Stage Door: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Palace Theatre, London
Cast Members: Joe Idris-Roberts, Adrian Christopher, Danny Dalton, Sandy McDade, April Hughes, James Phoon, Annette McLaughlin, Ryan Mackay, James McGregor and Helen Aluko
Cast Three Part One — 23rd May reactions/mini recap
First, let’s talk about atmosphere. The atmosphere coming out of that theatre just now could not be more different to the atmosphere of last year. Last year there was fear, there was shock, there was relentless optimism, there was a bit of grief too. Tonight there is only joy and excitement.
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is, on many levels, a children’s story. That’s not to say it’s not complex and layered, but it’s a story about two kids and their parents, it’s a magical adventure. It should, arguably before anything else, be fun. And tonight I had so much fun, with cast and audience who were also having so much fun. I truly don’t think I’ve had as much fun at this show ever as I did in Act One, and that was a very special thing to be part of.
I have been contacted in the last few weeks by people asking me how long they should wait to see the new cast, asking how cast two were on their first show, asking if it would be okay to go soon. I didn’t answer those people because I didn’t know what to say or what to advise. Having witnessed cast two’s first show I wouldn’t have advised anyone to see it (personally I have never and will never regret having been there that night, but I also know it was a difficult thing for a lot of other people), simply because that sort of searching for meaning and potential isn’t for everyone. Now I’ve seen Cast Three I have absolutely no hesitation in saying that they are ready and if you go and see them tomorrow you will have an incredible time.
I’d heard this cast were quick. I’d heard about their extra rehearsal time. All of that has come together to create a show where, instead of having to look for positives and look for what their performance will be in the future, I can see, right now, all the characters and their journey. It is exciting to be halfway through the journey with these people. They are telling me a story and I am engrossed.
So now I guess, some summaries of the characters I’ve met anew on stage tonight. I’ll stick to the main new four for now because I’ve been too overwhelmed with information to be able to describe a lot of the others.
Harry Potter
The Harry I was introduced to tonight is deeply traumatised. He’s damaged by his past, and so stuck in it that he can barely see the present. He’s not a hero anymore, he’s a suffering man who’s been ground down by the years. He’s tired and subdued and his spirit is gone, apart from when he’s with his two best friends. Hermione and Ron bring out in his what’s always been there, and it’s beautiful to see.
He’s a little bit awkward, especially around Albus. He’s trying so hard to be a good dad that it’s a little bit painful. His priority is Albus’s happiness, and that is clear to see throughout their initial interactions in the play and through the blanket scene. When he encourages Albus to make more friends it’s not that Scorpius isn’t good enough, it’s more that he needs more people he can be with, like that will make him happier. Not replacements for Scorpius, just additional. It’s that sort of distinction that shows his care for his son.
This isn’t the Harry I was expecting to see, it’s very different to anything we’ve seen before, but it’s fascinating. He’s fascinating, and I trust Jamie Ballard’s acting with my life already. More on that later.
Ginny Potter
Ginny has clearly been affected by years of living with and loving a traumatised man. Some of her spark has been worn away, and she’s been softened into the most beautiful, caring mother. But, as outside influences begin to shape hers and Harry’s lives again, and as Albus runs away, that fight returns, and we see Ginny in full spirit. My Ginny is back, and I couldn’t be more overjoyed.
Albus Potter
Albus is one that I haven’t quite worked out how to describe yet. I suppose I should talk about Joe’s acting, because that’s what our perceptions of Albus are currently being very much driven by.
When Joe started speaking I heard exactly what I would have expected to hear from Joe; what I’ve heard from him before. There is this little bit of stiffness to him, and I was initially worried that all we would get was Joe, but actually I think there have been notes of naturalness; of Albus. He’s a lot stiffer around his dad than he is around Scorpius. When it comes to Scorpius he relaxes and opens up a bit, which is nice to see.
There have been touches of Albus’s flair (spreading his arms wide and beaming as he says ‘this train is magical!’), and he has some really soft moments. His dynamics are lovely. His movement is also lovely.
