Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is expected to reopen on Broadway in 2022. The play, billed as the eighth story in the Harry Potter series, opened in April 2018 at the Lyric Theatre. The story begins nineteen years after the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and follows the lives of an older Harry and his son, Albus, who is about to attend Hogwarts. The show received a rapturous response from critics, winning six Tony Awards, including Best Play, and becoming the most awarded play in theatre history. The story was less well-received by Harry Potter fans, who questioned its place in the canon due to the fact it was not written by J. K. Rowling.
Like most aspects of normal life in 2020, the theatre industry was forced to shutter due to the Coronavirus pandemic last year, closing down the Cursed Child play. 2020 proved to be a very difficult time for theatre, an industry many expected to be among the last to safely reopen from the pandemic. Producers of the Cursed Child even filed a lawsuit against their insurer for refusing to cover losses due to COVID-19. This failure to receive a pay-out means the production may be at risk of a competitive disadvantage when it resumes on Broadway.
The New York Times revealed that Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is “not expected to return until 2022”. This is later than a number of other Broadway performances, which are to resume from September 14. The report also said that the play “is rethinking its length and structure before deciding how and when to reopen.”
It is not immediately clear what these production changes might be, though fans have already begun speculation. The play runs over two parts, with the first at two hours and 40 minutes and the second at two hours and 35 minutes. With the production rethinking this length, cutting down scenes or eliminating storylines may be the first step. Any changes will be contentious with the fandom, who are already sensitive to changes in the Harry Potter storylines. This will require production to manage fans' expectations with the harsh realities of reopening the theatre industry.
Cursed Child will join a long list of Broadway plays struggling to resume production in the face of COVID-19. With 65% of Broadway’s audience made up of tourists who may be put off from traveling, theatre experts anticipate a difficult road to reopening. Other contentious topics include whether masks, negative test results, or vaccinations will be required of attendees. The move to reopen Harry Potter & The Cursed Child in 2022 will provide a bumper year for Harry Potter fans as the untitled third installment in the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them franchise is also set to open in 2022.
Source: The New York Times
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