War Horse is a play based on the book of the same name by writer Michael Morpurgo, adapted for stage by Nick Stafford.

Ted is the local drunkard and thought to be a coward, for refusing to have fought together with his brother in the earlier Boer War in South Africa.

When a shell kills most of his comrades, Friedrich switches his coat and identity with an enlisted medic, hoping to survive to return home.

As Friedrich mourns the horse, a tank attack hits his group, killing him and causing Joey to flee in escape.

Behind the lines, in a British encampment, Albert tells his story to a nurse just as the damaged Joey is brought to the camp by soldiers.

[3] War Horse transferred to the West End's Gillian Lynne Theatre, beginning preview performances on 28 March 2009, prior to an official opening of 3 April.

[9] On 12 October 2009 the performance was seen by HM Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip, marking their first private theatre visit in four years.

The production was scheduled to have a limited run, closing on 26 June 2011, but soon became open-ended after strong critical reception and ticket sales.

The first non-English-language production, entitled Gefährten (which loosely translates to Comrades, not coincidentally the same name given to the German release of Steven Spielberg's film),[31] launched in Berlin, Germany, on 20 October 2013 at the Stage Theater des Westens.

The South African premiere of War Horse (billed in some media as a 'homecoming'[36]) opened at the Teatro at Montecasino in Johannesburg on 22 October 2014, and played through to 30 November 2014.

The South African tour concluded with a transfer to Cape Town's Artscape Opera House on 12 December, where it ran until 4 January 2015.

[37] A Chinese adaptation of War Horse, entitled 战马, was announced in late 2014, directed by Alex Sims and Li Dong, and fully translated into Mandarin.

[42] A third UK tour will commence at the New Wimbledon Theatre in London in September 2024, playing there for the first time, before returning to Salford, Southampton, Canterbury, Sunderland, Plymouth and Oxford.

[44] Steven Spielberg directed the United States movie adaptation of War Horse, released on 25 December 2011, with a screenplay written by Richard Curtis and Lee Hall based on the novel.

[45] The film was shot entirely in England: in Devon, at Stratfield Saye in Berkshire, Wisley in Surrey, the Luton Hoo Estate in Bedfordshire, and at Castle Combe in Wiltshire.

It was filmed naturalistically, with over 100 real horses (including 14 to portray Joey)[46] and computer-generated imagery to support battle scenes.

The sketch features a British couple (played by Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig) attending a regional production of War Horse.

Instead of a life-size horse puppet, the role of Joey is played by host Jimmy Fallon, who cavorts around the stage, slapping his legs in an imitation of hoofbeats, neighing, and eventually robot dancing.

[48] Handspring Puppet Company artistic directors Basil Jones and Adrian Kohler appeared at the Long Beach TED Talk series in March 2011 to speak about their puppetry.

[49] In a highly popular segment, Jones and Kohler introduce the Handspring philosophy towards the 'life' of a puppet, before demonstrating their points with the help of the puppet Joey (performed by original National Theatre cast members Craig Leo and Tommy Luther and original West End cast member Mikey Brett).

Joey accepts the rider’s weight without complaint, comfortably parades around the stage, and swiftly exits before the effect is mundane.

[50]In October 2021, the Handspring puppet Little Amal was met on the South Bank in London by Joey the War Horse, and they continued the walk together.

[51][52] The Guardian's Michael Billington wrote in his review: Elliott and Morris recreate the kaleidoscopic horror of war through bold imagery, including the remorseless advance of a manually operated tank, and through the line-drawings of Rae Smith projected on to a suspended screen.

The joy of the evening, however, lies in the skilled recreation of equine life and in its unshaken belief that mankind is ennobled by its love of the horse.

"[54] The Times' 10-year-old guest reviewer called the show "movingly and realistically brought to life" and "an emotional and compelling adaptation of the book.

"[56] Brantley suggests, "The implicit plea not to be forgotten applies not just to the villagers, soldiers and horses portrayed here, but also to theater, as an evanescent art that lives on only in audiences' memories.

The play's equine stars are the remarkable creation of Adrian Kohler and Basil Jones' Handspring Puppet Company.

As manipulated by three handlers dressed in period costumes, the life-size creatures seem to breathe, snort, feed, walk, gallop, and rear up just as naturally as the genuine articles.

[58] The Wall Street Journal's Terry Teachout praised the puppetry, but gave mixed reactions to the play: "The fundamental flaw of 'War Horse' is that Nick Stafford, who wrote the script 'in association' (that's how the credit reads) with South Africa's Handspring Puppet Company, has taken a book that was written for children and tried to give it the expressive weight of a play for adults.

[60] In addition, Adrian Kohler and Basil Jones of Handspring Puppet Company won the Special Tony Award for War Horse.