The moment Siena Kelly saw a play called 1536 appear on the Almeida’s website, she knew she had to be in it. “I read that it was supposed to be really funny and really violent, which sounded incredibly up my street,” she laughs. Cue a plea to her agent to be put on the casting director’s radar. “[My agent] said, ‘You’re already on their list,’” she recalls. They then cast her, knowing what hundreds of audience members are now realising every night — Kelly was born to play her part.
You will have undoubtedly heard about 1536, the historical drama written by Ava Pickett and produced by Margot Robbie’s company, LuckyChap. Set in the year Henry VIII beheads Anne Boleyn, the play follows three ordinary Essex girls to show how the choices of one powerful man can change the lives of women everywhere.
