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Harry Potter and the Cursed Child LDN Recap - Weds 12th June 2019 (Cast 4)

Hello friends!

This is my first ever recap so fingers crossed it makes some sense - this is about 10k words long folks so strap yourselves in for a lot of thoughts and emotions.

This was my fourth time seeing Cursed Child, and my first time with Cast 4 although I had seen Jamie Ballard, Tom Aldridge, James Howard, and Susie Trayling before in previous shows. Of the main seven, Jonathan Case, Dominic Short, and Michelle Gayle were all new to me, plus Rayxia Ojo as Rose, Madeleine Walker as Delphi and a lot of the ensemble!

I scribbled notes through the whole show so I’ll try and go through chronologically. Some parts were easier to write during than others so I won’t cover every scene, and my notes were mostly focused on the new (to me) cast members. Right, here goes:

The first thing I wrote about Dominic as Albus when the Potters walked onstage at Platform 9 ¾ was ‘so SMOL’. He really is very short and even compared to Jamie as Harry he is quite little. The second thing I noticed was that he was so happy at the beginning and so excited about going off to Hogwarts. He was looking around in wonder at the station, all this anticipation building up to the moment he’d been waiting for for so long.

Ryan Mackay was a great James in this part - he was totally confident and at ease, and he and Dom really do look a lot like siblings on stage. He was chatting away to Lily and basically looking around like he owned the place (which let’s be honest, he does). When they were leaving the stage he jumped and did a little skip offstage which was adorable.

Michelle and Rayxia as Hermione and Rose were lovely in this scene too although they have barely any lines. They stood close and talked together, it looked like they were making inside jokes and laughing. They gave the impression of a really close mother/daughter relationship and that they were friends too, which I really enjoyed.

Dom’s Albus turned very thoughtful and nervous when he started to think about being sorted into Slytherin, but he responded really well to Harry’s reassurance - their relationship is clearly pretty solid at this point and Albus was soon back to his happy but nervous self. As he went to leave, he hesitated and then gave his parents a big grin, sort of shrugging and wiggling his hands over the trolley handle on his 'Okay then’, before pushing it offstage. He was so innocently hopeful; at this point he seems quite confident that Hogwarts will be a bit scary but he’ll have a great time.

On the Hogwarts Express, my first glimpse of Jon as Scorpius was him making small talk with the Trolley Witch - I don’t know if I’ve seen a Scorpius do this before but it was so sweet! He looked as though he was making such an effort to be polite and pay attention to her.

The introduction between Albus and Scorpius was surprisingly chilled - sometimes I’ve seen them both flailing completely when they are messing up their names but although Dom and Jon obviously had these same lines, there was a kind of ease between them which showed how immediately comfortable they were around each other. There was no judgement at all and neither of them seemed to feel like they needed to be apologetic or self-conscious to the other.

When we got to Rose’s line about the rumour Scorpius is the son of Voldemort, Albus’s reaction was gold - Dom did the biggest 😱 face, he was truly appalled that anyone could ever believe something so outlandish or be so mean as to spread that rumour. When Rose began to leave, his 'no’ to her was immediate and Scorpius looked so surprised that Albus wanted to stay with him; he genuinely wasn’t expecting that Albus would want to be his friend.

In the Hogwarts montage scenes, Dom really shone. He went through so many stages of Albus growing up and losing his happy innocence from the initial scenes. At the beginning when the other kids compared him to Harry, he was so excited - proud of his dad and flattered to be recognised. By second and third year he was starting to get sad, and the other kids were breaking his spirit. He was still trying hard to fit in but he was starting to realise that it was never going to happen. When Harry handed him the Hogsmeade permission form, Albus said the ‘it’ll be full of Hogwarts students’ line to his own hand holding the form which I loved - at this point he was still trying to keep his negativity to himself and didn’t want to be too openly angry with his dad. When the incendio charm actually worked he looked positively gleeful, he’s still enthused about magic and thrilled any time he feels like he’s accomplished something.

Jon’s Scorpius was relentlessly positive in these scenes and even when he revealed that Astoria has died, he still gave a few nervous laughs and was trying his best not to make Albus upset. His voice wavered on 'be my good friend’ like he was allowing himself one moment of weakness even though he was trying hard not to make a scene.

Michelle and Jamie were great in the Harry’s office scene. I’d seen Jamie before and he repeated his little grin and 'ah’ when Hermione calls him out on his paperwork. Michelle laughed at Jamie doing his theatrical bow to her after her ‘gentle nudge from the Minister for Magic’ line, and the whole scene had a vibe of them being very casual and happy around each other. Their friendship and years and years of knowing each other as best friends was really evident.

Next up, Madeleine arrived as Delphi and my first impression was great - she was very awkward and geeky with no traces of suspicion at the beginning here. After her 'I’m a thief’ line she did a quick 'What?’ under her breath to herself which was really endearing. Albus was a bit uncertain of her at first but quite quickly started to listen with concern - he took what she was saying very seriously.

Time for the blanket scene! The change in Dom’s Albus from the start of the play to here was already so apparent - he’s gone through his excitement and then disillusionment, and he’s moved past sadness to anger. He was so done. From the very beginning of the scene he was barely listening to Harry - he could see right through what he perceives as this half-hearted attempt at appeasement. He got increasingly impatient, initially trying to be polite and then starting to lose his cool. It’s the same lines as every time I’ve seen the show but this time around it felt as though Harry and Albus were almost having two separate conversations rather than an argument with each other. They were both using this exchange for something different and neither of them was listening to the other. It felt as though Albus had been waiting for this opportunity and that whatever Harry had said or whatever gift he’d brought, their conversation would still have gone the same. By the time we got to the 'sometimes I wish you weren’t my son’ line, Albus was giving as good as he got - he was shouting and standing way back from Harry and hardly looking at him. He was arguing with himself as much as he was arguing with Harry, and when Jamie said the line, Dom’s reaction was actually quite muted. He expected it. He almost seemed pleased that Harry had actually said what he’d been feeling out loud, because Albus wanted that to happen, he wanted to have his anger validated. Jamie on the other hand was horrified, he’d barely finished the line before he’d reached forward and his voice was breaking on the 'No! I didn’t mean that’ line. Jamie and Dom both did a fantastic job on this scene. It felt equal - it wasn’t one of them picking on the other, they were both provoking each other and they both needed to have this all out in the open.

