Have you read the play?

When we heard JK Rowling had written a play about a grown up Harry Potter I wasn’t sure I wanted to read it. I think mainly because when Harry and I last parted, I was incredibly sad it was all over, I wasn’t sure I wanted to see where he ended up. And for the first time since Harry Potter was written, I wouldn’t be his age— I wouldn’t be relating to him the same way I was used to.

So, The Cursed Child play was published, and we didn’t buy it. It felt so unlike me, the girl who stood in lines at midnight releases for books and movies. I read a handful of reviews of the play. Some fans loved it. Some, hated it. What if I hated it?

And then, one day, Brett and I were on a road trip, and, true to any town we stop in, we found the local bookshop. We popped in, I saw the Cursed Child sitting on the shelf, picked it up, and read the first page. I took a deep breath and told Brett it was time we read it. So we bought it and both of us read it in a matter of days. We loved it.

Reading plays is one of my favorite past times. Shakespeare, Agatha Christie, Shakespeare. But I had never read a play quite like this. The magic I knew from the world of Harry Potter was supposedly happening on stage, but I kept thinking— How? How could they possibly have achieved what is being described in this play? I also thought, I don’t know if I will ever see this, but one day if I do, it will be one of the coolest things I ever do.

And it was.

The audience is half the fun.

If you hate cheering, laughing, screaming, and gasping, you will hate this show. I’ve never been in a live theatre yelling, “WHAT?!” at the top of my lungs several times. I heard a lot of people around me yell, “HOW DID THEY DO THAT?!” over and over. I’ve never screamed or gasped in awe at live theatre. I’ve never had a chill run up my spine in live theatre. I’ve never sat so far from the stage and felt so deeply connected to the characters. I’ve DEFINITELY wept in theatre productions, but this one made me cry out of respect and love for the characters and all the ways they are equally flawed and great.

Without spoilers, How epic is the production?

This play has a soundtrack that WORKS (by the brilliant Imogen Heap) and is so worth listening through if you haven’t heard it (my favorite track is “Suite Two: Edge of the Forest”). It’s very different from any of the traditional Harry Potter music, and I think I had to come to terms with that in my soul and choose not to be disappointed. Imogen’s music makes this play come to life.

The play has choreography and costuming that add SO much to the transitions. It has smart staging, moving stair cases, talking portraits, CRAZY secret SURPRISES, invisibility cloaks, polyjuice potion, and THE BEST DOSE OF FRIENDSHIP you could ask for. On top of the performance, the theatre decor feels magical AF.

I’m tearing up thinking about it because I always tear up thinking about really good beautiful works of art.

Was it worth the money and paying for two performances?

I loved that the play was split into two different nights, because it gave us more. More to experience. More relationships to unfold. More feelings to feel. More Ron, Harry, and Hermione. More Malfoy than I knew I needed.

While Brett and I were gifted our tickets, we have talked about saving up to get seats that are closer so we can see the actors faces better. This is totally worth seeing again and totally worth saving for. It would cost about $400-$600 for two of us to see both nights up close. You can peruse tickets here. Or, sign up for the lottery here. I have read some unfortunate reviews about the lottery seats. But they are $20 for each night if you win and that’s pretty awesome pricing.

Personal Takeaways:

1. When I took the official online Hogwarts sorting hat quiz, I was sorted into Slytherin, even though I was hoping with everything in me not to be. I really thought I was a Ravenclaw. I promised myself I wouldn’t retake the test, but embrace whatever it gave me. Seeing this play, made me really proud to be in Slytherin (It’s all made up and not real, I know). Most importantly, I think there is some needed Slytherin redemption in this play we never received in the books. And if you know me, redemption is one of the most important themes in my life.

2. Seeing Harry Potter be a parent was really good for me as I work with my own tension and desire to have children. He’s really not perfect and really says the wrong thing sometimes. There’s something humanizing about seeing the boy who lived try to be the boy who parents. There’s also something really beautiful about watching him own up to his failures. That’s not a spoiler, that’s who Harry Potter is.

I recommend saving your hard earned money to see this play. It was phenomenal. Have you seen it? What did you think? Did you read the play? What was your favorite part of the play?

What I wore to the theatre

Y’all won’t believe this, but this skirt and this black turtle neck are both thrifted. My boots are from target. I loved how colorful these Time Square shots came out. I edited them all weird and funky for fun and because I can.

Always,

Stacie

P.S. Someone whose name will not be mentioned, gave an argument in my high school political science class that Harry Potter is just like pornography. I’d like to let that person know, ten years later, they are still very very wrong.