War Horse - Review

National Theatre, London

*****

Based on the novel by Michael Morpurgo

Adapted by Nick Stafford

Directed by Tom Morris

Revival directed by Katie Henry

The cast of War Horse

London’s South Bank is seeing yet another throughbred equine revival. As Peter Shaffer's Equus plays downstream at the Menier, the National Theatre's Olivier stage welcomes the return of War Horse where it premiered some 20 years ago. Michael Morpurgo’s richly layered yarn about the cruelties of war as seen from the perspective of a Devon-born horse has proved to be one of the National’s most successful productions, having not only toured the globe, but also been translated into a Steven Spielberg movie. Seeing the play back between the Olivier's gaping jaws however is a reminder of just how stunning good storytelling can be when the core narrative is strong and the theatrecraft deployed in its telling, is world class.

War Horse is the simplest of tales. The chestnut foal Joey is trained by a young Albert in a touching relationship of love for the animal and the richness of rural English history. As Joey grows into a full size Hunter, war breaks out and Albert's beloved horse is nefariously sold to the British Army. Albert, too young to sign up, lies about his age and ships out to the French battlefields, dreaming of being reunited with Joey.  Amidst this powerful narrative we are also introduced to another Hunter, Topthorn, with Morpurgo's yarn following the horses and the horrors of war that they are (and in real life, were) forced to endure.

The story's landscape is vast (possibly, in a slightly overlong second-act, too vast dare I say it) but with an enormous company and ingenious projections, the tale is beautifully told.

However, whilst the acting throughout is top-notch, War Horse is famous for the puppetry deployed in (almost literally) bring Joey and Topthorn to life. On the night of this review the three puppeteers animating Joey were Felicity Donnelly, Matthew Lawrence and Lewis McBean, while the team responsible for Topthorn were Rianna Ash, Michael Larcombe and Rafe Young. Toby Sedgwick returns to the production as the Director of Movement and Horse Choreography, and what Sedgwick coaxes from these six talented performers almost defies belief. The visionary genius of the Handspring designed puppets, leaves one gasping at the almost effortlessly realistic portrayal of the horses that these performers create. Theatre, and movement in particular, does not get better than this!

Even more uplifting, again on the night of this review, was to see the packed audience that filled the vast auditorium include a number of school parties. In a world of addictive screen usage and stories endlessly being told via CGI and AI, for these young people to witness such flawless practical theatre and movement being delivered so simply and yet so perfectly, with no digital assistance whatsoever, only added to the evening's beauty.

Runs until 30th July 2026

Photo credit: Brinkhoff-Moegenburg