What I want from Joe is to see him dig deeper into the character. Surface isn’t deep enough for this show. You can look like Albus and say lines the way Albus might say them, but that’s not becoming Albus, and that’s what I want to see from him because I know he can do it and I want to see him find that within himself.
Scorpius Malfoy
With this one I think I need to start at the beginning and go from there. During his opening couple of scenes I could barely watch him because he is so painfully awkward. This child is the weirdest, shyest nerd, and he’s an absolute disaster. He’s like the most awkward public schoolboy you could imagine.
He has a head twitch. He constantly wrings his hands together or flails them in the air. He’s shy of his own height and stands with his shoulders hunched. He has a bit of a stutter and keeps restarting sentences because he’s so unsure of what he’s trying to say (to reiterate, this is Scorpius, not Jonathan). When he smiles it’s the most wide, beaming, toothy thing in the world.
So very rapidly, I stopped cringing behind my hands whenever he appeared in a scene and instead began clutching my heart, because this is a child who needs protecting. This is the most beautiful sweet child in the world. He is the definition of a sweet baby angel. He’s too precious and ridiculous to be allowed to exist in this world, and I can see why Draco wants to keep him safe.
This is the first time I haven’t seen a show that’s felt largely driven by Scorpius. This one is absolutely a follower not a leader. It’s fascinating. In fact it’s difficult to imagine how this boy can be the Scorpion King, or how he’ll survive the Voldemort timeline. I suppose we’ll find out tomorrow.
I already have an insight into who Jonathan is both in terms of who he is as Scorpius and who he is as an actor. He is clearly immensely skilled. The detail in what he’s doing is incredible. I was a little bit in awe at the beginning of the library scene because there’s so much finesse to his performance. Where do they keep finding these boys from?
What I want to see is for Jonathan to learn how to control a scene. He owns his character, now I want to see him own blocks of lines and own his rhythm. I want to see him take his time. (You all know I’m talking about the library scene — he can do it so beautifully and I’m excited to see that.)
My favourite Jonathan moment so far undoubtedly was when Scorpius is hiding Delphi from Polly. He stands in the middle of the two stairs and puts one leg out, with his robes swooshed behind it like a curtain, and as Polly moves across the stage he moves his other leg so he’s straddling the gap in the stairs, and he looks like a strange, ridiculous baby bat, with his legs too far apart and his robes spread out behind him like wings.
Anyway, while we’re talking about Scorpius, I said I’d come back to this later, Jamie Ballard. His performance as Jonathan’s Scorpius polyjuiced into Harry was the most flawless thing I’ve ever seen in my life. If he can carry that off like that then he can literally do everything. It was truly exceptional.
*
And now, as many things as I can think of to throw at you (who needs sleep?)
Broadway Changes
-I hate the new Harry lines. They’re so unnecessary and awful. They’re pure info dumps. Patronising in fact. I cringed into my hands the whole time (even though Jamie delivered them beautifully).
-Instead of being a projection, the owl that delivers McGonagall’s note about Albus and Scorpius to Harry now is his sort of paper looking puppet bird that flies across the stage on a wire and it’s so beautiful. It was mistimed tonight but I enjoyed the beauty of it so much I didn’t care.
-The new wand dance is weird but cool. The choreography is nice. I don’t feel it tells the story as well as the old one did, but it’s nice to see Albus succeeding at spells for once.
-So many wizzos now oh my god. It’s become a thing.
-Albus’s broken arm effect and the sound that accompanies it is so satisfying, and Joe is the perfect person to be doing it because he moves so well. I adored that.
-The new time-turner noise is weird. Not sure about that one.
-There are probably more, but I’ve forgotten them in the melee of my brain.
Other assorted observations
-There are so many new faces in speaking roles that it really feels like a whole new play, which is very cool and very overwhelming all at once. I’ll work on getting some thoughts about the new ensemble people once I’ve stopped flailing over Jonathan (aka never).
