'Cursed Child' plays actress Noma Dumezweni excited to return to play Hermione in NYC

[masterofmystery]

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child's star Noma Dumezweni, who originally portrayed Hermione Granger in the London production, and will be bringing back the beloved character - who celebrates her birthday this Tuesday, September 19th - to New York City, chatted recently about what possible changes she might make to the role on Broadway.

Dumezweni was on hand at The Stage Debut Awards in London this weekend, where she reveled in the fact that over 60 percent of the West End audience for Cursed Child are first time theatergoers because they were Harry Potter book fans.

.@MissDumezweni talks about the next steps for #HarryPotter and the #CursedChild https://t.co/L6FBSOWLUv #DebutAwards

— BBC News Ents Team (@BBCNewsEnts) September 19, 2017

Quote:

Noma Dumezweni: "I went to see the new [London] cast, with Rakie Ayola playing Hermione, and I loved it."

"I went, 'Oh my God they're doing their own thing', and within that there were little changes, and I thought, yes, that makes sense.

"And I said to Rakie, 'I'm totally stealing some of your stuff, because I really enjoy what you do'. But that's the highest compliment I can give her, as an actress to another actress, I love what she did."

"Hopefully there'll be room for us to expand. The first time I was at the Royal Shakespeare Company was to do The Winter's Tale, and I came back to it nine months later.

"And because of the world you've lived in for those nine months, it adds another texture, another way of thinking to what you've already got.

"I came back nine months later and felt, 'Woah, I've grown', so I'm looking forward to the growing of my Hermione when we do Broadway."

"For me, you could say my big West End debut was Cursed Child, but I'm in my 40s, and it's like, when is that beginning? To acknowledge the beginnings of people is a beautiful thing."

Along with Olivier Award-winning actress Dumezweni, the original London cast returning includes Jamie Parker (Harry Potter), Paul Thornley (Ron Weasley), with Poppy Miller (Ginny Potter), Sam Clemmett (Albus Potter), Alex Price (Draco Malfoy) and Anthony Boyle (Scorpius Malfoy). Preview performances will begin in New York at the fully renovated Lyric Theatre in March 2018 with an official opening on Sunday, April 22, 2018.