Adapted from Michael Morpurgo's 1982 children's book of the same name, War Horse is a play by Nick Stafford which debuted in October 2007 at the National Theatre in London. It has won an Olivier Award, an Evening Standard Theatre Award and the London Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Design. The play, whose rights were bought by famed American film director Steven Spielberg, is set to run in New York City's Lincoln Center in 2011. The production uses life-sized puppets which bring the horses to life on stage.