1536

About the show

The year is 1536. Three friends, Anna, Mariella and Jane, meet in a field in Essex. Here, they can talk undisturbed: about Anna and her many male admirers; about Mariella and how she hates her job as a midwife; about Jane’s existence as an obedient daughter waiting for her father to arrange her marriage. But today, something is different. Jane has heard a rumour from far-away London: Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII, has reportedly been arrested and taken to the Tower of London. The friends are certain this must be a piece of misinformation or a misunderstanding. And yet, a few days later, the rumour is confirmed and Anne Boleyn is charged with having been unfaithful to the King – with five different men, including her own brother. Anna and Mariella are convinced the accusations are a fabrication. Jane, however, believes the men in the village who think that Anne Boleyn is now going to get exactly what she deserves. There are perceptible changes in the men’s behaviour: They, too, begin to act with increasing audacity and lack of inhibition. At the same time, tensions arise among the three friends who are all trying, in their own way, to navigate the rules imposed on women by society – and, in doing so, find themselves drawn into ever-deepening conflicts with one another. Ava Pickett’s play portrays the complexities of female friendship and the difficulty of showing solidarity in a repressive society. What impact do the actions of those with political power have on the everyday lives of the people? And how much has actually changed for women in the 500 years that have passed since 1536? British director Jaz Woodcock-Stewart, who was invited to the Theatertreffen in 2026 with her Basle production of .The Glass Menagerie., is directing the German-language premiere of this play from 2025. It is her first production at Schaubühne.