The highly acclaimed play, “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” will soon be available for licensing for school productions. Producers Sonia Friedman Productions, Colin Callender, and Harry Potter Theatrical Productions have partnered with Broadway Licensing Group to develop a version of the play specifically tailored for high schools and secondary schools. This exciting opportunity will allow students around the world to bring the magic of the wizarding world to their own school stages.
To accommodate school productions, a shortened version of the play is being created. Currently running for over three hours on Broadway, the creative team is working to condense the play while maintaining its essence. Additionally, new special effects are being developed that can be realistically achieved by schools. These adaptations will ensure that the school productions retain the enchantment and spectacle that audiences have come to expect from “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.”
The producers are eager to introduce younger generations to the world of live theater and hope to broaden the audience for the play even further. They are proud that over half of the play’s audiences worldwide have been first-time theatergoers. With the school version, they anticipate introducing even more young people to the magic of the theater. They look forward to seeing how students embrace their creativity and bring the wizarding world to life on their school stages.
“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” originated in the West End in 2016 and opened on Broadway in 2018, where both productions continue to run. The play has also been staged in Hamburg, Tokyo, Melbourne, Toronto, and San Francisco. It has received numerous accolades, including six Tony Awards and nine Olivier Awards.
The story of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” takes place 19 years after the events of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” and follows the adventures of Harry Potter’s son, Albus, and his friendship with Scorpius, the son of Draco Malfoy. The school version of the play, with its new shortened runtime, will be developed by Broadway Licensing Group, writer Jack Thorne, director John Tiffany, producers Sonia Friedman and Colin Callender, with approval from J.K. Rowling, the creator of the Harry Potter universe.
Bringing “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” to schools worldwide is a testament to the enduring legacy of the Harry Potter series. Over twenty-five years ago, the book series inspired a generation of new readers, and now the play will inspire creativity, imagination, and storytelling through the medium of theater. Neil Blair, Rowling’s agent, expressed excitement about the opportunity to share the magic of the play with schools around the world.
The professional productions of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” include highly technical illusions and stage magic to bring the well-known magical elements of the Harry Potter world to life. The Broadway production alone was capitalized for $35.5 million, a record for any play on Broadway. It also underwent extensive renovations to transform the Lyric Theatre into a Harry Potter-themed venue, with a total cost of $33.3 million. The play consistently generates over $1 million in weekly revenue on Broadway and recouped its capitalization costs in late 2022.
For the school productions, the illusions and special effects will be modified to align with the storytelling techniques envisioned during the play’s development. Director John Tiffany emphasized that the magic in “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is rooted in storytelling techniques that can be achieved at home or in school. This approach allows students to get creative with the resources they have, such as using a teacher’s winter coat to act out the effects of Polyjuice Potion. The school productions will capture the essence of the play while adapting it to the capabilities and resources of school theaters.
Pilot productions of the school edition of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” will take place in the UK and US in Spring 2024, with a worldwide release for schools following soon after. After the success of these pilot productions, amateur productions are expected to roll out at a later date, allowing even more schools and students to experience the magic of the wizarding world on their own stages.
In conclusion, the availability of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” for school productions is an exciting development that will allow students worldwide to showcase their creativity and bring the magic of the Harry Potter universe to their own school stages. With a condensed version of the play and modified special effects, schools can create their unique interpretations of this beloved story. The producers and creative team are thrilled about this opportunity and hope to inspire a new generation of theatergoers through the magic of live theater.