Now a moment to appreciate Ginny Weasley and more specifically, Susie Trayling. I’d seen Susie before back in March but I really fell in love with her performance this time around. In her conversations with Harry she was so restrained and measured, quiet but still commanding attention and respect. She captures Ginny’s emotional intelligence (something all the Weasleys have in spades) so well and she had the perfect balance of helping Harry understand what he needed to change without reprimanding or nagging him.

Rayxia was fab as Rose at the fourth year Hogwarts Express scene - she was really genuinely sad about not being friends with Albus and very earnest in her offer that she was there if he needed to talk. It really echoed how Michelle’s Hermione was with Harry and how close their friendship was, and showed what could have been between Rose and Albus if things had turned out differently.

The first Albus/Scorpius hug on the train was quite brief - Scorpius looked very surprised but pleasantly so, and then once they’d pulled apart they took it turns to rest their hands on each other’s shoulders over the next couple of lines. As Albus was explaining his jumping-off-the-train plan, Scorpius was listening very intently to him but still gave the impression he was just humouring Albus. He clearly thinks Albus is adorable but he doesn’t believe him for a second that they’re getting off the train until they are actually on the roof, at which point my god, he went mad! He was flailing madly for the whole trolley witch scene and moving so fast he looked like a jellyfish being electrocuted, and it was brilliant. Quick shout-out also to Blythe Duff for doing a great job as the Trolley Witch here. I LOVE the Trolley Witch and as the boys jumped off the train and the set was dismantled and she was pulled offstage she continued to do these really loud ‘Noooooooooooo!’ screams (I think three or four times) and it was fantastic. So melodramatic and also really leaning into the idea that she has just had her 190-year-old perfect record for delivering students to Hogwarts ruined. Not enough people appreciate the real pain and suffering behind the Trolley Witch’s backstory so props to Blythe for doing her justice here 😉

A quick note from the first Ministry of Magic scene - I’ve seen Tom Aldridge as Ron three times now and he’s so flawless in the role, but he did something I’d not picked up on before. When Hermione introduces herself as Minister for Magic, Ron stuck his hand up as if he was saying ‘yes, she’s mine!’. He looked SO proud to be her husband and I love how supportive he is of Hermione, and how openly in love he is with her.

The new St Oswald’s scene - I know this one has divided people but to be honest I didn’t know the old one well enough to pick up on all the changes. The effects were brilliant, lots of objects flying around and a few other tricks that looked great on stage. Gordon Millar was the caretaker in this scene and he was fantastic, really taunting the old witches and wizards and then full-on screaming and getting a taste of his own medicine when they turned on him. I enjoyed having that role fleshed out a bit more but the second half of the scene felt a bit emptier; most of the tricks were at the beginning and that left a bit of filler space. If I’d been seeing it for the first time I doubt it would have bothered me though!

Also in St Oswald’s, when Scorpius and Albus were talking to Amos and he said ‘You’ve brought a Malfoy’, Scorpius was so flattered to be recognised, and then so crestfallen when he continued with ‘who might be a Voldemort’. He really is surprised any time someone shows him attention or gives him praise which broke my heart a little bit, because he clearly doesn’t think he deserves it. As he was listening to Amos talk about Cedric, Jon was doing the same intense focus and being very genuinely sympathetic. You could see he truly cares about other peoples’ pain; even when he is stressed and under pressure he makes the time to listen to others and really empathises.

The ‘grown-ups’ all gave solid performances in their Act One scenes here too. Tom absolutely nails it as Albus/Ron in the polyjuice scene and his comedic timing with the ‘I want a baby’ line got a huge laugh. He knows exactly how to work the crowd and even knowing all the jokes, I still find him hilarious. In McGonagall’s office after Ron comes in from the kitchens, he leaves his napkin tucked into his jumper until Minerva took it off him as they all exited. I’m not sure if this is new but it gave the end of the scene an extra little flourish I enjoyed.

In the forest scene, Madeleine’s Delphi again did a great job of seeming very genuine. She acted quite young and it was easy to see how the boys would trust her, Albus especially. When they told her she should stay behind she visibly deflated and was apparently really concerned for their wellbeing. Dom’s Albus was very excited about getting the expelliarmus spells right and he played this pretty similar to his excitement at the incendio charm earlier or when he got positive comments from the kids at school. He’s a kid who is just desperate for approval, wherever it comes from. It didn’t feel like he was singling Delphi out specifically and wanting to impress her - he wants to impress anyone who will pay him attention.

Right at the beginning of the edge of the forest, Dom did a great little reaction - as Scorpius says ‘still get a tingle, don’t you?’, Albus looked over at him and pulled a ‘what on earth are you on about’ face behind his back. It was very good-natured; he is clearly bemused but still really fond of his weird gangly friend. I loved seeing the little teasing moments like that between the two of them. After he caught up to Scorpius and Jon was onto talking about wanting to come to Hogwarts and wanting a mate to get up to mayhem with, Albus looked so happy again, then turned sullen immediately once he mentioned Harry. Dom’s Albus flipped between emotions so rapidly the whole way through the play and this was a prime example. As soon as Scorpius continued and said Albus was his best friend, he was back to being smiley and flattered. Dom is really expressive with his face and his Albus doesn’t hide his feelings at all, which I loved. When Scorpius was talking about being scared, they got very close to one another and had their hands hovering between them, a little awkwardly, but they are clearly comfortable being near and reassuring each other.

