Carrie's War

The adventures of a group of evacuee children in Second World War Wales form the basis of Andrew Loudon’s production of Nina Bawden’s classic children’s book, Carrie’s War. Painstakingly transferred to the stage, this production is theatrical testament to the enduring popularity of Bawden’s much-loved story of growing up in a world at war.

Beginning in the 1970s, Carrie’s War follows the grown-up Carrie (Sarah Edwardson) and her son (James Byng) as they revisit the small Welsh village to which she was evacuated during the Second World War. But Carrie’s return resurrects her deep-seated feelings of guilt about a past action, and catapults her straight back into the events that surrounded her seemingly terrible deed and her time staying with Auntie Lou (Hannah Waterman).

Carrie’s War has twice been adapted for TV (in 1974 and 2004) since its publication in 1973, but this production marks the first time that Bawden’s seminal evacuee story has been adapted for the stage. Inspired by Bawden’s own evacuation to Aberdare in South Wales, the novel provides a somewhat nostalgic and innocent portrait of life during WWII, seen through the eyes of children.

Adapted by Emma Reeves, Carrie’s War has been seamlessly and gracefully brought to the stage, and to a new generation of theatregoers who might have not read the original text. Edward Lipscomb’s striking set manages to recreate all of the many scenes in the novel without substantial changes, allowing the story to flow freely and easily; it moves effortlessly from scene to scene, much like reading a book. Featuring a cast of talented actors, this is a highly energised and blissfully childlike production that allows the audience to experience some of the domestic realities of Britain at war - the rationing and suspicion towards outsiders, like the evacuees and the visiting American soldiers. But the message that stands out from Loudon’s production is the sense of camaraderie and community that connects each character and drives them to care for one another in what was a truly unique and exceptional time in recent history.