Theater Review: War Horse

Remarkable Work Brands a Hoofprint on Your Heart and Gallops Away With Your Soul
By Lauren Yarger
Every once in a while, we’re treated to a rare experience on the stage that transports us out of our theater seats and into the action and hearts of the story. Lincoln Center Theatre’s production the National Theatre of Great Britain’s hit War Horse is such a gift.

Amazing puppetry designed by Adrian Kohler and Basil Jones for Handspring Puppet Company, Celtic sounding music (Adrian Sutton), perfect set design (Rae Smith), skillful direction (Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris) and dynamic performances combine to create an unforgettable and moving experience. So engaging is the story adapted by Nick Stafford from Michael Morpurgo’s children’s book War Horse, that at intermission I wanted to cry out, “No, don’t stop!” and when it was all over, I wanted to go back and see the two-hour-and-45-minute production all over again.

The War Horse is “Joey,” a Hunter (part draft, part Thoroughbred), won at auction by Ted Narracott (Boris McGiver) who uses his mortgage money to outbid his hated brother, Arthur (T. Ryder Smith), who still enjoys taunting him, along with the rest of their 1912 Devon, England village, for being a coward and refusing to serve in the last war.

He brings the little foal home, but his wife, Rose (Alyssa Bresnahan) isn’t impressed. She’ll have to make things right with the bankers. Their son, Albert (Seth Numrich) is charged with the animal’s care and turning him into an adult horse that the family might be able to sell for a price to recoup some of the exorbitant amount paid for him.

Albert and Joey find soul mates in each other, however, and when the time comes to sell the beautiful, free-spirited horse, the boy can’t bear the thought of being parted from him. They “speak” to each other and Albert calls Joey with a special whistle. Arthur, however, sees another chance to do his brother harm. He bets him that Joey can’t be taught to plow a field in one week, putting up the horse’s original auction price as stakes. If Joey can’t plow, Arthur will win the horse for his own son, Billy (Matt Doyle). Ted accepts the bet.

Albert agrees to try to train the horse with one condition: if Joey plows, the horse will be his and they won’t have to sell him. Ted gives his word and Rose, ever supportive of her son, takes on the boy’s farm chores so he can work nonstop on the seemingly impossible mission. She’s the rock that keeps the family together and she passes love and a resilient spirit on to her son. He, in turn, passes these on to Joey. The terms of the agreement become moot, however, when England enters World War I and Ted sells Joey behind Albert’s back to the Army.

Lt. James Nicholls (Stephen Plunkett) loves the horse too and assures Albert he will care for him as they go off to France to front to fight the Kaiser. There they find that the Calvary is almost obsolete in the face of new inventions like the machine gun and barbed wire. During the years ahead, Joey touches the lives of a number of people on both sides of the war, seemingly sharing with them the love and spirit that Albert had given him. All the while, Albert searches through battle fields and war-torn villages in the hopes of finding the horse he loves.

The battle sequences are amazing, as are the movements of the horses, each controlled by three puppeteers who blend so seamlessly into the action that you’d swear there are live horses prancing on the stage. The foal puppet was so mesmerizing, in fact, that when it first appeared on stage I never even noticed a cast of more than 20 who had joined it on stage (there are 35 in the ensemble).

On one level, the story is a simple children’s tale, but on another it is much more. The relationship between Rose and Albert is endearing and messages about the ravages of war, the common desire of all mankind to live peacefully, and the question of just who the enemy really is all come into play.

War Horse is thoroughly engaging, very human, though it’s about a horse, and before it’s all done, there isn’t a dry eye in the house. Don’t walk, canter or even trot – break into full gallop to get tickets to this one.

War Horse plays at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre, 150 West 65th St., NYC. Tickets are available at 212-239-6200 or visit http://www.lct.org/showMain.htm?id=199.

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