In this first Triwizard scene, Ronnie Lee (Craig) and Luke Sumner (Yann) were noticeably chanting for both Krum and Cedric as they were announced. Sadly I couldn’t make out the words but they had obviously rehearsed and had different lyrics for each contestant, which I loved because god knows I live for Slytherins being extra and dramatic.

Once they were back from the past in the first AU and Albus’s arm was injured, Dom put on a really cheery expression as Harry came onstage, and his ‘Hello Dad!’ was very obviously fake. His Albus is a pretty terrible liar and doesn’t do well at hiding his real emotions even though he tries with this veneer of casual confidence. In the dormitory scene we got a very similar vibe to the blanket argument. Although he seemed a little more receptive to Harry at the beginning, he quickly tuned out and stopped listening closely to his dad. As soon as Harry started to talk about his own time at Hogwarts, you could see Albus switch right off and withdraw into himself - this is clearly a really touchy subject for him and something that immediately makes him angry about his own experiences at school. He stayed that way until it became clear that Harry was serious about separating him from Scorpius, at which point his voice started to wobble and he sounded like he was about to cry on ‘Dad, you can’t’.

A little Jamie note - when Albus and Ron were on the stairs and Albus mentioned Hermione, Jamie recoiled behind him, grimaced and then mouthed ‘sorry’ up at Ron behind Dom’s back. I’d never noticed this before but it was such a nice touch. Jamie is really great at those little quiet moments which say so much about a friendship.

More Susie excellence here too! Her Ginny’s reaction to Harry separating the boys was very quiet but full of silent fury. You could see she was seething under the surface but she remained steely and I got the impression that she was allowing Harry to make his own mistakes and realise them himself, rather than deciding to nag him or try to openly defy him since that would likely turn him defensive. All the love for Ginny Weasley!

Time for Staircase Ballet, and I’m not going to lie, my handwriting was so barely decipherable after this that it took me several minutes to figure out what the notes said. I feel a little bad for not watching Dom as much as I should have, but Jon absolutely shone in this scene. He spent the whole time searching, his face pleading, for Albus, and completely open and ready for whenever (if ever) Albus wanted to speak to him. He leaned forward to Al whenever they were on stage together and when they met at the top of the stairs he was shuffling closer, all nervous and hopeful. His Scorpius is unfailingly optimistic and here he was clearly sticking to his belief that this separation wouldn’t go on forever and at any moment, Albus would relent and start talking to him - which made it even more heartbreaking when Albus turned away. Even until the very end, he seemed disbelieving and was holding out hope that at the last minute Albus would change his mind. Dom’s Albus, on the other hand, felt very angry during this scene - but all that anger was directed at himself. He could barely even look at Scorpius and was quite still, full of nervous tension and not letting himself be tempted by Scorpius’s leaning in and clearly offering to talk. He seemed to be hating himself for playing along with Harry’s rules, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to break them.

When it came to the Scorpius and Delphi scene on the staircases, Madeleine was really interesting. She seemed to almost be mimicking Scorpius; she was very awkward and nervy, fumbling over her sentences and acting quite apologetic in the same way that Jon does. It worked well as a way for her to seem less intimidating to Scorpius himself (and obviously would appeal to Albus in her interactions with him). When she said the ‘something’s got to be done about the two of you’ and ‘you belong together’ lines, Jon reacted very sweetly: he gestured and nodded his head as if to say ‘oh I’m glad you’ve said that, because I think we do too’.

Now I know that people have been raving about Jon for a year now but I’m going to hop on the bandwagon given that he was new to me. His library scene was something else. This is a fab scene and it’s a great chance for any actor in the Scorpius role (i.e. it’s kind of difficult to do it badly) but Jon really was phenomenal here. As soon as he came in and sat down, something about him was different - he was at breaking point already and his usual happy silly personality was failing. He had one chance to sort things out with Albus and he was determined to seize it. He was full of tension and very close to tipping over the edge into panic mode when he was walking Albus through the explanation of what caused the changes in time.

When they started to argue, he was already crying and getting frustrated with himself, and then the audience reaction to Albus’s ‘I wasn’t a loser before I met you’ line was quite dramatic - lots of gasps, almost at ‘wish you weren’t my son’ level - but Scorpius’s reaction here was painfully resigned. He let out a kind of bitter ‘Ahhh, there we go’ noise as if he’d just been waiting for the point when Albus would admit that he didn’t want him anymore. He showed a break in his usual optimism and let all those insecurities come to the surface for a moment. When he got into the full flow of his monologue he was trying so hard to say his piece and getting increasingly annoyed at his crying and his inability to speak calmly. He’d pause in the middle of sentences to wipe his tears and groan at himself, then keep going. All throughout this Dom’s Albus was standing almost totally still, really appalled at how much Scorpius was hurting but also quite clearly not wanting to interrupt him. He seemed to know that it was important for Scorpius to get all this out and although he understood that he was at fault, he wasn’t taking Scorpius’s anger too personally - his reaction wasn’t defensive or bitter in the same way he reacted to Harry shouting at him. By the time Scorpius got to talking about thinking that maybe Astoria was still alive in this AU, he was almost worn out. The fight had gone out of him a little bit and his rant had sort of served its purpose; he wasn’t really that angry at Albus, he was angry at the whole world and its injustices and he just needed to release all of that emotion. Dom’s Albus seemed to understand that.

Once they’d been interrupted by McGonagall and the invisibility cloak part of the scene, Jon had really mellowed and although he moved his chair to face away from Albus, his expression was much softer and he smiled as soon as Dom started talking. Albus went in with the joke about James being easy to steal from and mimed a little vomit action at the broom combination line, but quite quickly he checked himself and turned more serious - he was starting to realise that always deflecting from difficult conversations wasn’t helping him. Once it was clear that Albus was taking things seriously and making an effort to apologise, Scorpius turned right around and was just as attentive as ever, all of his anger and frustration a million miles away already. He still got a little exasperated at himself for crying after Albus told him he was kind, but he was just so happy to have his friend back that nothing else mattered much in that moment. When Albus asked ‘friends?’ and held out his hand, Scorpius held onto it and spoke very clearly and certainly (which isn’t usual for him) as he said ‘Always’. The hug was adorably awkward - Dom pulled Jon up very fast and grabbed him around his middle, and Jon ended up with his arms stuck out straight over Dom’s shoulders, folding his hands back to sort of poke him in the back with his fingers for the ‘that’s the second time you’ve done that’ line.