-St Oswald’s is now no more and no less the greatest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. There’s a witch hiding whisky in her purse. David and Martin are having a fight. Martin’s dress has gone which is an absolute travesty, but he’s gone from being delighted by a trouserless man dancing backwards towards him to being disgusted by it, and that juxtaposition was the most delightful thing in the world.
-I loved Annette’s Umbridge so far. She was awesome. Just the right level of giggly girly, and with so much disgust as she was talking about the Potters.
-Adrian as Bane is great. I really enjoyed him. He’s a lot softer than either Nuno or James were this year, which worked nicely. His anger is older and wiser. He’s a lot more reserved, which I enjoyed, and I can’t wait to see more of him.
-A little moth got into the hospital wing scene and at one point it flew near Joe’s mouth and he blew on it to get it away.
-Jamie is bringing the anger and the screaming, which is so lovely. I think he may also be bringing the tears. I’m going to enjoy this one.
-Harry ran away from Albus polyjuiced as Ron. When he walked across the stage as Albus was blocking the door, Albus reached out to him and Harry ran for it. Bless him, he’s got enough trauma in his life without Ron and Hermione snogging in front of him too!
-At the beginning when Ron’s doing the nose trick, James pats him on the back to help get the nose down before Aron farts it out.
-That reminds me, Dylan, our new James, is absolutely fantastic. His James is such an asshole older brother. He’s the James I’ve always imagined. Funny, a bit of a dick, but ultimately will end up being a loving brother. I absolutely adored him.
-Jonathan was very restrained in the lake. No splashing, a gentle rise out of the water. So well behaved.
-Scorpius was watching at the back, very visibly, the whole time Delphi and Albus were interacting at the start of the Expelliarmus scene. It was the first time I’ve seen that stage direction about seeing his friend and liking it but not liking it actually played out. It was a beautiful thing.
-Joe is exceptional at the Expelliarmus. After Theo it’s a huge relief. In fact he’s pretty flawless with all the tricks, pretty much as I expected.
-At the end of the library scene, Albus now holds the Time-Turner bag out to Scorpius when he asks if he’ll come, and Scorpius slowly takes it from him as the dialogue progresses. It’s a great and beautiful solution to the strap of the bag always getting caught on the edge of the desk.
-Am I allowed to talk about James Howard? This year he’s playing a more subdued Draco, very introspective, and a lot more emotional. He’s less physical, very centred, and there’s so much grief and pain in his voice whenever he speaks. All his emotion is internalised and comes out in his voice now. Personally I love it.
-April continues to be incredible as Myrtle, and now she’s got the new boys and Harry to play with she is loving life. A highlight was her reaching out to touch Harry’s face with her foot as he was looking at her (Jamie G always had his back to her when she did that so he never saw her do it). She’s so brazen. Also, she sshhhed Draco when James has always sshhed her (after the bit about Draco and Harry being bad boys again), and when she told Harry he was handsome Ginny came and dragged Harry away, and Myrtle went and sulked.
*
I really do have to go to bed, and I think I’m running out of things to remember without opening the book. I’ll come up with more stuff over the next couple of days, and hopefully will be able to write a full recap on Saturday, but this has covered a lot of the memorable stuff.
Truly it has been a beautiful evening, the audience is delighting in the cast and the show, and it’s wonderful. Fun and happy and celebratory. Just as it should be.
#TheLittleMermaid teaser from #D23 was THE first look I've been waiting for.
Writer: Hans Christian Andersen (Fairytale), Jane Goldman and David Magee (Screenplay)
Director: Rob Marshall
Stars: Halle Bailey, Jonah Hauer-King, Melissa McCarthy, Javier Bardem, Daveed Diggs, Awkwafina, Jacob Tremblay, Lin-Manuel Miranda
I didn’t expect to be so affected by this teaser, even though it was THE first look I was waiting for. The cynical part of my brain couldn’t help but…
