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• War Horse

War Horse - New London Theatre

A compelling story told by an expert group of producers, actors and puppeteers, War Horse is a phenomenon like no other; one that inspires great courage and portrays a world of perilous missions and heart warming passion.

The New London Theatre is the home to the adaptation of Michael Morpurgo’s War Horse, with the Handspring Puppet Company bringing a horse to life on stage and adding an extra depth of spectacle to an already captivating show.

War Horse began its run at the Olivier National Theatre in October 2007, where audience and critical acclaim led to sold out shows and the promise of a West End transfer at the end of its run. Therefore, after 18 months at the National it eventually found its new home of the New London Theatre in April 2009, where it continued to draw in huge crowds and even earn a royal attendance.

The Queen, well known for being a fan of the theatre, arrived alongside Prince Phillip for one performance of the show – much to the surprise of the other audience members who found royalty easing past them to their own seats.

The story of War Horse focuses on Albert and his horse Joey during the First World War. Adapted from the pages of Michael Morpurgo’s book, the production chronicles the relationship between the boy and his animal as a ferocious war spreads across Europe and claims countless lives. Albert loves his horse and is more than disheartened when he is sold off to the cavalry to fight in the war effort. This sets in motion an epic and heart warming adventure that will take the pair to the edges of the war, but before all of this Albert is left alone at home missing Joey terribly. It is this that soon leads him to make a startling decision – to head out into war-torn Europe and bring his friend home, but being too young to enlist and fight this is certain to be a death defying mission.

Whilst Albert hatches his plans to find Joey, the horse has already had an adventure of his own, with many sights passing in front of his eyes. After shipping off to the continent, Joey has been caught in the middle of enemy fire, served on both sides of the battle and eventually found himself all alone in no man’s land.

The novel upon which the show is based first appeared on shelves in 1982, where it soon eyed up a Whitbread Award for that year and was a runner up in the competition. Its compelling story of courage and love was always perfect for the stage and eventually Nick Stafford would take the scripting duties for direction by Marianne Elliot. The result would be a Laurence Olivier Award winning production that would capture the hearts of many.

But none of this would have been possible without the hard work of the Handspring Puppet Company, the South African company responsible for bringing Joey, at various ages over the years, to life onstage. They are true leaders in their field and give the show an extra angle that makes it stand out amongst the rest.