As soon as Albus started talking about his plan for the second task, he switched into excited Albus mode and was all bouncy and enthusiastic; and when he mentioned the ‘sparkly surprise’ he mimed fireworks with his hands and did an adorable ‘pew pew pew’ noise. He dived down to pick up his bag and the cloak from the floor by Scorpius’s feet and Jon instinctively reached forward and put his hands on Dom’s back - almost as if he was going for another hug, or he was ready to catch Albus if he fell. There were a few moments like this with more casual contact between them and it added a really lovely feeling of familiarity and friendship.

In the bathroom scene with Myrtle, Jon reached over to Dom again when Myrtle was swinging around and almost kicked him, trying to protect him. He was always on the lookout for any danger and trying to keep Albus safe. He also did the funniest gesture on a couple of lines here; it came across as being nervous and feeling exposed in his vest and shorts and bare feet - on the ‘engorgimpressed’ line and when he repeated Myrtle’s name after she gets mad, he stuck one leg forward and pointed his toe as if he was doing a ballet pose. It was so sweet and nervy, like he was putting on a little performance, and it fit perfectly with his sing-song voice and his tendency to flourish his hands on a lot of his lines as though he’s presenting them to an audience. I think it’s Scorpius’s way of acknowledging his awkwardness and trying to almost apologise for it, so that people don’t make fun of him.

Lucy Mangan did a solid job as Myrtle - she wasn’t as high-pitched and whiny as I’ve seen the character played before, but she had a few really funny moments. When she was crying and Albus tried to interrupt, she spun around to look at him and did a ‘talk to the hand’ gesture, then went back for another wail with the taps on full blast. Her ‘I love secrets’ line was SO loud and over-dramatic too and that got a big laugh from the audience. Once the boys were on top of the sink and she’d stuck her leg out in front of Scorpius, she said her ‘I do like brave boys’ line in a very exaggerated playful tone, and then Jon mimicked her when he said ‘Then I’m entirely ready’. He was unusually confident on that line, doing a little jig with his arms and matching her playfulness, like he’d had a sudden burst of courage and wasn’t feeling threatened by her at all.

That’s about all for Part One, except to say that the dementors at the very end are still one of my favourite parts of the whole show. The first time I saw it in 2016 it completely blew my mind and every time since I’ve thought I was ready and I was NOT. This time around I was still so shaken and I really just want to shout out the sound engineering/design here because I don’t quite know how they manage it, but the combination of the volume and the intensity of the music and dementor sound effects just creates such a tense and overwhelming environment that it always leaves me basically hyperventilating. I’ve never encountered anything like it!

Onto Part Two and of course we start with poor Scorpius in the dark AU. Jon’s Scorpius is so soft that I wasn’t sure how he would hold up here but as soon as he came onstage he was very different - much stiller and restraining all of his normal fidgety mannerisms, although he did still let out a nervous laugh here and there while talking to Umbridge. Kathryn Meisle was fantastic as Umbridge here, getting the balance of sickly sweetness and a real evil edge just right. Scorpius was visibly restraining himself, hunching over and leaving pauses before he spoke because he was so nervous about saying the wrong thing and getting into trouble.

The scene between Jon and James in Draco’s office was heartbreaking. This was my third time seeing James Howard as Draco so I knew more or less what to expect from him, but I thought he worked especially well with Jon as Scorpius. He’s very stoic, with just a hint of nerves and emotion under his Malfoy veneer. Jon’s Scorpius was again quite optimistic in this scene - he obviously goes into the office expecting to find the same Draco as he has at home, and his approach is quite casual and calm, which suggests how close they must be in their real world. Throughout his lines asking if the attacks on muggles were orchestrated by Draco, you could tell that he didn’t believe what he was suggesting at all; he couldn’t possibly believe that his dad would do something so awful. However he finally reached breaking point and then all of a sudden this anger and pain burst out of nowhere and he completely blew up at Draco. It was similar to his behaviour in the library scene with Albus - staying positive, hiding his stress, and restraining himself until he can’t possibly contain himself any longer and then absolutely losing it. It was desperately sad to watch because Jon’s Scorpius is so soft and quiet that you know when he gets angry he really means it. Once they started talking about Astoria though, he calmed quite quickly, and Draco softened a lot on his final lines telling Scorpius to be safe. It seemed as though Scorpius had just about forgotten that things were all wrong until the final ‘For Voldemort and valour’ - once Draco made the gesture to him, Scorpius let out this awful bitter almost-laugh, his realisation that what he thought was a breakthrough to the ‘real’ Draco wasn’t real, and he’s still no closer to escaping this awful world. It felt like he was losing hope and that was so difficult to watch.

Quick shout-out to our new Craig Bowker Jr, Ronnie Lee! He did a great job at making a small part memorable - his movement was fantastic on the transition scenes and as soon as he started speaking, I nearly had a fit because his Craig has a northern accent! I couldn’t place it exactly because he has so few lines but as a northerner myself I was chuffed to hear someone with a bit of regional accent onstage, given that aside from Hagrid and the Scots (McGonagall/Station Master), everyone else in the show usually has very RP accents. Anyway, apart from the accent, Ronnie seemed very good-natured and an amicable Craig, which is what makes his death even sadder later on.

