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From the original EQUUS, Peter Shaffer :
The Horses
The actors wear track-suits of chestnut velvet. On their feet are light strutted hooves, four inches high, set on metal-shoes. On their hands are gloves of the same color. On their heads are tough masks made of alternating bands of silver wire and leather; their eyes are outlines by leather blinkers. The actors' own heads are seen beneath them: no attempt should be made to conceal them. Any literalism which could suggest the cosy familiarity of a domestic animal -- or worse, a pantomime horse -- should be avoided. The actors should never crouch on all fours, or even bend forward. They must always -- except on the occasion that Nugget is ridden -- stand upright, as if the body of the horse extended invisibly behind them. Animal effect must be created entirely mimetically, through the use of legs, knees, neck, face, and the turn of the head which can move the mask above it through all the gestures of equine wariness and pride. Great care must be taken that the masks are put on before the audience with very precise timing -- the actors watching each other, so that the masking has an exact and ceremonial effect.
