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Thursday 16 August 2018

#KeeptheSecret - Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

harry-potter, cursed-child

First things first, if you are looking for a review of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child that is full of spoilers, then you've come to the wrong blog. Theatre reviews may be the usual fare on The Writing Greyhound, but on this occasion, I've got the tricky task of writing about a production without really sharing much about it at all. Unquestionably a difficult task, but since seeing Cursed Child for the second time, I really can't put off writing about it again!

Like so many others around the world, I've been a big Harry Potter fan for years and I still love re-reading the original books even now. When Cursed Child was first announced, I was excited to find out more about the wizarding world and discover if the long-awaited sequel could live up to my (extremely high) expectations.

When the playscript was released, I went to the midnight launch party at Waterstones - my first and only experience of a midnight release. I read the book in under a day and then had to wait over six months to finally get to see the stage show for the first time.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was probably one of my most-anticipated theatre visits ever, and with two showings and a whole day of Potter ahead of me, I couldn't wait to finally see the show. Without going into too much detail, let's just say that I was completely blown away. Characters, acting, staging... it was all brilliant. In fact, you could even say that it was magical!

Upon leaving the Palace Theatre at the end of Part 2, I knew without a doubt that I had to see the play again.

Fast-forward to July 2018 and my wish was fulfilled.

Seeing Cursed Child for the second time allowed me to take in the little details and parts of the show that I didn't notice the first time around. Thanks to the cast change, I also got to see different actors' takes on the roles, something which was definitely interesting. Some plays and performances can seem dated or stale with multiple viewings, but Cursed Child definitely avoids this. In fact, I'd certainly recommend going to see it more than once, if you can.

Although my status as a big Harry Potter fan perhaps subconsciously skews my thoughts and opinions of the play, I am happy to say that Cursed Child is a brilliant theatrical spectacle in its own right, regardless of its close connection to the infamous wizarding world.

#KeeptheSecret

Have you seen Harry Potter and the Cursed Child yet? What did you think of the play? Let me know in the comments below!

2 comments:

  1. As a Brit living in the USA I watched enviously as my Potter-head family and friends went to London and enthused eagerly about HPatCC. When the announcement was made that the show was coming to Broadway my Amrican family leapt into action: We each registered on TicketMaster as Harry Potter 'fans' and waited for the ticket release lottery. On the day (Operation HPCC D-Day, as it became known) eight hopeful people watched their e-mail inboxes from various corners of the United States. Logistically, it was decided, if anyone was lucky enough to be chosen to appy for tickets, they'd just pick a date and buy whatever they could get their hands on before the inevitable sell-out.
    And so it was that we (through my now-favourite step-daughter) got our grubby little muggle hands on center Orchestra tickets for HPatCC on Broadway in its opening month! We were beside ourselves with excitement! [2 shows x 8 people x $200 per show = a lot of money!!] Would it be worth it?
    Several months later the tribe arrived from Milwaukee, Denver, and San Francisco in good time for some sight-seeing. The evening before the performance included a spirited re-reading on the last chapter of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, since the play starts precisely where that book finishes. With JK Rowling's words fresh in our minds we arrived at the Lyric Theater and joined the throng. The theater had been specially renovated for the show and it was just fun to be part of the pre-show hubbub. Scores of people proudly declared their house allegiance in full Harry Potter style garments, thus adding to the excitement. The doors opened, as if by magic, thirty minutes before the play was scheduled to start and, even though everyone had an allotted seat, almost everyone filtered into the auditorium at once, just to take in the atmosphere.
    Tick, tick, tick and the suspense grew. Operation HPatCC D-Day was about to come to fruition and the excitement was palpable. Eight excited bottoms wriggled restlessly in their seats and then... ... ... well, #KeepTheSecret and all that.
    Suffice to say that our Cursed Child experience was everything we'd hoped for, and more! The 'Eight' are very experienced theater-goers and the play did not disappoint. It ranks among my favourite experiences on Broadway and in the West End ever.

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    1. Thanks for sharing your story, Chris! I'm so glad you and your family enjoyed the show x

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