(Joey and Topthorn
square off. 2011 London Cast. Photos by Brinkhoff/Mögenburg)
Any follower of South Africa’s renowned Handspring Puppet
Company will be delighted to hear that War
Horse, the phenomenal award winning UK stage production comes to South
Africa towards the end of this year.
The global theatre phenomenon, War Horse will be making its South African première later this
year, beginning with a season at The Teatro at Montecasino in Johannesburg in
October before transferring to the Artscape Opera House in Cape Town in
December.
War Horse will be
presented in South Africa by Pieter Toerien, Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) and The
National Theatre of Great Britain, in association with Handspring Puppet
Company. The production has been seen by over five million people worldwide
since its opening at the National Theatre in 2007. During its successful run on
Broadway, it received five Tony Awards, plus a special Tony Award for
Handspring Puppet Company.
Says Pieter Toerien, "I fell in love with War Horse when it first opened at the
National Theatre in London nearly seven years ago. The brilliant actors and the
genius of South Africa’s Handspring Puppet Company made War Horse an absolutely extraordinary evening in the theatre. I was
determined to bring it to our audience so a dream is about to come true for
me”.
Chris Harper, the producer of War Horse said: "The design, artistry and craftsmanship of
Basil Jones and Adrian Kohler and everyone at Handspring Puppet Company has
delighted War Horse audiences around
the world. Every single puppet used in the show was hand-crafted in Cape Town
at Handspring’s puppet factory, and it is only fitting that they are returning
to the country where they were created, to be enjoyed by South African
audiences."
War Horse is the
powerful story of a young boy called Albert and his beloved horse, Joey, who
has been requisitioned to fight for the British in World War I. Caught in enemy
crossfire, Joey ends up serving on both sides during the war before landing in
No Man’s Land, while Albert, not old enough to enlist, embarks on a treacherous
mission to find his horse and bring him home. A remarkable tale of courage,
loyalty and friendship, War Horse
features groundbreaking puppetry work by South Africa’s Handspring Puppet
Company, which brings breathing and galloping horses to life on stage.
Based on a novel by Michael Morpurgo, who has written over
100 books and was Children’s Laureate from 2003 to 2005, War Horse has been beautifully adapted by Nick Stafford. The production
is directed by Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris, designed by Rae Smith, lighting
is by Paule Constable and movement and horse choreography by Toby Sedgwick. The
puppet design and puppetry directors are Basil Jones and Adrian Kohler, with
video design by 59 Productions Ltd, song-making by John Tams, music by Adrian
Sutton and sound by Christopher Shutt.
War Horse is in
its sixth successful year in London’s West End, on a major tour of North
America, is running in Berlin (in German and called Gefährten) and is on a
sell-out tour of the UK and Ireland. A new production will open in Amsterdam in
June as part of the Holland Festival and then tour to five Cities in the
Netherlands in September.
War Horse is
produced by the National Theatre of Great Britain - www.warhorseonstage.com
Booking is through Computicket.
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