Puppetry in motion

One of theatre's most moving and innovative creations, the epic War Horse rides back into our city this June. NATALIE BANYARD spoke to Bristol actress Madeleine Leslay about the production's enduring legacy

- 

GET your hankies at the ready as the stunning and heartbreaking international smash hit War Horse gallops back into Bristol.

Based on Michael Morpurgo's moving masterpiece, War Horse has conquered the globe with its breathtaking fusion of powerful drama, stirring music and innovative, awe-inspiring puppetry. Now it returns to The Bristol Hippodrome from next Tuesday (June 3) to June 21.

The tour stars a talented cast of 35, including Bristol actress, Madeleine Leslay.

"I used to go and see shows at the Hippodrome when I was growing up," says Madeleine, who trained at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and the Royal Academy of Music. "I performed there a few times myself when I was young, and dreamed of working there and treading those boards as an adult. So now I am beyond excited to bring War Horse to Bristol."

Morpurgo's best-selling novel War Horse tells the remarkable story of a young boy called Albert and his horse Joey, set against the backdrop of the First World War.

Published in 1982, it wasn't until the mid 2000s that the author received a call from former Bristol Old Vic artistic director Tom Morris, who was then associate director at the National Theatre, to say he was looking for a project involving South Africa's ground-breaking Handspring Puppet Company, and that he would love for that project to be War Horse.

The rest, as they say, is history, with the show winning more than 25 major awards and thrilling over 8.3 million people worldwide.

At the outbreak of the First World War, Joey, young Albert's beloved horse, is sold to the Cavalry and shipped to France. He's soon caught up in enemy fire, and fate takes him on an extraordinary journey, serving on both sides before finding himself alone in no man's land.