Abridged Cursed Child to reopen on Broadway November 12
Sep 24, 2021
Broadway, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, News, Opinion, Theater
As Broadway reopens post-pandemic, we will see a mix of new and returning cast members take the stage in an abridged version of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child starting November 12. You can find bios of the cast and creative team here. The San Francisco show, also condensed, will return on January 11.
The play was originally staged in two parts, ideally seen on the same day, with a total running time of 4 hours and 35 minutes not including intermissions. This is still the experience in other parts of the world but North American audiences are now limited to an abridged version that is slimmed down to only a single part with a running time of less than three and a half hours. This is disappointing. Ticket prices top out at nearly $300 dollars, with the least expensive tickets still setting one back $79. It seems unfair to be deprived of the full show. I personally have not yet been able to afford to go (if you do not live near NYC, you have to add travel and hotel costs to the ticket price) and now will have to add travel costs to London to ensure that I get to see the whole play. (If you remember that I reported from the red carpet at the show’s Broadway premiere, yes, I was there, outside, but the press pass did not include a ticket to see the performance. We at Leaky made the journey to bring you, our fans, pre-show on-the-spot red carpet interviews, video, and an exciting account of the show’s Broadway debut, but once those theatre doors closed on the last entering ticketholder, we went home as dejected as Oliver Wood after a Gryffindor quidditch match loss.)
Tickets are on sale now for the “reimagined” (euphemism alert) show and can be purchased here. Despite our disappointment about the truncating of the play, we are pleased to see that the Lyric Theatre has the following protocols in place to help prevent the transmission of COVID-19: Everyone aged 12 and over must show proof of COVID-19 vaccination to enter the theatre. Anyone who is not vaccinated will be turned away at the door and will not be eligible for a refund. The only exceptions are children under 12, because they cannot yet be vaccinated, and people who have a legitimate medical condition that precludes vaccination. Both children under 12 and people who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons must show a negative COVID-19 antigen test taken within 6 hours of the performance start time or a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours. Everyone must wear a mask at all times within the theatre except when eating or drinking. More information on the Lyric’s COVID-19 policies can be found here.
Will you be seeing the shortened version? What do you think of the condensing of the play into a single part? Have you seen the whole version? Let us know your opinion in the comments.