Cate Blanchett and Nina Hoss to alternate roles in Electra / Persona – with full National Theatre casting revealed

The National Theatre has released first-look rehearsal images and confirmed casting for Benedict Andrews’ new play Electra/Persona, which receives its world premiere in the Lyttelton Theatre later this month.

Written and directed by Andrews, the production combines Sophocles’ Electra with Ingmar Bergman’s Persona, exploring identity and the relationship between performer and role.

Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett and Nina Hoss will alternate the roles of Electra/Elisabeth and Clytemnestra/Alma throughout the run. They are joined by Ella Lily Hyland as Chrysothemis/Reader and Patrick Robinson as Aegisthus/Husband.

The understudies are Peter Eastland (Aegisthus/Husband), Frankie Lipman (Chrysothemis/Reader), Celia Nelson (Clytemnestra/Alma) and Natalie Thomas (Electra/Elisabeth).

The production is described as follows: “During a performance of Electra, an actress suddenly falls silent. What follows is a rupture: two women drawn into an intense, unsettling encounter where speech breaks down and the boundaries between self and role give way.”

The creative team includes set designer Magda Willi, costume designer Merle Hensel, composer Hildur Guðnadóttir, lighting designer Jon Clark, sound designer Brendan Aanes, video designer Ash J Woodward, fight and intimacy directors Rachel Bown-Williams and Ruth Cooper-Brown of Rc-Annie Ltd, casting director Alastair Coomer, voice coach Cathleen McCarron, associate director Danica Selem, music associate Deanna H Choi, associate lighting designer Skylar Turnbull Hurd and staff director Oliver Hurst.

Electra/Persona runs in the Lyttelton Theatre from 19 August to 10 October 2026, with a press night on 1 September.