If you’re anything like me, it might be that all you know about War Horse is that it’s about war and involves horse puppets. And when you hear “horse puppets” you think… ummm… how does that work?! Well, this image will help you picture it:
The three people you see with each horse are puppet masters bringing the horses to life on stage, not separate characters in the show. For me, that took a little getting used to. But once I did, I was engrossed. It’s remarkable how they can make the puppets mimic real horses with the slightest of movements.
The two horses pictured are central to the story. I mean, it ain’t called War Horse for nothing! The story is based on a 1982 novel of the same name, about a young man called Albert and his horse Joey who live in country England. Albert’s father sells Joey to the British cavalry at the start of WWI and eventually, having lied about his age, Albert heads off to war too.
No spoilers about what happens but this is a beautiful story and very moving. That said, contrary to my usual blubbering style, I didn’t actually cry during this. The same cannot be said for the person I took along to the premiere and many of the people sitting around us, though.
War Horse is running at the newly renovated* Regent Theatre in Melbourne until 8 February and then heads to Sydney and Perth. Tickets start from around $60. Get all the details here.
*The seats are super comfortable and remarkably there’s plenty of leg room. Amazing!