Harry Potter and the Hairy Business of a 6-hour Adventure

We had the pleasure of attending the 4D theatre experience that is Harry Potter and the Cursed Childat Palace Theatre in London this week. Many students felt that is was a “full-body theatre experience,” as exciting special effects, stunningly embodied props, and other awe-inspiring elements of stage magic excited the inner child in each of us. Students were seated for a 2:30 PM start time, with about two hours of showtime before we paused for the first, brief intermission. During this time, students helped themselves to snacks, stretched their legs and shared their initial reflections of the storyline, character development, and performance interpretation of the Harry Potter universe presented on stage. 

After that, we were all called back to our seats by the voice of Hermoine in a playful series of adlibs, which facilitated the smooth transition into Act II. Then, we enjoyed another 1.5 hours of showtime before breaking for our second, and longest intermission. During those two hours of free time, we were able to exit the theatre, eat a freshly prepared dinner at our local CIEE Center, and find our way back to the theater in time for Act III. There are no spoilers in this blog post, so I’ll just share that the students really appreciated the contemporary themes of identity and the nuanced importance of finding one’s own sense of purpose during the transition from adolescence into adulthood. 

Next, we were granted one more 20 min intermission around 9:00 PM, before ultimately returning to our seats for the grand finale that was Act IV. The students expressed a variety of reactions to our time together in the cinema: some cried with empathy for the characters presented, and some laughed at the beautifully relatable banter they shared. In all, everyone was certainly moved by the experience and held it as a uniquely epic saga of intricately ornate stage magic. The show was brimming with dynamic storytelling and heavily seasoned with notes of fan fiction. This production is an engaging experience that is absolutely worth experiencing at least once!