Theatre Review - War Horse

War Horse

Adapted by Nick Stafford

Directed by Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris

Where: Lincoln Center Theater at the Vivian Beaumont, New York, NY

When: Saturday, December 29, 8pm

I was not a fan at all of the film version of War Horse, so I'm not quite sure what possessed me to even think about seeing War Horse on the Broadway stage.  Admittedly, the five 2011 Tony wins (including Best Play) had something to do with venturing to see it as did the uniqueness of the puppetry aspect of the production (as did the relatively cheap $50 seats).  I probably should have known better.  This thing is loved by many -- heck it's been running since April 14, 2011 -- but you can't overcome a story that just doesn't connect with you and War Horse definitely doesn't do a thing for me.

Maybe it's because I grew up in a pet-less family, but I've never felt a real strong connection to animals.  Call me callous, but I never want a pet.  It's too much hassle and too much money to spend on a non-human entity.  Therefore, I find it really difficult to understand the emotional connection teenage Albert Narracott has with his newly bought horse Joey (brought to life in puppet form by Hunter Canning, Brian Lee Hunyh, and Hannah Sloat as a foal, and by Leah Hoffman, Tom Lee, and Isaac Woofter when full-grown).  As Joey gets sold to the army by Albert's father in order to aid the British in WWI, I had no emotional reaction...and I think I was supposed to.  As the horse goes through trials of its own during the war, I simply didn't give a damn when it got caught in barbed wire, as an example.  Ultimately, this lack of emotional connection with the story just doesn't permit me to become involved in this tale in a way that I think is absolutely necessary in order to enjoy this piece of theater.

Visually, the stage at the Lincoln Center Theater at the Vivian Beaumont was sparse which allowed for the exquisite puppetry work to really stand out.  The horses were neat and were surprisingly lifelike in their movements.  Unfortunately, the humans playing humans in the cast sometimes left a bit to be desired, particularly Andrew Durand who plays Albert.  I couldn't help but think of Pinky from Pinky and the Brain whenever he spoke and I wanted his whiny British voice to yell "Narf!" at some point just to keep me awake.

And keeping me awake was difficult in this one.  I've never faded in a live Broadway show before...until now.  Granted, it was at the end of a long day of walking through the city and I'd just had a heavy, though delicious, meal at a nice Brazilian restaurant named Brasilina in Hell's Kitchen, but I kept closing my eyes and not wanting to open them back up throughout this one.  I never actually went to sleep, but as I sat in the last row of the theater (which had no detrimental effect on the experience as I don't think there's a bad seat in the house in this theater), I could've drifted away so easily.

War Horse is closing up shop on January 6, so if there's any desire on your part to see it on Broadway, you've got very little time left.  I'm not sure why you'd want to subject yourself to it, but if you're a glutton for punishment, it's there for you.