Review: HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD Bewitches In Canadian Premiere

Mirvish has brought a truly spellbinding production to the CAA Ed Mirvish Theatre this season.

After over two years sitting empty, the theatre was packed on an opening weekend showing of the latest show in their 2022 season: the Canadian premiere of HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD.

The story centers on Harry (Trevor White) and Ginny (Trish Lindstrom) Potter's middle child, Albus Severus Potter (Luke Kimball), in his fourth year at Hogwarts. It's during this year where he decides to take action with the use of a time turner and right what he sees as a mistake his father made while also in his fourth year.

Similar to the original Harry Potter series, CURSED CHILD doesn't send Albus on this task alone - he recruits the help of his best friend, Scorpius Malfoy (Thomas Mitchell Barnet). The two are shown from the start of their Hogwarts journey to be inseparable, right from their first ride in on the Hogwarts Express. With both dealing with a fair amount of bullying, it's made clear early on that they've really only got each other. Parallel to their adventure is Harry's own struggle to balance work and family, and more importantly, to understand his son. Other characters from the original series appear as their grown-up versions - Hermione (Sarah Afful) is now the Minister for Magic, Ron (Gregory Prest) runs the Weasley family's joke shop, and Draco Malfoy's (Brad Hodder) main concern is ensuring his son is protected.

The show clocks in at three and a half hours, including intermission, and while it's a long haul that occasionally feels a bit padded out with transitional movement scenes, what's happening onstage rarely feels unnecessary to the story. At its core, CURSED CHILD is an interesting revisit to the wizarding world that does a great job of introducing new characters and making them fit in alongside beloved ones. While it might've been great to see more from other new characters (Harry and Ginny's other two children are barely present, among others, although it's clearly meant to be Albus's story) there's not much left unanswered by the show's conclusion.

In the role of Albus, Kimball is the perfect picture of an angsty, unsure teenager. He lays the groundwork for Albus's anger well, which makes his decisions - as nonsensical as they might seem to an outside perspective - make sense. As his best friend Scorpius, Barnet shines. From his first lines, it's clear he's very different from the Malfoy's of the original series. He's all boyish quirkiness, goofy laughter, and cautious decisions - and he's the perfect balance to Kimball's Albus. The two work off of each other wonderfully, and really manage to stand out in a show packed with audience favorites from the series.

White takes on the possibly intimidating role of Harry Potter in a nuanced way; rather than rely on his early heroism, the Harry in this story is struggling with a lot, including how to connect with his son. He delivers some wonderfully soft moments, and then ramps up for intense duels and a gripping emotional scene towards the end of the performance that's goosebump-inducing. Another standout in the production is Hodder as an older Draco. He maintains some of the distant, aloof mannerisms audiences would remember young Draco by, but he's more open in many places. Where he's lost loved ones and struggled to keep his son out of public rumour, there's a noticeable warmth to the character that shows how much his family has changed him - and Hodder plays this beautifully throughout.

Afful is a great adult Hermione, as is Prest as Ron. The grown character who seems the most consistent with where they were left in the original series is Ginny, and Lindstrom plays both the comedic and emotional parts of her role seemingly with ease.

While the writing is solid and the characters well cast, CURSED CHILD shines the most in its array of technical effects. Adapting a world known best on page and screen, where imagination and CGI allow for anything to happen, to the stage definitely presents a unique challenge. Thankfully, it's a challenge that the team behind the production exceeds expectations on.

The massive columns of King's Cross train station lend a steampunk-esque style to the entire stage, and transform into a range of different set pieces (set design by Christine Jones). Costumes (costume design by Katrina Lindsay) don't stray too far from the films with students in their uniforms and the adults in a mix of elaborate wizard robes and 'muggle' clothing. At times, the instrumentals (composed and arranged by Imogen Heap, sound design by Gareth Fry) played to fill time between scene transitions were louder than they might have needed to be; but they worked well alongside the dances (movement direction by Steven Hoggett) to add in a few dynamic moments between plot points.

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the production is in its magic. The show is packed full of tricks, effects, and stunts that make it seem like you've been transported to another world. There are things that happen on stage that are impossible to explain - unless you count magic as the explanation (illusions and magic by Jamie Harrison). Without effective, believable magic in the show, it would lose its ties to the world of Harry Potter. Thankfully though, this is not the case in CURSED CHILD, with its dozens of effects and illusions that stun, shock, and really make you question what's possible on a stage.

Altogether, HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD is an effective return to the wizarding world that many audience members will likely enjoy for its callbacks to the original series. For those less acquainted with the original story, there's still plenty to enjoy with over three hours of mind-bending illusions, large-scale effects, and a stellar cast telling a moving story. And while leaving at the end of the show might feel like leaving behind a world they love, audiences can carry the message and the wonder of CURSED CHILD with them well beyond the theatre walls.

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Mirvish's HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD runs through December 1 at the CAA Ed Mirvish Theatre, 244 Victoria St, Toronto, ON.

For more information, visit www.mirvish.com/shows/harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child

Photo Credit: Evan Zimmerman

 

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