This was also my third time seeing David Annen as Severus Snape and his portrayal is still spot-on - his voice is remarkably similar to Alan Rickman’s from the movies and it’s so easy to see him as the character straight off the bat. He has a great skill for deadpan humour and some of his lines got massive laughs from the audience (‘I exist to serve’ being my personal favourite). Jon in this scene was very respectful, and you could really see how much Scorpius revered and admired Snape. That said, when Snape revealed that Cedric had killed Neville (which got a big ‘awww’ from the audience, rather than the shocked gasps I’ve heard before), Scorpius seemed just the tiniest bit disappointed that he hadn’t been able to solve the puzzle himself - his ‘you’ve solved it’ line was relieved and happy but a little bit regretful too.

For some reason I didn’t write any notes for the rest of the dark AU scenes, but I remember enjoying Michelle’s openness with Ron in the part where she reveals she’s always loved him and then decides they should both stay there to hold the dementors off for longer. She’s definitely the most emotionally available Hermione I’ve seen, if that makes sense - she wasn’t closing herself off or hiding her feelings to put on a stoic front.

Next up is my absolute favourite scene of the whole play(s) - when Scorpius comes up from the lake after the dark AU and Albus reappears alongside him. Sometimes the Albuses seem to take forever to pop back up out of the water, but Dom appeared pretty soon after Jon here, and for what felt like quite a long time, Scorpius just stared in silence at Albus as he chattered away about the task, as though he was trying to take in every detail of Albus’s face because he’d missed him so much. Then, when he started to scream, my god did he scream! He let out this long, high-pitched screech and really hurled himself at Albus for the hug. It didn’t last long, but they pulled apart naturally (Albus didn’t push Scorpius back like I’ve seen in the past), and then they stayed close as Albus kind of gently pulled at the lapels of Scorpius’s coat as he asked ‘what are you wearing?’.

Once Scorpius jumped out of the lake, he did the funniest pose on the ‘it’s AMAZING’ line, throwing his fists up in the air and holding a kind of cheering stance for a second or two as he yelled. As Harry came onstage he let out another high-pitched scream and absolutely belted ‘IT’S HARRY POTTER’, and at this point the audience were all laughing so much that he then got a full round of applause - which he totally deserved but which unfortunately drowned out the Ginny/McGonagall lines and only just died down in time for ‘Hi dad!’ which he did in a very sing-song voice. James Howard then did something I’d not seen him do before and mimicked the singing with a very high-pitched ‘Hello Scorpius’. It was an adorable interaction and really made me smile.

James continued the Draco highlights into the McGonagall’s office scene - when she said her line about choosing the punishment for Albus and Scorpius, Draco responded with ‘Seems fair’ but as he spoke, stuck his hand up in the air as if he was answering a lesson in class, then gave the smuggest look to Harry and Ginny. For a split second he was exactly like eleven-year-old Draco being the teacher’s pet to Snape and acting like a swot to impress all his classmates, and it was hilarious.

There were a couple of really sweet Rose moments in this scene too. First was when she and the other kids were listening on the stairs outside the office, and Ryan as James comforted her after she started to seem upset at the realisation that there was an alternate world where she didn’t exist. James put his hands on Rose’s shoulders really gently and you could see her react gratefully. Once they were all moving away from the office and she encountered Hermione in the hall, she initially turned away - but it seemed to be more out of uncertainty and unwillingness to show her emotions than because she was angry. Michelle’s Hermione was quite clearly distressed here and looked on the verge of tears as soon as she saw Rose. Their hug was very close and heartfelt, and you could see how much they meant to each other.

The Slytherin dormitory scene between Harry and Albus is one of my favourites because I think it comes at such an interesting point in their relationship, and I thought Jamie and Dom worked brilliantly together here. Dom’s Albus was starting to make small steps towards understanding his own emotions, and he was less angry here than he had been in earlier conversations with Harry. He was holding himself back from saying anything too rash, and it felt as though he was realising he wasn’t just angry at Harry, there was more going on than just what was happening between the two of them. He really softened as soon as Ginny was mentioned and it seemed as though he was realising that it was important he and Harry needed to figure things out - for her as well as for themselves.

The second Slytherin dorm scene was also fantastic with Jon and Dom bouncing off each other really well. They were both pretty casual and quite quiet with each other - really showing how comfortable the characters are around each other by this point. When Jon said his ‘Scorpius the Dreadless’ line, he did this silly marching motion with his arms, sticking his chest out and pretending to be all confident, which Dom then mimicked in a very cute way on ‘I’m not sure being fearless is going to be good for your health.’ It was little touches like these that gave them a very genuine best-friends vibe. Dom’s Albus seemed very genuinely happy for Scorpius that he was feeling so confident, and he was enjoying the silly teasing about Polly and Rose. Once they started talking about their attempts to save Cedric though, Albus got really down on himself very quickly, beating himself up for making such ‘stupid’ decisions, and Scorpius turned very earnest in trying to stop him from thinking that way. Telling Albus that he’d thought of him to cast his patronus worked wonders and Albus absolutely lit up at that line - looked so flattered and happy and incredulous. Then came the time turner reveal, and I have never seen someone so perfectly embody the 😱 emoji as Dom at this bit. He was so shocked and disbelieving, like he had never considered for a second that Scorpius would be able to hide that from him; but also quite excited and proud of his friend for doing something rebellious and cool.

I really enjoyed the Owlery scene this time around too. Jon’s Scorpius was very fidgety again, getting up and down, twisting around, flailing his hands, and getting noticeably closer to Albus bit by bit, until they were shoulder-to-shoulder just as Delphi arrived. Madeleine was fantastic again here and had some great expressions. When she said that Euphemia Rowle had only taken her in for the gold, she stuck her bottom lip out and pulled a very over-the-top baby sad face at Albus, keeping her geeky charade up right until the last minute. Then she flipped and revealed herself to be the Augurey - and all of her act was dropped immediately. She was loving finally being able to show these boys what she was made of.

