassadors Theatre is Paranormal Activity from 5 December 2025 to 28 March 2026.

Ava Pickett on the West End transfer of 1536

Writer Ava Pickett said in a statementL “It’s hard to put into words how much this whole process has meant to me so I’m going to resort to cliché and say it’s beyond my wildest dreams – which still feels a bit like I’m downplaying it.

“I’m such an example of what can happen when people get in your corner early and so I just want to thank everyone at the Almeida Theatre and Genesis for developing it and putting it on in the first place and then thank you so much to Sonia Friedman for coming in with such enthusiasm and belief in it and wanting to bring it into the West End – I really am still pinching myself!

“It’s hard to talk about “inspiration” for the play, as to be honest, 1536 was written in response to the never-ending stories in the news about violence against women. It asks the question if a King can kill his wife in a palace, how does that impact three working class women in Essex? Because the world we live in has not changed as much as we are made to believe, because what happens in the corridors of power still bleeds down, as it always has.

“So what a privilege it is to be able to bring Anna, Mariella and Jane to more audiences in all their complicated, funny, dark, desperate glory”.