All About the New Touring Production of HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD

New details are continuing to emerge about the new shortened version of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, that is now playing in Chicago ahead of a new national tour. The latest iteration of the play, which opened on Broadway as a two-part show, before merging into one singular play, is shorter than any of the previous versions. Director John Tiffany talked with The Chicago Tribune about what fans of the play, and the franchise in general, can expect.

It also was noted that this is the version of Cursed Child that all future productions will be modeled after, even beyond the existing dates announced for this tour.

The idea to shorten the production came from the realization that the team had to "reinvent all the production elements because much of what we have in London and New York cannot tour."

Tiffany assures that fans won't be missing out by seeing this new production. "It’s still the full Harry Potter experience," he says. “Ninety-five percent of the illusions are still in there and when it comes to the other five percent, we have found new and sometimes better ways of doing them. I think we have created something every bit as powerful and effective and dramatic as the the three-and-a-half hour version but that is a bit more user-friendly for families."

Tiffany also believes that this is the best version of the production yet. "This is the version that I would have seen,” he says. “I’m massively behind this because of all the kids that we will be able to reach now and who would never have otherwise been able to see this show. That has become far more important to me that being precious about any particular element of my original production."

Read the original story on The Chicago Tribune.

About Harry Potter and the Cured Child:

Performances are now underway for the National Tour of HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD, beginning with a 21-week engagement at Broadway In Chicago’s James M. Nederlander Theatre. The final performance of the 21-week engagement for the six-time Tony Award-winning production will be Saturday, February 1, 2025. 

John Skelley is playing Harry Potter with Trish Lindstrom as Ginny Potter and Emmet Smith as their son Albus Potter. Matt Mueller is playing Ron Weasley with Ebony Blake as Hermione Granger and Naiya Vanessa McCalla as their daughter Rose Granger-Weasley. Playing Draco Malfoy is Ben Thys with Aidan Close as his son Scorpius Malfoy. Delphi Diggory is played by Julia Nightingale and Severus Snape is played by Larry Yando.

They are joined by Kaleb Alexander, Julianna Austin, Markcus Blair, Casey Butler, Erin Chupinsky, Reese Sebastian Diaz, David Fine, Simon Gagnon, Alexis Gordon, Caleb Hafen, Lauryn Hayes, Nathan Hosner, Torsten Johnson, Katherine Leask, Markelle Leigh, Mackenzie Lesser-Roy, Evan Maltby, Zach Norton, Travis Patton, Maren Searle, Ayla Stackhouse, Jennifer Thiessen, Timmy Thompson, René Thornton Jr., and Kristin Yancy playing a variety of characters.

The touring production is based on the acclaimed Broadway production, currently playing at the Lyric Theatre, New York. It picks up right where the last Harry Potter film left off: Nineteen years after Harry, Ron, and Hermione saved the wizarding world, they’re back on a most extraordinary new adventure – this time, joined by a brave new generation that has only just arrived at the legendary Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. When Harry Potter’s head-strong son Albus befriends the son of his fiercest rival, Draco Malfoy, it sparks an unbelievable new journey for them all—with the power to change the past and future forever.  

HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD, the first Harry Potter story to be presented on stage and the eighth story in the Harry Potter series, has sold over 10 million tickets worldwide since its world premiere in London in July 2016 and holds a record 60 major honors, with nine Laurence Olivier Awards including Best New Play and six Tony Awards including Best Play. The international phenomenon has cast its spell worldwide with productions currently running in London, New York, Hamburg, and Tokyo, and has completed runs in Melbourne, Toronto, and San Francisco. The original two-part production in London's West End recently celebrated its 7th anniversary, while the reimagined Broadway production celebrated its 6th anniversary. 

The most successful non-musical play in Broadway history, HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD has the unique distinction of being named by the Guinness World Records as the highest-grossing non-musical play in Broadway history with over $270 million total sales and over 2.5 million tickets sold.