The Phenomenal ‘War Horse’ is back at The Lowry
| 15th June 2018
Peter Becker (Friedrich). Joey & Topthorn.
The opening night of War Horse at Salford’s very own theatre The Lowry, was absolutely breath-taking.
The National Theatre’s Smash-hit phenomenon, which was apart of London’s West end for eight years and has toured to eleven different countries, is currently on its second year of a three-year-long tour of the UK.
The play, famous for its puppets, is based on the adored book by the acclaimed author Michael Morpurgo.
It follows the story of young Albert Narracott (Played by Thomas Dennis– The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Oliver!) and his horse, Joey, who grow up together in the idyllic Devon countryside. Until that is, World War One breaks out and Joey is sold to the British army.
Thomas Dennis (Albert) & Joey.
Everything about the show was outstanding, but undoubtedly the most magnificent part of the show was Joey.
On stage Joey appears as a life-sized moving horse, he even breathes, it’s honestly incredible. The puppet itself, however, is controlled by three people for the different sections of the horse, the head, heart and hind.
The actors who control Joey, there’s three for each section, are the true heroes of the show. Not only are they almost never off stage, they are constantly moving whilst controlling this enormous puppet.
On top of all that they truly embodied their character, which is a little difficult if you’re playing the hind of a horse, but the little actions like moving his ears or feet and making him breathe really brought him to life and gave him a personality.
Thomas Dennis (Albert) & Joey.
However, it wasn’t just Joey, the whole cast and company completely blew everyone away. The unforgettable atmosphere and gripping scenery should most certainly not be missed.
War Horse is the most spectacular piece of theatre I have ever seen. I’d highly recommend seeing it, especially since it is the centenary that marks 100 years since the end of World War one.
It is currently on at The Lowry until the 30th of June.
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