The story appears on

Page A8

October 24, 2015

GET this page in PDF

Free for subscribers

View shopping cart

Related News

HomeWorld

New play sees Harry Potter as a dad of 3

A NEW play that opens in London next summer will pick up the story of Harry Potter where the seventh and final volume of J.K. Rowling’s saga left off, with a plot involving a grown-up Harry and the youngest of his three children, Albus.

“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” based on a story part-written by Rowling, is set to open at the Palace Theatre next July, publicists said yesterday.

The story takes place 19 years after Harry’s final showdown with Lord Voldemort, as described in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” the seventh book.

Now an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic with three school-age children, Harry “grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs,” a press release said.

Meanwhile, Albus, named after Harry’s old headmaster and mentor Albus Dumbledore, struggles with the weight of the family legacy.

“As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places,” the release said.

The play will be in two parts, which are intended to be seen in order on the same day, or on two consecutive evenings. An initial 16 weeks of performances will go on sale in the first booking period.

Publicists have been releasing a drip-drip of information over several months in what appears to be a strategy to tantalize fans, though commercial success for the venture looks extremely likely regardless of any marketing efforts.

So far everything connected to Harry Potter has turned to gold. Rowling’s books have sold over 450 million copies and been translated into 78 languages, while the eight-part film franchise based on the books grossed more than US$7 billion at the worldwide box office.

The new story was a collaboration between Rowling, scriptwriter Jack Thorne and theater director John Tiffany, who has won awards in London and New York for his work on the musical “Once.”

“The story only exists because the right group of people came together with a brilliant idea,” Rowling was quoted as saying.

Tickets go on sale to the general public next Friday at HarryPotterthePlay.com.


 

Copyright 漏 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.

娌叕缃戝畨澶 31010602000204鍙

Email this to your friend