Just watched HP & cursed child...many (negative!) thoughts below
Preamble: I got tickets free from my work so I did not give any of my own money to Her. I don't want to get into an ethical debate of going to see it because it's filling up seats and blah blah, I am going to tear the play to shreds below so hopefully it discourages others from seeing it in the future and that will be my contribution to the anti-author sentiment.
First, if you don't know Harry Potter intricately, this show is not for you. There were so many references and the whole plot is based on the assumption that you remember the fourth book/movie in intricate detail. Character and world names are thrown out left, right and center with no attempt to acclimate the audience.
Second, this story is not structured well for a play. It makes sense if it followed a Book arc, but it's not a book, it's a play. And plays need to have a different progression than books.
To expand on that point, the two main characters Scorpius and Albus doubled back way too much. The show could have cut out the first trial entirely and just gone to the second and Scorpius would have realized pretty immediately how badly he fucked up.
By reducing how many times they double back, it could have served the story two-fold, we could have gotten a better understanding of our Surprise Twist Villain (whose name I don't remember) or...
Third, TIME. The show is so, so bloated. And to think it used to be two nights of a performance and like 6 hours all together. I saw a one-night version at just 3 hours and it still felt at least 45 minutes too much. There were so many scenes that could be condensed for time or just cut down or out entirely.
Fourth, the story itself. Beyond being muddled and convoluted for no reason, the story made no sense! Why Cedric? Why bring up a time turner? How would Scorpius with his encyclopedic memory of the books not know the consequences of the time turner -- which, if I'm being nitpicky actually functions differently in the show than in the books, just saying. In trying to overexplain every single thing, I was just never convinced by the plot contrivances in the first place, which leads me to my biggest gripe...
Fifth, the whole purpose of the show just felt like JKR justifying every single choice/"plot hole" in the original series. The whole play felt like a front for her to say to all the haters AND HERE'S why the time turner wouldn't have saved James and Lily! AND HERE'S why Cedric HAD to die! AND HERE'S more proof that Snape is "just flawed" (give me a break!) AND HERE'S why Dumbledore left Harry with the Dursleys! Like it just felt like the play used every opportunity possible to try and ret-con/explain why !Actually! that wasn't a plot hole! dumb.
Sixth, the premise had actual promise and the character conflict WORKED outside of the stupid plot. Like Albus questioning if he can live up to Harry's impossible standard is Interesting! And Albus being a Slytherin and befriending a Malfoy is INTERESTING! so the potential was there!
Seventh, if she wanted to ret-con the story/world, then she could have used Harry's position in the Ministry to make structural changes and maybe, I don't know, address the literal slavery that's included and hand-waved away in the original story?? Or talk about the existence of the Ministry in the first place? If she's so insistent on fixing mistakes, maybe work on how "the boy who lived" changed the Present world, instead of continuing to rehash the same story, which has literally already been done better!
Eighth, the quick dialogue was hard to follow (sorry, stupid American ears) and so much of it was bogged down in terms of cheap, Marvel-esque jokes, that it was hard to really get emotionally invested.
Ninth, I'm so sorry, but you're going to look me in my eyeballs and tell me that Harry Fucking Potter, Boy who Lived would fucking Stand By and watch his parents die?? The one fucking thing that we had seven books about how badly he wanted to reverse it? Are you fucking kidding me.
Tenth, Cedric wouldn't fucking become a Death Eater and kill Neville. I'm sorry. You cannot write him as a kind upstart fucking Hufflepuff and expect me to believe he would turn evil.
Eleventh, I understood what was happening because these books were my life for at least 4 years of my childhood. If that wasn't the case, then the show would go over your head, completely. Which, I don't think makes it a great show.
Twelfth, the effects and music were cool. Not enough to sell me on the show though. And I thought the performers did a good job with the absolute hot trash material they were given :)
Thirteenth, because I thought of something else as I was rereading this post. Ron was there for comedic relief and nothing else. Clearly whoever wrote the script didn't understand or value Ron's role in the original series because he offers absolutely nothing to the play.
Fourteenth, the whole thing felt like it was just trying to ret-con every critique lobbed at the series! I know I already said it, but it bears repeating! That was it! That was the point of the show! Not enough diversity? Now Hermione's Black. Severus was an asshole and bullied schoolchildren? No, he just loved Lily and befriended Ron and Herimone. No gays? We're going to give you a homoerotic subplot! Why didn't they use the time turner to save James and Lily? Because Harry loves his own kid too much. Fuck. It's just so stupid.
Fucking use the themes already established with the conflict between Albus and Harry. Make the rest of the OG characters minor characters and follow Albus and Scorpius through their years and make it a fun romp. You can even have an evil character (still can't remember her name) try to emulate Voldemort by trying to make her own horocruxes (way more interesting tbh) and then deal with how the Magic World has changed (or, even more interesting, hasn't!) in the wake of Harry Potter's influence. There was a way to do this story, but what I just saw on stage was not it and it did not deliver in a way that made me feel like my fucking free tickets were worth it.
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