Almeida Theatre – until 7 June 2025
Reviewed by Claire Roderick
4****
Henry VIII’s wives have been reimagined as wisecracking pop divas, and now Ava Pickett explores the lives of “everyday” women as Henry bends the world to realise his dynastical aspirations.
Three friends meet up in a field in Essex, Anna (Siena Kelly) – wild and unafraid to use her sexuality, Jane (Liv Hall) – less worldly and determined to be a good girl, and Mariella (Tanya Reynolds) – unable to marry the man she loves and hating her life as a midwife. It is clear from the beginning that this field is the only place that they feel free to share their true ideas and be themselves. When Jane runs frantically to tell Anna the news from London about the king, Anna isn’t interested as she thinks it will not affect her life. When the news turns out to be that the king has arrested his queen Anne Boleyn and charged her with treason however, the women react with disbelief and trepidation.
What follows over the period up to Anne Boleyn’s execution is a chilling story of the men around them becoming emboldened as they cite Anne Boleyn’s alleged crimes and paint her as the Whore of Babylon who bewitched their saintly king. The misogyny and hypocrisy of the respectable men of the town becomes increasingly dangerous for each woman in different ways. Anna – the most obvious parallel with Boleyn is wanted and hated by the men. She is a wanton shameful woman, but the men who have slept with her are blameless. Jane – the good girl like her queenly namesake – does exactly what is expected of her, pious and good, but discovers that this doesn’t bring her happiness, and Mariella lives on a knife edge, knowing that her midwifery is a dangerous job where the death of a baby or mother could have terrible consequences for her.
Although the town’s men are talked about, only two appear in the play. Richard (Adam Hugill), who meets up with Anna for sex in the field but marries another woman, and William (Angus Cooper), Mariella’s love who made a better match but obviously still cares for her. These men are written very cleverly, with Richard very obviously reflecting the general attitude towards girls like Anna, and William’s gentle nature cracking to reveal the anger and suspicion simmering beneath the surface.
This all sounds a little hard going, but Pickett has written sparky and irreverent dialogue for the three women. The lifelong friendship is believable through what is left unsaid between them, and the actors’ chemistry is utterly beguiling. They speak with modern rhythms and sound like three girls chatting at a bus stop except their topic of conversation is survival in a hostile time. The laughs come thick and fast, with lots of gallows humour about the horrific reality of their lives that cast a light on the unchanged attitudes of modern society.
Liv Hall is funny and sweet as Jane, but excels as her darker, steely will to survive emerges. Siena Kelly shines as Anna, never still and embodying the sense of being trapped in this unfulfilling existence, but her fire and fury never quite builds up her courage to move on. Tanya Reynolds is devastatingly sad and strong as the tragic Mariella – the anchor of the trio.
Lyndsey Turner directs with heart and urgency as Jack Knowles’s bucolic yet threatening lighting creates a sense of time on Max Jones’s set. The sudden loud between scenes are a little jarring but build tension.
A stunning debut from Ava Pickett – 1536 is a darkly funny and disquieting slice of Tudor life.