In the Ministry office scene we had another really lovely Ron and Hermione moment: on the ‘I will skewer you with this quill’ line, they had a little joust with their quills, poking each other and laughing. And when Ron explained that he wanted to renew their vows and got down on one knee, Michelle’s Hermione allowed herself a little moment of giddiness, and turned all soft at his flirting. I loved it - I think sometimes it can feel like Hermione only puts up with Ron and doesn’t quite reciprocate his feelings, but there was no hint of that with these two. Hermione was really affectionate throughout the play and especially in these little moments, and Michelle’s version felt like a Hermione who had grown over the years and become more comfortable with her emotions and better at expressing them, as well as still being very much in love with Ron.

By this point in the show I knew that the torture scenes with Delphi and the boys were going to be painful to watch because Jon’s Scorpius is so soft and innocent, and I wasn’t wrong. Madeleine’s Delphi is horribly sadistic and was gleeful here, whereas Scorpius was very hunched over, all his body language pleading not to be hurt. Albus’s expression was one of unadulterated hatred - Dom’s version of Albus usually has his emotions written plain on his face and that was especially the case here. He was seething, absolutely loathing Delphi for what she was doing. He was full of nervous energy too and once she let loose with the crucio on Scorpius he ran to her straight away, determined to fight. Once it had become clear that Delphi was in control though, and wouldn’t hesitate to torture Scorpius again, he changed - becoming much stiller, much more desperate. He watched what was happening in anguish but clearly knew that trying to protest again would aggravate her more. He was looking back and forth between them, trying to find any opportunity to intervene, and increasingly distressed that there was nothing he could do.

The scene in Harry’s office between Harry and Dumbledore really got me this time. I’ve never cried at this bit before and to be honest when I saw Jamie Ballard for the first time back in March this year I didn’t fall in love with his interpretation of the character, but I did a complete 180 after this scene, he was so brilliant. He was quite softly-spoken for a while with Dumbledore, and then really let rip when he started talking about the Dursleys and how he thought that nobody cared about him. It was really clear how much adult Harry still has to manage all that trauma and how it’s never really left him - and how much of an impact it has on his interactions with his family now. He reined himself in again quite quickly after his outburst and that was even more heart-breaking to see; he so rarely lets himself feel all of that pain and injustice even though under the surface he is (rightfully) angry at everything he had to go through. His voice broke when he told Dumbledore he loved him and he was still very teary when Draco appeared in his office.

I love James Howard’s Draco and this is one of his strongest scenes too. He gets the balance of old Draco and new, adult Draco just right. The little touches of humour with his awkward small talk and useless dad jokes remind you of how much of a little shit he was as a child, but then he moves seamlessly into the more serious conversations about Scorpius and Astoria. The expression of pain and regret that crossed his face as soon as Harry mentioned Scorpius’s name killed me - his love for his son and his family is so clear and I adore that he doesn’t shy away from those feelings any more; he’s grown so much since his school days.

Now we come to the Godric’s Hollow scenes and I loved the interactions between Jon and Dom here. We got a return to happy Albus when Scorpius told him about the statue of the Potters that would be put up after their deaths - he lit up and it was like that very first time at Hogwarts in Act One when one of the kids told him he looked like Harry and he was just so proud to be a Potter. I loved that those feelings hadn’t been completed stamped out of him and he hadn’t turned too cynical by this point; it was a promising sign for how his relationship with his dad could still be repaired. When the two boys were trying to come up with a plan Dom was pulling a very intense concentrating face and gesturing a lot with his hands; it’s as though he’s thinking out loud but using gestures instead of words, if that makes sense? Scorpius’s ‘HELP’ lines got a big laugh from the audience although Jon spoke them a bit quieter than some of the Scorpiuses I’ve seen, and he clearly knew as soon as he started speaking that it was a stupid idea - he seemed to be waiting for Albus to interrupt him so that he could stop with his ridiculous monologue.

These two did my favourite version of the ‘return of eternal darkness’ lines I think I’ve ever seen. As Scorpius began the line, he seemed to be psyching himself up, and he paused before ‘I’d choose you’ to take a deep breath, as though it was taking him a lot of courage - like it was an admission he was a bit scared to say out loud - and then Dom’s response was wonderful. In the past I’ve seen Albuses roll their eyes or seem a bit exasperated by this comment from Scorpius, but Dom left a pause for a few seconds and then rather than giving one of his big toothy grins, he gave a much softer smile as he said his ‘no offense, but I’d choose someone massive and good at magic’ line, and he spoke slower and quieter than usual. It didn’t feel like he was making fun of Scorpius, or deflecting or changing the subject; it felt like he was acknowledging all the meaning Scorpius had put into his words and accepting that meaning, and saying ‘I’d choose you too’ without actually speaking the words out loud - because this is still Albus Potter, king of not being able to talk about his feelings. Scorpius seemed pleased with how he responded too, seemed to understand what he was trying to say, and they held eye contact for a second or two and kept smiling. I hadn’t expected it to be such a tender and sweet moment, but I truly loved it and I really hope they keep their version of the scene that way, because it says so much about the development of their friendship. Once they started figuring out their blanket plan, they both got really excited, bounding around the stage and flailing - especially Dom. This kid LOVES a good plan.

Next up, the adults arrive in Godric’s Hollow, and I have to take a second to appreciate James Howard going the extra mile here by doing a full-on dramatic gasp and step forward on his ‘farmer’s market’ line. I’ve never seen him do it so over-the-top before but it’s one of my favourite lines so I’m glad he gets such a big laugh for it!

