Long-running Queen musical We Will Rock You and World War I drama War Horse have extended their booking periods, taking both shows into October 2010.
The latest extension from guitar-thrashing rock musical We Will Rock You is the 10th time the popular production has lengthened its London engagement since opening at the Dominion theatre in 2002.
Since opening, around 4.6 million theatregoers have seen the Ben Elton-penned show which fits 24 of Queen’s greatest hits into a story about a futuristic world where rock music is banned.
A transfer from the National Theatre, War Horse is a much newer addition to the London theatre landscape, having opened at the New London theatre earlier this year. Based on a novel by Michael Morpurgo, the family drama tells the story of young Albert’s horse Joey, who is sold to the cavalry by Albert’s drunken father at the beginning of World War I. Joey’s war sees him fighting for both sides, but Albert can’t forget his equine friend and, though still not old enough to enlist, embarks on a terrible mission to find him.
The play, which originated at the National Theatre in 2007, uses life-sized puppets alongside human characters to tell the moving story of friendship amid war, and won two Laurence Olivier Awards in 2008.
MA