Awe-Inspiring Puppetry for a Deeply Human Story: Reviewing 'War Horse', Galloping Across the UK on Tour

★★★★ | From the second I stepped into the Lowry Theatre in Salford, the National Theatre’s touring production of War Horse sparked nostalgia I had long forgotten about. The last time I had visited the venue was on a childhood day out to watch a touring West End musical as it made a fleeting trip up North. Observing audience members of all ages shuffle into the stalls last night, eager to watch Michael Morpurgo’s celebrated novel War Horse come alive onstage, I became tenderly aware that lasting memories were being made all around me.

That is all to the credit of the spectacle that is the National Theatre’s enlivened production of War Horse. This poignant play – acclaimed for its use of complex puppetry – is truly a feast for the senses.

The first 45 minutes of the play paint a pastoral scene of rural Devon in 1912; against the backdrop of folk songs and rolling hills, a close bond forms between farm boy Albert (Tom Sturgess) and his riding horse, Joey. The play picks up momentum towards the interval, when Joey is sold to the army by Albert’s father. The second half follows Joey and Albert’s harrowing individual journeys as an army horse and soldier, respectively, during the First World War.

The company of War Horse. Photo Credit: Brinkhoff-Mögenburg

The Handspring Puppet Company’s work is the real star of this production, which the audience is first introduced to in the form of young Joey (puppeteered by Diany Samba-Bandza, Jordan Paris and Eloise Beaumont-Wood). The puppet foal is unexpectedly full of personality and is soon upgraded into the impressive, 7.5 foot tall puppet of fully-grown Joey (puppeteered by Rianna Ash, Chris Milford and Thomas Goodridge).

A second horse, Topthorn (puppeteered by Matthew Lawrence, Rafe Young and Felicity Donnelly), is introduced as a mighty black army horse, hostile at first before becoming Joey’s close companion as both animals face life on the front lines. This is animal theatrics at its finest; the horses’ movements and personality-filled gestures are uncannily natural. One need not be an equestrian expert to recognise the detailed behavioural accuracy that the puppets display, from twitching ears and skittish movements to their powerful rearing stances in battle.

Our title creatures charge upon enemy troops in visually spectacular scenes, aided by a powerful score fit for a mighty epic. The staging of this production is also deeply moving, yet careful, in its handling of the sensitivity that the First World War calls for. One early scene in Act Two involves scattered shrapnel and half-complete puppets of men and horses, a sight that is striking but never gory. It serves as a graceful reminder of all those whose lives were shattered by the fighting.

The company of War Horse. Photo Credit: Brinkhoff-Mögenburg

At the heart of this play is an ode to the “little man”, as characters on both sides of the war are treated with compassion. Alexander Ballinger gives an emotional performance as the German soldier Friedrich, who remorses over the innocent men – and animals – who are killed “when Kings and Kaisers” wage wars. Albert, played by Tom Sturgess, is a compelling lead; he is a “spirited” young farm boy whose confidence blossoms alongside the growing horse, making for an unlikely hero that the audience cannot help but root for.

As the auditorium lights return at curtain call, it is difficult to spot a dry eye in the house. Beyond the unsurprisingly tear-jerking plot, Tom Morris and Katie Henry’s direction makes for an intelligent and charming production in all aspects. From the play’s use of projected sketches to the witty quips about how the English, German and French soldiers would have struggled to understand one another, the production was brilliantly simple – making it coherent for all age groups.

War Horse delivers all that you could desire from a theatrical rendition of every primary school teacher’s favourite book: a heartwarming tale of human courage in the midst of war and love. An ideal play for the whole family, Morpurgo’s story is an important reminder of the heartbreaking, oft-forgotten realities faced by those who lived through the tragic First World War. 

★★★★