New London Theatre

Tony– and Olivier-​award 1927 musical touches on Southern racial prejudice and tragic enduring love staged on Mississippi show boat. Excellent vocals of opera-​quality!

I’ve only been to New London Theatre once to catch a showing of «War Horse», but based on my time here, I’d consider seeing a show here again. This is a lovely, comfortable venue. Honestly, it feels newer than it really is, which is a serious testament to how well the place is cleaned and maintained, I think. And the stage itself is wonderful — a wide open space with rows and rows of seats surrounding it in a semi-​circle. The result is that depending on where you sit, you may very well have a different view and even a different experience than someone else in the theater. (For better or worse — more on that soon.) In addition to being a great looking theater, the staff are lovely and very helpful.
My only comment would be that the cheap seats are NOT worth it here, unlike at many other London theaters. While the theater does their best to list which cheap seats have an obstructed view and which ones don’t, the reality is that any of the cheap seats give you an «off» view of the stage. As someone who has seen another production of «War Horse», I could tell the difference. So if I return here in the future, I’m definitely spending the extra cash to enjoy a great view at what is otherwise a comfortable, nice theater.

Great place to watch a show, our seats were to the left of the stage and I wouldn’t recommend sitting there, although cheap the view isn’t worth it.
You feel left out of the show and at some points that you are in fact missing the show as you can’t see anything happening below.
Had a great time and War Horse is now my new favorite show!
The theatre itself has many many bars so at the interval it isn’t hard to get a drink or snack.

Expertly crafted effects with the use of metal and fabric skeletal horses superbly guided. Well done! Arrived in London today and was able to secure great seats in Picadelly circus at the TKTS kiosk. Excellent value, captivating experience…

I was slightly sceptical, wasn’t sure what to expect, but thoroughly enjoyed it. I sat dress circle, A 67, bar in my view but in my opinion, this didn’t detract from the magic of the production.

Love this theatre! The layout is really easy to navigate, an escalator to the main area then some stairs leading to an open waiting area and finally clearly labelled stairs to each seating section. There were so many staff around who were very helpful and made everything run smoothly.
I sat in Stall A seat 2 — basically extremely close to the stage and to the right. I personally thought it was a fantastic seat I felt like I was actually in the story instead of just watching it from far away. I was also close enough to clearly see some of the actors sort of under the stage at one part of the show. Really added to the feeling of being a person involved instead of just a spectator.
The seats are so comfortable! Like being at home on your couch, the cushions are very thick making the seat padded and comfy. Whenever I got up it felt like I had only been sitting for a couple minutes instead of the actual hour, so none of that cramped sitting for too long feeling.
As for the show, I give that 5 stars as well. Overall, a very enjoyable evening at a wonderful venue.

3.5 stars. I just round up.
A few minutes walking from Covent Garden, this is a fairly modern theatre. No historical significances or intricate interior detailing. There are multiple stages here and I believe, two showings of War Horse happening simultaneously when I went to see it.
The building:
VERY clean. Easy to navigate. Spacious foyer for drinks. Accepts card for souvenir purchases. Small bathrooms, but again, very clean. Gracious staff. Comfy seats with decent leg room.
THE SHOW:
£71.50 for top-​price tickets landed me in the last row of the dress circle. Row P in the center. I do not recommend this row, as the ceiling hangs so low that it cuts off some of the projected backdrop (making it difficult to catch some of the dates as they revealed them throughout the sweeping storyline).
** I recommend at least trying to secure seats between rows E — M. The seating in these rows is stadium-​style, so no head will block your view. It’s also not too close.
There is no live orchestra for this show. With the exception of transitional scenes featuring a minstrel style duo, everything is pre-​recorded sound. The music, while emotionally strong, was occasionally too loud and obscured the voices of the actors. Or perhaps it’s just that the voices do not carry all the way to the back row?
Even with a few missed points of dialogue, I could follow the story, which covers multiple settings, languages, characters, and years. The themes of love, loss, and war never lost their impact.
The reason you should see this show is not for the emotional intensity and dramatic tension. Rather, see it to revel in the puppetry, the unique execution of the props, and the skillful manipulation of the set, for which this show is entirely one-​of-​a-​kind.
There is an ambition in this level of the story-​telling that is a rarity in modern theatre where productions abandon classic technique in favor of newer, easier technology. See it before it disappears entirely.

After some research, I decided that «War Horse» was going to be the one and only show I catch in London because of my limited time there, and I’m sure glad I picked this one! The life-​size puppets of the horses were impressive. I had a moment of awe when the young horse transformed into an «adult horse.» Even though my seat was the first row next to the stage all the way to the left, I thought I had a great view and felt engaged throughout the performance. The first row is REALLY close to the stage, I had to move my legs several times when the performers utilized the whole theater.
They sell Haagen Dazs ice cream during admission INSIDE the theater, not outside in the concession stand. That was pretty interesting. Ice cream and theater, what a novel combination.
Show is great for the whole family. The most unique show I’ve attended thus far. Theater is old, but amazing show makes up for it.

Musicals are musicals… meaning you can see the same in many cities in many venues. This venue is unique and memorable because of the circular stage. It has an intimate feel that sucks you in versus feeling like an audience member in audience lined rows.

The New London Theatre is tucked away in one of the fringes of London’s theatreland but not a long walk from Covent Garden.
It has quite a unique feel with its circular stage and banked seats surrounding the stage, giving all seats a good view and connecting the audience more with the drama and action due to the apparent proximity to the stage. In fact, during the performance of Cats, the first show I saw here, the mischievous kitten-​actors actually ran around amongst the audience at one point during the show — one man even had his bald pâté rubbed by of the naughty cats
The multi award winning War Horse is currently on here at the moment. Another great choice with its powerful human and animal drama given extra energy by the intimate nature of the theatre
It’s not the prettiest or the most elegant or the most historic but I’ve enjoyed some great evenings here

I wondered what was so «new» about the New London Theatre, given it was a rather dated building. As an American in London, I suppose everything is relative.
I saw War Horse here and the venue is fantastic for viewing purposes. Intimate and not a bad seat in the house. It has a full bar, actually two, if you need something at intermission.

I saw the play «Warhorse» with my parents when they came to visit me for a weekend. This is one of the favorite plays. The way the people move with the horses and the noises they make. It’s like it’s a real horse! We sat front row so we were close to the action. i heard it’s being made into a movie now. It will be a good movie!

I recently saw War Horse here… and believe me, it was incredible. The show was without doubt worthy of a 5 star review. But hey, this is about the theatre.
New London Theatre is a 1970’s architect’s wet dream. The exterior and lobbies are a mish-​mash of tinted glass, pebbledash, jutting balconies, Escher like staircases and mezzanines. The Theatre Royal it is not. But, once inside the auditorium, all kitsch design flaws are forgiven. A big wide space with unobstructed views from all seats. We were practically in the back row of the stalls, but I felt very close to the action and didn’t miss a beat. The stage is huge and was very well used during War Horse. Big old seats too– didn’t feel squeezed in at all.
I’ll be very interested to see what comes next here after the current run, I enjoyed this theatre experience and it was as much to do with the setting as well as the fantastic show.
But £18 for 3 drinks? Ouch.