Brie Larson to make West End debut in Greek tragedy ‘Elektra’

Oscar winning actress Brie Larson (Room, Captain Marvel, Lessons in Chemistry) will make her West End debut in a new revival of “Elektra”, translated by Canadian poet Anne Carson. 

No, not Daredevil’s highly trained assassin adversary / love interest, but the central character from Sophocles’ Greek tragedy who gives her name to the neo-Freudian Electra complex which deals with a girl’s psychosexual competition with her mother for the possession of her father. 

Sophocles’ play, set after the Trojan War in the city of Argos, follows a young woman, Electra / Elektra, and her brother Orestes as they seek vengeance for the murder of their father Agamemnon by his wife Clytemnestra and the childrens’ stepfather Aegisthus. 

Helmed by New York-based director Daniel Fish (“White Nose”, “Oklahoma!” – which won the Tony Award for Best Musical Revival in 2019 on Broadway before transferring to the West End where it won the Oliver Award for Best Musical Revival in 2023), the new production will begin at the Theatre Royal Brighton next year, from 13-18 January, before moving to the Duke of York’s Theatre in London for a limited 11-week season from 24 January 2025. 

“I couldn’t be more excited to perform in this Greek drama, or in better company collaborating with Daniel Fish and Anne Carson,” Larson said. “Storytelling has always been the way I organize life, feelings, and experiences. I look forward to sharing space with the wonderful West End audience while we explore this timeless story.”

The 34-year-old actress won the Oscar for Best Actress in 2016 for her performance in the survival psychological drama film Room, adapted from Emma Donoghue’s novel and directed by Lenny Abrahamson. Her recent role in Apple TV+ series Lessons In Chemistry, based on the book by Bonnie Garmus, earned her two Emmy nominations, as well as Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild acting nods. She has not appeared on stage since 2010, when she played Emily in a production of “Our Town”. 

“Elektra” is produced by Empire Street Productions, who most recently produced “Slave Play” at The Noël Coward Theatre starring Kit Harrington and Olivia Washington as well as “Prima Facie” starring Jodie Comer at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London and John Golden Theatre in New York. 

Additional sources • Deadline