1536
Ambassadors Theatre
- Opens: Saturday, 2 May 2026 -
Booking until: Saturday, 1 August 2026 - Running time: 2hr. No Interval.
1536 description
Smart. Scrappy. Savage. 1536, the “electrifying” (The Standard) historical drama with a modern edge, transfers to the West End following a sold-out run at the Almeida Theatre – don’t miss your chance to see this “effortlessly funny, bold and ballsy” (The Guardian) must-see new play.
Written by Ava Pickett, winner of the 2024 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and directed by Lyndsey Turner (Chimerica), this “razor-sharp, darkly comic and blisteringly relevant” (The Independent) new play explores the dynamics of female friendship in a world stacked against women.
Kings don’t kill their wives, right?
Tudor England.
A field in Essex.
Three women hurry to their childhood meeting place, thirsty for gossip from London.
Word spreads of a clash between King Henry VIII and his Queen, Anne Boleyn. And closer to home, another rumour begins to catch fire.
As these women begin to see echoes of the royal drama in their own rural lives and a rise in violence spreads throughout the land, the actions of a queen imprisoned in a tower threaten to cost them everything.
Playing for a strictly limited run at the Ambassadors Theatre with previews from 2 May 2026, don’t miss your chance to experience this “wonderfully vibrant, cracking debut” (The Guardian).
BSL Interpreted:
- Saturday, 13th June, 2:30pm
Captioned:
- Saturday, 4th July, 2:30pm
Audio Described:
- Thursday, 25th June, 7:30pm
Playing at Ambassadors Theatre
Age restrictions
Ages 14+.
Important information
Contains strong language, violence and explicit scenes.