The Scorpius and Draco reunion was a tale of two halves in this scene. When Draco appeared and stepped forward, Jon’s Scorpius jumped, turned and actually ran two or three paces back in panic before stopping. This actually got a laugh from the audience which really surprised me to be honest, because to me it read as heart-breaking, to see him in so much distress at the sight of his dad. It really got me thinking actually, because although at first I assumed it was a result of his interactions with Draco in the dark AU, I then thought that their dark AU office scene doesn’t seem like enough to cause such a violent reaction from Scorpius, especially since they presumably talked and bonded again once they were back in the right world (as Harry and Albus did in the dormitory scene). So what would make Scorpius react that way? I still don’t really know and it could be simply that he’s stressed at that point in the play and would have panicked regardless, but part of me wonders if this was intended as a hint as some deeper trauma (perhaps from his grandfather Lucius) in childhood that gets triggered in that moment. Regardless, it was an interesting choice on Jon’s part but I’m not sure if it will stick around given that audience reaction - I doubt he intended it to be a funny moment. Anyway, once he had recovered and realised it was just his dad, Scorpius moved back towards Draco and they went in for their hug with plenty of enthusiasm. Once they’d pulled apart, Draco held Scorpius’s face in his hands and looked right into his eyes, talking to him gently and calming him down, in a way that they had clearly done before at other times when Scorpius was stressed and anxious. He did this again a few seconds later while the others were talking and it was so lovely - you could see his love for Scorpius shining out of him and he knew exactly how to be there for his son in that moment. All the good dad points to Draco Malfoy.

Susie’s Ginny stood out for me in the St Jerome’s scene. I adore her speech to Harry in this scene and she played it beautifully - with the same serenity and calmness she’d had in previous scenes, but with a bit of a wavering voice and visible emotion on her lines about Harry playing exploding snap with her at Hogwarts. It was a really touching detail and I got the impression that Ginny was allowing herself a moment or two of letting her feelings come to the surface after staying stoic and practical during all the time that her beloved son had been missing.

My notes were pretty sparse by this point in the show because I was an emotional wreck already, but all the cast were on brilliant form here and there were some wonderful details I picked up. When Harry volunteers to be transfigured into Voldemort, Dom’s reaction was really moving - he stepped forward a few paces and from his expression he seemed to be really seeing Harry for the first time, without any of his judgements and anger about his dad. When he said ‘it’s the only way’ he was so supportive and properly agreeing with his dad, ready to stand up and defend him. He did the same when he asked Draco to trust Harry, stepping forward until he was quite close to Draco and spoke very assuredly, totally confident in his dad’s idea.

As they were waiting for Delphi to arrive and Scorpius was keeping lookout at the church door, there was another sweet moment between him and Draco - Draco kept a hand on Scorpius’s shoulder and a couple of times Jon looked up at James and they chatted for a little while. I couldn’t tell anything of what they were saying but they were smiling and it looked as though Draco was reassuring Scorpius, and making sure he stayed calm.

Madeleine’s Delphi was great in the battle scene and she was completely unhinged, which I love. She let out some fantastically evil cackles and she was making biting gestures at Ron and Harry when they had captured her. Her transformation from her sweet innocent act earlier in the play was very dramatic and she was totally believable as the child of Voldemort - although you still felt a little sorry for her when she started pleading to be killed or have her memory wiped, when she knew she was defeated; her heartbreak seemed very genuine.

The Lily and James scene absolutely destroys me every time I see the show and knowing what’s coming doesn’t make it any easier. Dom’s Albus was wonderful in this part - once it became clear that they were going to have to watch them die, he stood very close to Harry and slowly moved to hold his dad’s hand, full of compassion and support. All he cared about in that moment was being there for Harry and all of their previous arguments and anger was completely forgotten. He wasn’t thinking about himself at all, which is a huge development for Albus, and Dom showed that journey so well. Scorpius and Draco were perfect here too, with James holding Jon so tightly I thought he might squish him, and covering his face so that Scorpius couldn’t see what was happening. Draco is so protective of his son and it makes me so happy.

Once I’d finished crying I just about managed to make some notes during the final two scenes, with the first obviously being Scorpius and Albus on the staircases. Similar to their Godric’s Hollow scene, Jon and Dom gave me my favourite interpretation of this scene that I’ve seen so far. They were so casual and happy around each other, and as Scorpius was going on about Rose and Polly, Albus was nodding and grinning along with him - he seemed to be happy to humour his friend and enjoying that he was so enthusiastic, without really appearing to believe that Scorpius had any chance with either of the girls. Rayxia was very confident as Rose and was holding back her laughter in a good-natured kind of way, with a very similar vibe - messing with Scorpius a little bit but mostly just fond of him and amused that he was keeping up this silly charade of fancying her when she knew nothing was ever going to happen.

Once Rose had left the stage, Scorpius moved closer and closer to Albus at the foot of the stairs, and it was funny seeing them with their (dramatic) height difference switched the other way around. Jon has a very intense gaze in general but it was especially noticeable here as he was looking up at Albus and positively beaming at him. Their hug was quite quick, but they didn’t pull far apart afterwards and when Scorpius said his ‘new version of us’ line, he reached up and really gently rested his hands on Albus’s shoulders for a few seconds, keeping that steady gaze and some very adorable smiles from both of them. It was extremely cute. Even after he’d let go of Dom’s shoulders, they both stayed quite close at the foot of the stairs with their hands kind of awkwardly between them (but not quite touching) for the rest of the scene with their lines about asking Rose and then going to dinner. Sometimes I’ve seen Scorpiuses already halfway offstage at this point so I loved that they stayed right there until the very end, and left each other with lots of smiles. It felt like a more fitting end to their time together in the play than other interpretations of that scene where they’ve seemed like they didn’t care too much about leaving each other. For this pair, something had changed between them - their friendship had become deeper and more open than ever before and their connection was so wonderful.

