Stratford East has announced the full cast for the world premiere of Bloodsport: After Helen of Troy, a bold new play by award-winning writer Ava Pickett, whose debut 1536 is currently playing to sold-out houses in the West End. Directed by Stratford East Artistic Director Lisa Spirling, it runs from 3 September to 10 October 2026.
As previously announced, Downton Abbey star Michelle Dockery leads as Helen, alongside Laura Aikman (Gavin & Stacey, Line of Duty) as Cee. They are now joined by a company including Olivier Award-winning actor Maimuna Memon (Standing at the Sky’s Edge) as Dani, Gerard Monaco as Mario, Ethan Moorhouse as the Messenger, Emma Monnickendam as Hermione, Jay Taylor as Marcus, Ellie Turner as Woman and Joshua-Alexander Williams as Luke.
Years after she walked out on her family, Helen returns home after a war fought in her name. Her husband celebrates her return, but her childhood friend Cee does not, and over one fragile first night of peacetime, old wounds reopen and loyalties fracture. Billed as a play about friendship, motherhood and the true cost of a woman’s choice to leave, it reimagines the aftermath of the Trojan War from the perspective of the woman at its centre, asking what happens when the face that launched a thousand ships comes home to finish what it started.
The play marks a hotly anticipated second stage work from Pickett, one of the most garlanded new voices in British theatre. Her debut 1536, which transferred from the Almeida to the West End’s Ambassadors Theatre for a sell-out run, was nominated for the 2026 Olivier Award for Best New Play and won the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, with Pickett currently serving as the National Theatre’s Writer in Residence for 2025/26.
Plan your visit to Bloodsport: After Helen of Troy
- Theatre:Â Stratford East, Gerry Raffles Square, London E15 1BN
- Booking dates: 3 September – 10 October 2026 (press night 10 September)
- Age guidance:Â 14+
- Tickets: From £10
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