At the outbreak of World War One, Joey, young Albert Narracott’s beloved horse that he has reared from a foal, is sold by his father to the Cavalry and shipped to France. He’s soon caught up in enemy fire, and fate takes him on an extraordinary journey, serving on both sides before finding himself alone in no man’s land. Albert, who remained on his parents’ Devon farm, cannot forget Joey. Though still not old enough to enlist he embarks on a treacherous mission to find him and bring him home.

I first saw War Horse around three years ago.  It was one of the first non musicals I’d seen at the theatre and nothing could have prepared me for how deeply I would fall in love with a production.  My dad was my +1 for the evening and when the show finished we were both on our feet, hands stinging from clapping with such vigour and mascara half way on my cheeks.  It was truly one of those theatre-gasm moments.  You know the kind.  Where you tune out the rest of the audience and no matter how much you need the toilet (damn that second glass of wine) you just can’t bring yourself to take your eyes away from the stage.  I laughed, I cried, I jumped at fake gunshots…. and I bloody loved every second of it.  So much so, that it’s still to this day quite possibly the best thing I’ve ever seen on stage.

Bold claims?  This is why you should catch it whilst it’s on stage.

The awards speak for themselves

If you don’t believe the standing ovations from audiences night after night, the rave online reviews and me trying to hide my watery eyes in public, War Horse has picked up many (many) awards including Best Director, Best Choreographer, Best Lighting Design, Best Sound Design, Best Set Design and Most Popular Show.

The puppetry is incredible

What sets War Horse aside from any other show is how they manage to bring breathing, galloping, charging horses to life on stage.  These puppets are no Avenue Q style puppets.  Life size puppets, designed and built using cane, leather and tyvec (a material used in bookbinding) by Handspring Puppet Company, Joey and 7 the other horses (including Topthorne) in the show are brought to life through clever horse choreography from Toby Sedgwick and the skill of three puppeteers who make up the head, heart and hind.   It’s the twitch of an ear, a snort, a gallop, a swish of the tail… these small are all what allow you to see past the exterior and view Joey as a real life horse.  The magic of theatre, eh?

The staging is simple, but effective

Aside from a simple suspended screen used to timestamp the production and set the scenery through exquisite line drawings from Rae Smith, the stage is bare.  There’s no fancy staging or ever changing sets.  This stage is brought to life through the actors, puppets, props, various farmyard animals (including a particularly cheeky goose) and the clever use of lighting and audio.  Keep your all singing, all dancing, bright lights and glittery staging, the battle scenes of War Horse are executed exquisitely despite the simplicity.

It’s captivating from start to finish

Prepare to lose yourself in this show.  The way I know that I’m truly enjoying a performance is when I’m absolutely lost in the production and during War Horse, I didn’t even touch my glass of wine (I know, hard to believe, eh?).  When a show completely absorbs me, the realms of entertainment become magical and for me that is exactly what War Horse is, magical. I, along with the rest of the audience were enthralled from the moment the first act began on the interval we left wanting more.

It’s rooted in history

We can’t forget that although a play, War Horse, gives an opportunity for the audience to reflect on the real life magnitude of loss in the First World War.  Not only were ten million military ­lost between 1914 and 1918, eight ­million horses also lost their lives, a million of which (like Joey) were British.

The show made Steven Spielberg produce the film

Telling the story of the Great War from the horse-eye view of Joey, the 1982 novel of the same name from Michael Morpurgo was adapted for stage in 2007 by Nick Stafford.  Despite Morpurgo’s claims that Stafford “must be mad” for adapting the book, the show was so successful in the West End and Broadway that when Kathy Kennedy (Steven Spielberg’s producer) saw the play in New London Theatre, she was so blown away that she rang Spielberg straight away and within a year shooting of the film was underway.

You’ll regret it if you don’t

I beg of you, if you watch one show this year, make it War Horse. 

From the tear jerking storyline, the realistic portrayal of equestrienne on stage, the spine tingling scenes from within the trenches… everything about War Horse makes it utter perfection and a pleasure (if not a teary pleasure) to watch.

War Horse will be showing at Regent Theatre until the 6th April, book your tickets online or via the Box Office.

Under 25 and want to watch War Horse?  You’re in luck!  There are £10 tickets are available for the evening performances on the 1st, 2nd and 4th April!  Tickets can be booked at the Box Office counter or by calling 0844 871 7649 and quoting U26.