Jamie and Dom were a brilliant pair in the graveyard scene too and they work so well together as father and son. They were a million miles away from their fraught, angry relationship at the beginning of the show and really captured the journey that these characters have been on. As soon as Albus starting talking about Lily and James, Harry lit up - he was so thrilled and proud that his son was making a real effort to connect with him. And as Harry was talking, Albus was listening very intently; a complete contrast to how he withdrew and ignored him in the earlier scenes. He was still nervous and awkward when he was making jokes (with very similar mannerisms to Harry), but he was showing how much he cares about his dad and being open and honest with him for the first time. When Harry said his line about knowing Albus’s heart ‘is a good one’, Albus was glowing with pride - that specific love and praise meant the absolute world to him. And at the very end after the ‘nice day’ lines, they stood first with their arms around each other’s shoulders, then leaned in close and Harry pulled Albus into a great big hug and Albus wrapped his arms really tightly around his dad as he ruffled his hair. It was perfect - these two are a pair who both display their emotions very openly and it suited them to have such an affectionate moment at the end of their journey (compared to some of the more restrained Albus and Harry pairs in previous casts).

_________

So! That’s all for my notes on individual scenes, but there were a few more bits and pieces I scribbled down between parts and after the show in terms of my initial reactions to this cast.

Even though it was only a few weeks into their run, Cast 4 seem to be working brilliantly together already. Obviously we’ve got a lot of returning cast members but the newbies seem to have slotted into place easily and I feel like this group are only going to go from strength to strength.

As I’ve said before, I feel as though I’m very late to the Jonathan-Case-is-brilliant party, but I was really blown away by him. I thought I knew what to expect from reading other people’s recaps and reviews and I was wrong - his energy on stage is something you can’t quite get across in words. I think that in many ways Scorpius is the easiest character to love in Cursed Child - he has a lot of the best comedic moments, plus a tragic backstory - and it’s natural to come away from the show singing his praises, but in this case it’s wholly deserved. Jon really felt to me like the real Scorpius, with just the right balance of nerves and charisma and Malfoy-ish determination. His mannerisms were often full of anxiety and he almost never stops moving, always flailing his arms, fidgeting with his sleeves, clasping his hands over his heart. I mentioned his gaze earlier too - every time he’s listening to someone speak he fixes them with this look, full of empathy and concern, as though they are the only person in the world and he is giving them 100% of his attention. He’s also relentlessly positive and optimistic; he wants to see the good in every person and every situation until he’s definitively proven wrong. It definitely gave me the impression that his Scorpius is a kid who grew up with Astoria teaching him to be unfailingly kind, but also that her illness and the legacy of the Malfoy family shaped him to be naturally apologetic, and desperate to make everyone happy, often at his own expense. That said, he has a very clear hidden strength that really comes to the fore in Part Two, and Jon did a great job at capturing the evolution of Scorpius’s character and his self-belief across the events of the play. The library scene was the stand-out performance for me and I can’t wait to see him again.

Dom’s Albus is an absolute sweetheart. He was everything I hoped he would be from the little snippets we’d seen of Dominic since his casting was announced, and I feel like he’s captured my favourite parts of previous Albuses and combined them into a fantastically rounded version of the character. He is SO expressive, and everything he was feeling was clear on his face and in his body language throughout the show; I feel as though Dom has stripped Albus’s motivations and feelings back to their most simple form - I mean that in a really positive way. He’s gotten right to the heart of his character, which is that he is a kid who just wants to be seen and to be loved. Everything he does and every interaction with his friends and family is shaped by that desire and it makes for a very innocent and charming portrayal. His default state is happiness and that’s what he reverts to when he’s not stressed or angry, and I loved that; it felt like a very accurate reflection of how Harry and Ginny’s personalities were combined in him, and also made him feel closer in personality to his siblings. Some Albuses in the past have felt like total black sheep in their family and seemed like they would never ever fit in properly, but Dom has created a character who shares so many characteristics with the Potters and Weasleys, he just needs steering in the right direction a little and then his bonds with them will all fall into place. His mannerisms are very endearing too - because he’s quite short, he comes across as this little ball of energy and determination. He gestures quite a lot and is very focused; when he’s listening to other characters he usually looks like he’s concentrating very hard on what they’re saying and thinking about everything in great detail.

As a pair, Jon and Dom bounce off each other brilliantly. I can’t comment on how Jon’s performance might have changed compared to last year because it was my first time seeing him, but these two seemed to have a fantastic connection already and the friendship they created between Scorpius and Albus was really genuine and supportive. Compared to the other Scorpius/Albus pairs I’ve seen (Anthony/Sam, Harry/Theo, Jordan/Joe), I felt these two were the most similar to each other in terms of their personality and mannerisms, and that made me really happy - it felt like their characteristics had been rubbing off on each other over the years they’d been friends and showed how close they were. Overall I’m just so happy we have these two in these roles; they’re both brilliant fits and I’m hoping to see them as many times as possible this year!

Like I said earlier, when I saw Jamie B in March this year he wasn’t my favourite Harry I’d seen, but I really loved him this time around. I think the other changes in the cast have given him a bit more of a mellow vibe compared to the previous performance I saw and that highlighted some other aspects of his characterisation I really enjoyed. I thought he captured the awkward, dorky side of Harry really well in his little jokes and gestures, and his relationship with Albus was beautifully nuanced - you could understand his frustrations and what caused him to make the mistakes he does with Albus, as well as his trauma and regret. I’m excited to return to his performance and see what else I can spot next time around.

I’ve already raved about Susie earlier but she really stood out to me as Ginny this time and I adored her portrayal of her as this fierce, quick-witted, endlessly patient and generous woman with fantastic emotional intelligence and strength. She’s just like book Ginny and I love her for that. Michelle was a fab Hermione and although I think she’s still got plenty of room to play around with the role and really make it her own, the emotional vulnerability she brought to Hermione was really lovely to see. Tom and James have been the perfect Ron and Draco every time I’ve seen them in those roles and this time was no exception.The rest of the ensemble were all so strong too - Madeleine as Delphi was particularly enjoyable and Rayxia brought some new details to Rose’s character which worked brilliantly.

All in all, it was a flawless show and I came away from the Palace feeling like I was floating because the whole thing just brought me so much joy. I am already counting down the days till my next trip back and I’m head over heels in love with Cast Four 💜

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