‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’ works its magic

J.K. Rowling could’ve stopped working after the first “Harry Potter” film hit theaters back in 2001, but after releasing those masterful books, the author has yet to stop churning out magical material. She helped produce all seven “Harry Potter” anthology movies, the upcoming prequel-ish “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” and helped build Universal Studios’ Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

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Now, instead of writing another film script, Rowling has teamed up with producers Sonia Friedman and Colin Callender to bring a prologue of the “Harry Potter” series to life. The play in question will only be viewable by 1,370 people a night, so if your plan was to donate a lung in order to get tickets … it’s too late. That’s right, the show is already sold out through to May, 2017 — the end of its run.

However, there is light at the end of the tunnel for for those who can’t make it London’s West End. A movie adaption is already in the works, and the book form version of the script — set to be released on Saturday (July 30) at midnight — will shed light on what life is like for Harry, Ron and Hermione 19 years after graduation. Who is “The Cursed Child?” That answer will be revealed in the book!

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Official reviews of “The Cursed Child” were released on Monday, and we couldn’t help but scour through them like Lord Voldemort on a bender. Variety calls it “The Show that Lived Up to its Expectations,” while The Hollywood Reporter writes “it has the originality, craft and charm that will help hook a new mainstream of theatergoers.” In fact, nearly every critique had one adjective in common: “magical.”

The show has already raked in an unprecedented $32 million in pre-sale tickets according to Playbill, and for a play that clocks in at five hours and 15 minutes — not including two 20-minute intermissions — to get such glowing reviews is a quite magical feat in and of itself.

Fans may have been wary to discover that Rowling was making a play — not a book or movie first, even though both will eventually happen. But based on these telling reviews, a theatre adaption was the perfect medium to tell this story. And the multicultural actors chosen to play these beloved characters, are all getting the thumbs-up.

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The Wall Street Journal loves Jamie Parker’s portrayal of Harry, saying he “fleshes out every inch of our old hero.” They continue, saying Anthony Boyle — who portrays Draco Malfoy’s son Scorpius — “is the breakout performance.” The New York Times describes Paul Thornley’s Ron as “delightful” and Noma Dumezweni, who plays Hermione, is “perfect.”

Director John Tiffany teamed with playwright Jack Thorne to write the libretto with Rowling. The collaboration shines in using the theater’s level of disbelief to display the curses, levitations and magical spells, resulting in a show that seems just as powerful as the movies, bit without having access to all those VFX. The Guardian refers to it as “a thrilling spectacle” that is “a dazzling duel of dark light,”

As for the actual story, fans will only have to wait a little while longer before the book form will be released.

For more information on the play’s schedule and to see if you can work your magic to obtain tickets, check out the official website here.

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