The Old Vic: Milly Alcock Will Lead Rebecca Frecknall's Julie in April

Milly Alcock will play the title role in Julie at the Old Vic in London from April, the theatre announced on 10 November. The production is a contemporary new version of August Strindberg's Miss Julie, adapted and directed by Old Vic associate director Rebecca Frecknall, and it sits in the first season programmed by the new artistic director, Rupert Goold.

Variety, which also reported the casting, said the play is due to open on 10 April and run through May. Public booking opens on Monday 16 November, according to the Old Vic, with priority booking for higher tier members already under way.

A Classic Recast for Now

Strindberg wrote Miss Julie in Swedish in 1888, and it remains one of the most staged plays in the European repertoire. It follows the daughter of an aristocratic household who is drawn to one of her father's married servants over the course of a single night.

The Old Vic's own description of Julie keeps that frame. On the night of her 21st birthday party, Julie stumbles into the kitchen and seeks out her father's employees, John and Christine. In the theatre's words, one room becomes a battlefield of class and sexual politics, and a reckless flirtation turns into a merciless contest.

This version did not begin in London. It was originally produced by Internationaal Theater Amsterdam, and the Old Vic has now announced an ongoing artistic partnership with that company, covering co produced work and an exchange of artists and emerging practitioners.

Why the Casting Is News

Alcock is best known to television audiences for House of the Dragon and, more recently, for the title role in Supergirl. Variety noted that Julie is the first new project she has been attached to since Supergirl was released this year, a film it described as having received mixed reviews.

She is not new to the London stage. Variety recalled that she appeared in a 2023 production of The Crucible at the National Theatre. Returning to a classic stage role after a studio superhero film is a well worn route for screen actors who want to stretch, and it keeps her in front of London audiences.

For the Old Vic, the casting gives Goold's opening season a recognisable name for younger audiences. That matters to the theatre's new ticketing plans, which are aimed squarely at people under 30.

The Rest of Goold's First Season

Julie is one of four main house productions announced so far. From January, Damian Lewis will star as Henry V in a new production of Shakespeare's history play directed by Goold. From June, Goold will direct Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman's musical Assassins. In August, Arinzé Kene will perform Kohlhaas, a one man show adapted from the novella Michael Kohlhaas and directed by Omar Elerian.

Goold said he was thrilled to present a first season that speaks to the theatre's history of classical theatre, European repertoire and musical revivals. He added that he hoped his Old Vic would draw on the theatre's legacy of sensational acting in groundbreaking and accessible productions.

The theatre also named three directors, Sara Aniqah Malik, Yasmin Hafesji and Roberta Zuric, for its first season in the Greene Studio, which will be announced in early 2027.

Tickets for Younger Theatregoers

The most practical news for many readers is a new scheme called Old Vic New Rush. From this season, people under 30 can buy front row tickets for £20 for the first five previews of every main house show, the theatre said. A limited number of Rush tickets will be released two weeks before the first preview, on a first come, first served basis, and eligible theatregoers can sign up on the Old Vic website.

For a production led by an actress with a large screen following, those previews may be the hardest seats to get. Anyone hoping to see Julie early would be wise to register well before April.

What We Know and What We Do Not

The confirmed details are the casting, the director, the April start, the Amsterdam origin of the adaptation and the opening of public booking on 16 November. The Old Vic has not yet announced the actors who will play John and Christine, and full creative team details for Julie have not been published.

Alcock has not given an interview about the role so far, and there has been no word on whether the production will travel after its London run. For now, it is one of the more intriguing spring tickets in the capital. Follow Duchess Magazine for more on the women taking centre stage in London and beyond.