Review – War Horse QPAC Brisbane

War Horse Tickets $69-$132.90.

I was invited to attend the official opening night for War Horse at QPAC and without hesitation I accepted and took my mother along for the show.

It was amazing! It had laughs, heartache and tears.

These magnificent puppets were so realistic that after 10-15 mins I had completely forgot that there were up to 4 people moving it around the stage so effortlessly.

The background singing set the scene and the pyrotechnics set the war mood. I literally jumped out of my skin several times.

When we arrived I had noticed a few children in the audience and suddenly felt guilty for not letting my kids come along. They had bugged me over and over after seeing the horse puppets on TV.

By intermission I was wondering how the children a few rows away were holding up. Needless to say they did not return for the second half.

Unless your child is OK with loud gun shots, people dying, bombs going off and horses being shot in the head then I would leave the kids at home.

For all the adults though, it was amazing! Well worth the money to see.

From the official QPAC writeup:

WAR HORSE tells the story of Joey, the beloved horse of a boy called Albert, who is sold to the cavalry at the outbreak of World War I and shipped to France. He’s soon caught up in enemy fire, and fate takes him on an extraordinary odyssey, serving on both sides before finding himself alone in no man’s land. But Albert cannot forget Joey and, still not old enough to enlist, he embarks on a treacherous mission to find him and bring him home.
At its heart are astonishing life-size puppets, created by South Africa’s Handspring Puppet Company, who bring breathing, galloping, charging horses to life on the stage.

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The celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is important throughout Mexico and other parts of the world. Her feast day is Dec. 12, and the celebrations honoring her appearance to Juan Diego in 1531 begin a few days before that.

Whether you celebrate yourself or just want to share about the celebration at home or in your classroom, Las Mañanitas: The Beautiful Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a good place to start. The book, by Ernesto Joel Vega Rosales and Jeanette Gonzalez Seneviratne, with illustrations by Dana Sanmar, tells the story of a family’s celebration of the feast day in both English and Spanish.

They prepare with a novena, which is nine days of prayers and preparations. The children, Lucia and Pablo, are given special outfits made by their grandmother that look like what Juan Diego might have worn when he saw Our Lady. The book describes the prayers that are made each day, such as a prayer for respect for life, for families and for the indigenous people of the Americas, to name a few.

As told in the book, Juan Diego was a native Mexican born near modern day Mexico City. His given name was Cuaauhtlatoatzin, which means “He who speaks like an eagle.” When he converted to Christianity his name was changed to Juan Diego, and as he walked to church he passed a hill called Tepeyac. One day he heard the birds singing especially beautifully and a voice called him to go to the top of the hill.

There he saw Our Lady of Guadalupe, who asked him to tell the bishop she wanted a chapel built in her name at the foot of the hill. The bishop asked for a sign that Juan Diego really saw her, and later she had him collect flowers that she blessed and take them to the bishop. When Juan Diego dropped the flowers, an image of Our Lady could be seen on his cloak, which is still on display in her basilica to this day.

The feast day is celebrated as mañanitas, which includes singing, indigenous music and dancing, and children presenting flowers to Our Lady. Juan Diego is remembered today as being humble, brave and faithful, and was the first indigenous American made a saint.

The book is colorful and tells the story in a clear way, and it’s fun to have it both in English and Spanish if you teach Spanish or speak Spanish at home or in the classroom. It’s a great way to learn the basics of the celebration and the story of Juan Diego and why he is still remembered today.

About the book: 40 pages, paperback, published 2024 by Loyola Press. Suggested retail price $14.99.

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