Writing Art History Since 2002

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Handspring Puppet Company’s Award-winning International Stage Production comes to South Africa.

 
War Horse will make a South African première later this year for a season at Montecasino’s Teatro in Johannesburg (October/November), before transferring to Artscape’s Opera in Cape Town (December).
 
war horse
Photograph by Simon Annand.
 
Pieter Toerien, Rand Merchant Bank and The National Theatre of Great Britain, in association with Handspring Puppet Company bring home the production. Ironically the show makes a return to Cape Town despite never having played here. That’s because ‘every single puppet used in War Horse is hand-crafted by Handspring Puppet Company in Cape Town, so bringing the show to South Africa is a particularly special moment in the history of this show.’ London producer, Chris Harper.
 
The production has been seen by nearly 5 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.  It was the longest running show in Toronto and recently toured Australia.  It is now in its sixth successful year in London’s West End, on a major tour of North America, is running in Berlin (German language version, Gefährten) and is on a sell-out tour of the UK and Ireland.  A new production will open in Amsterdam in June and tour the Netherlands.
 
“I fell in love with War Horse when it first opened at the National Theatre in London nearly 7 years ago. The brilliant actors and the genius of the 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.” Pieter Toerien, South African theatre impresario.
 
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 ground-breaking puppetry work by South Africa’s Handspring Puppet Company, which brings breathing and galloping horses to life on stage.
 
Rand Merchant Bank unashamedly celebrates and rewards exceptional talent. Their 32-year-old business philosophy of Traditional Values, Innovative Ideas, supports creative and intellectual excellence.
 
22 Oct – 30 Nov 2014 Teatro de Montecasino, Johannesburg
5 Dec 2014 – 4 Jan 2015 Artscape Opera, Cape Town\
 
R100 – R450 online via Computicket, the Call Centre (Mon-Sat 8am-8pm, Public Holidays 9am-2pm) 0861-915-8000 – Option 2, or for Group Bookings:
JNB: (9am-5pm, Mon-Fri) Geraldine Swanepoel 011-511-1988 geraldine@montetheatre.co.za
CPT: (9am-5pm, Mon-Fri) Tracy Cahill 021-438-3301 (option 2) tracy@theatreonthebay.co.za
 
Text and image copyright © 2014 Handspring Puppet Company & Handspring Trust, All rights reserved.
 

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