War Of The Worlds Review: imitating the dog's style is disorienting yet intriguing
- Jack Davey
- 9 hours ago
- 3 min read
05 February 2026 I 19:30 I Cast, Doncaster
⭐⭐⭐ I PR - Invite
H. G. Wells' sci-fi novel The War Of The Worlds is no stranger to the stage, between Jeff Wayne's musical arena tour and London's immersive experience. Making its international touring debut in Doncaster, theatre practitioners imitating the dog reimagine the apocalyptic tale with miniature environments and camera footage, both live and recorded. This multimedia offering is suitably futuristic, though at times overstimulating in an ambitious vision.
The world is in a state of terror, even from the outset of the play, as Martian life forms invade from the skies. Civilians are prepared to do anything and everything to protect their own, homes laid in ruin. Having never experienced the story before, the genre and atmosphere is immediately clear, delivered by a cast of four performers.
Abby Clarke's stage design consists of two walls with CGI projections, a drop-down live video screen in the centre and two miniature dioramas in which wider, abstract scenes can be filmed. The entire play is designed to be watched on the screen above the performers (see images), recommended to sit further back to avoid neck-ache. You find yourself wanting to watch both the final product and the 'making of' happening on the stage below, each vying for your focus.
Largely following the journey of the narrator, Gareth Cassidy's pivotal role is both engrossing and believable, that only few performers could accomplish. Hyper-aware of his camera presence, his facial subtleties and microexpressions allow us to enter the narrator's head in such a surreal way. Imitating the act of driving, combat and reacting to imaginary threats, Cassidy's intensity gives audiences the room to believe in the fiction.
While the adaptation, for the most part, runs like a well-oiled machine, there is very little of substance to Wells' original novel, tonight's script written by Pete Brooks and Andrew Quick. Repetitive plot lines with nothing at stake, other than persistently trying to escape danger, leaves the story too static to have an impact. Perhaps due to the play's maximalist nature, the language used isn't adventurous enough to match other scenes of spectacle.
Brooks and Quick's direction however is radically inspiring, choreographed within an inch of its life to ensure each actor is positioned perfectly. Some camera angles may shake or be off-centred, however it sustains the charm of found-footage disaster movies (take Cloverfield, for example).
All of the props used in the production, from Marathon chocolate bars to pistols and bricks, are 2D cut-outs. With scribbles and pencil accents, they benefit from an animated appearance, creating a video-game illusion. Supporting actors/camera operators give commendable performances, multi-rolling an eccentric variety of roles. Highly theatrical delivery can appear slightly jarring on the screen, cautious of giving these characters a hollow, NPC-style finish.
I have such a high admiration for multimedia theatre, and War Of The Worlds makes no exception. Dominated by Simon Wainwright's video designs, imitating the dog's style is disorienting yet intriguing, experimenting with many visual effects to keep the audience's attention. Although not the company's strongest work, I would encourage many to watch this adaptation as a total reinvention of live performance. Recommended 14+ for frightening and intense scenes.
Content Warnings, Information & International Tour Tickets: https://www.imitatingthedog.co.uk/project/war-of-the-worlds/