Stratford East has released the first rehearsal images for Ava Pickett’s new play Bloodsport: After Helen of Troy, ahead of its world premiere this September.
The production runs at Stratford East from 3 September to 10 October 2026 and stars Michelle Dockery as Helen and Laura Aikman as Cee.
Directed by Stratford East Artistic Director Lisa Spirling, the new drama reimagines the aftermath of one of mythology’s most famous stories, exploring friendship, motherhood and the consequences of a woman’s decision to leave everything behind.
Set after a war fought in her name, the play follows Helen as she returns home to a fractured family and an uncertain future.
The synopsis reads: “Years after she walked out on her family, Helen has returned home after a war fought in her name. Her husband celebrates, her childhood friend Cee does not. Over the course of this first fragile night of peace time, wounds reopen, loyalties fracture and the true cost of a woman’s choice to leave her life is made clear.
“A play about friendship, motherhood, and what happens when the woman whose face started a war, returns home to finish it.”
Dockery is best known for her Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated performance as Lady Mary Crawley in Downton Abbey, while Aikman’s recent screen credits include Gavin & Stacey, This City Is Ours and the forthcoming new series of Line of Duty.
The cast also features Olivier Award winner Maimuna Memon as Dani, Gerard Monaco as Mario, Ethan Moorhouse as Messenger, Emma Monnickendam as Hermione, Jay Taylor as Marcus, Ellie Turner as Chloe and Joshua-Alexander Williams as Luke.
Playwright Ava Pickett is one of the UK’s most acclaimed emerging writers. Her debut play 1536 was nominated for the Olivier Award for Best New Play and won the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, alongside several major industry awards.
The creative team includes set and costume designer Polly Sullivan, lighting designer Zeynep Kepekli, sound designer and composer Nicola T. Chang, movement director Kloé Dean, dramaturg Ed Madden and fight and intimacy coordinator Enric Ortuño.
Bloodsport: After Helen of Troy is presented by Stratford East and is supported by Eleanor Lloyd Productions, Eilene Davidson Productions, Mark Gordon Pictures and Cockayne Grants for the Arts.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
