Theatre Review: War Horse at the Alhambra
Marking the centenary year of Armistice Day, the National Theatre continue their second UK tour of War Horse, stopping in Bradford where LEO OWEN caught the show
A white rip mark across the backdrop has designer Rae Smith’s hand-drawn illustrations projected onto it. In a nod towards war artists, Smith depicts scene changes from a picturesque Devon village to war-torn countryside. The passing of the year is shown by projected rain or snow as Michael Morpurgo’s story of horse and boy spans pre- to post-war years both sides of the channel.
Young Albert Narracott (Thomas Dennis) is charged with training race horse Joey into a plough horse to win his bitter father’s bet against his competitive uncle. As Joey is victorious in the ploughing contest, Germany declares war, shown by projected dates/locations.
The call of the cavalry and a substantial compensation fee sees Joey taken off to the front by Lieutenant Nicholls (Ben Ingles) and a devastated Albert left behind too young to legally sign-up. As the war drags and the death toll increases, the demand for soldiers rises and Albert runs off to war in search of Joey.
Smith skilfully manages Morpurgo’s complex flitting between locations and narratives by using additional props suspended from the ceiling, such as door frames, while other props like animal pens are held by cast members. The later inclusion of a tank and canon on stage highlight the mechanisation of war and death of the cavalry. Puppet birds on giant fishing rods create rural scenes and an exceedingly vocal wheel-on goose is used for light-relief. The titular horses are operated by numerous actors, often boasting excellent animal mannerisms themselves.
Directors Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris masterly choreograph battle scenes for maximum empathy. The first front line charge uses all four horse puppets to really highlight the pandemonium of battle as horse and soldier are ripped into pieces, cascaded across the stage in slow-motion. Albert running straight towards the audience into the enemy front line as soldiers around him are picked off one-by-one is also one of the show’s most moving scenes.
Tim Sutton’s music and Rob Bettle’s sound effects complement Rae’s bleak blood-soaked projections, heightening the horrors of war with clamorous instrumentals, including plenty of gunshot jumps. Juxtaposing this, is the inclusion of utilitarian folk songs and accordion solos, reminding us of the impact of the war’s death toll on once peaceful countryside communities.
Michael Morpurgo used a horse’s perspective in his novel to show Joey involuntarily changing sides to humanise “the enemy”. The National Theatre’s adaptation cleverly manages to use this for humour, creating amusing misunderstandings between each nationality as characters repeat the same sentiment without realising, speaking slowly to be understood.
The current theatre trend for puppets orchestrated by visible crew on stage has lost the novelty but watching War Horse it’s easy to see why the Handspring Puppet Company’s work has won awards. Among a large talented ensemble, it is hard to pick out exceptional performances and the more striking do indeed come from those manning the two lead horses, Topthorn and Joey, alongside Peter Becker playing Friedrich Muller. With no weak links; clever use of space depicting sweeping scenes and an emotional but ever-relevant message of peace, it’s not surprising War Horse is on its second run or still receiving standing ovations.
War Horse Shows at the Alhambra 14 February-10 March before continuing its UK tour: https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/shows/war-horse-on-tour
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here