Sherlock Star Louise Brealey to Play Helen of Troy in London's Trojan Women

Sherlock star Louise Brealey will play Helen of Troy, as well as Cassandra and Andromache, in the Gate Theatre’s new adaptation of the ancient Greek drama The Trojan Women. Directed by Christopher Haydon and adapted by poet Caroline Bird, the London production will run November 8 through December 15, with an opening set for November 12.

Joining Brealey are Sam Cox as Menelaus, Jon Foster as Talthybius, Dearbhla Molloy as Hecuba and Lucy Ellinson as Chorus. Olivier Award winner Tamsin Greig and stage and screen star Roger Lloyd Pack will play the Gods Athena and Poseiden, respectively, in a pre-recorded film that forms part of the production.

The Trojan Women begins after the end of the great war. Beyond the prison walls, Troy and its people burn. Inside the prison, the city’s captive women await their fate. Stalking the antiseptic confines of its mother and baby unit is Hecuba, the fallen Trojan queen. But her grief at what has been before will soon be drowned out by the horror of what is to come, as the Greek lust for vengeance consumes every man, woman and baby in its path. This radically adapted version of Euripides’ classic tale explores what happens when the world collapses.

The Trojan Women features set and costume design by Jason Southgate, lighting design by Mark Howland, sound design by Gareth Fry and video design by Iona Firouzabadi.