First things first: this review will
contain spoilers, if only because it’s impossible to write a review
without telling you something of what goes on... otherwise, I’d just
end up remarking on how well the set design complements the Palace
Theatre architecture.
Next: who actually is the second title character in
Harry Potter And The Cursed Child,
which continues one of the world’s best-known story cycles a generation
on? It could be Harry’s younger son Albus, at that awkward stage of
teenage rebellion; it could be Scorpius Malfoy, the son of Draco with
whom Albus forges an unlikely but genuine friendship at Hogwarts; it
could be Delphi Diggory, cousin of the late Cedric and eager to... ah,
spoilers; it could even be Harry himself, the orphan now faced with
working out how to be a good parent. There’s no shortage of possibility.
No shortage of action either; this dramatic tale needs to be told in
two parts (you book tickets for successive nights or a
matinee-and-evening double-header). Part Two shows some signs of the
bloat that afflicted the later novels/films, but keeps a stronger grip
on the story itself.
The collaboration between J.K. Rowling, director John (
Black Watch) Tiffany and writer
Jack Thorne works a treat. One of Thorne’s strengths is the same kind
of emotional honesty as Rowling, so that matters may not be subtle or
complex but always feel authentic. Tiffany, meanwhile, enlists Jamie
Harrison for a wealth of illusions which are old-skool rather than CGI
or the like, but all the more thrilling for it. Everything from
polyjuice-potion-driven switcheroos to a serious wand battle comes
alive before your eyes, not to mention Dementors overhead in the
auditorium.
The fame and familiarity of the Potter tales also informs Thorne’s
writing. The plot here not only makes use of a standard SF/fantasy
trope about time travel changing the world you return to, but... Do you
know about slash fiction? It’s the term for online fan stories
involving romantic or sexual relationships between characters (so
“A/B”, not “slash” as in
Friday The
13th). Well, this is a
very
slashy affair: the central relationship between Albus (Sam Clemmett,
excellent) and Scorpius (Anthony Boyle, brilliant at a whole raft of
misjudged adolescent moments) nods discreetly to the Harry/Draco
fantasies of fans. Nothing explicit, but when they start talking about
the Engorgio spell you can’t help but giggle...
Noma Dumezweni is one of our best actors, and she brings her quality to
the role of Hermione. Alex Price is a reformed and even compassionate
Draco, Jamie Parker an appealingly still-mixed-up-at-40 Harry, although
at times he looks disconcertingly like Robert Peston. (Mind you, the
Sorting Hat resembles Chris Eubank... how could he ever say
“Slytherin”?) And the whole thing has both the production quality and
the narrative and thematic
oomph
to make it well worth two evenings of your time.
Exspecto considerable long-term
patronage.
Written for The Lady.