The name of the long-awaited London play has been announced: it will be called
Harry Potter And The Cursed Child, and tickets will go on sale this fall. The play will open in summer 2016 at the Palace Theatre, though no one has been cast in any of the roles yet, including of course Harry himself.
The focus of the play, according the Daily Mail's very reliable
Baz Bamigboye, will be about Lily and James Potters' time during the first war in the 1970s, leading to their deaths Halloween 1981, and Harry's early years with the Dursleys before he goes to Hogwarts.
Quote:
The Cursed Child delves into what happened to Harry’s parents — Lily Evans Potter and James Potter — before they were killed by Lord Voldemort, forcing an infant Harry to be raised in miserable circumstances by his mother’s sister, Petunia, her horrid husband Vernon and their spoiled son Dudley.
The play may also look at the complicated relationship between siblings Lily and Petunia. A muggle like the rest of her family, Petunia was always put out by her sister’s magical prowess.
There is also dramatic fodder in the friendship between Lily and Severus Snape during their schooldays at Hogwarts (both were members of the Order Of The Phoenix).
Another of their friends — Remus Lupin — may also figure in the story.
J.K. Rowling collaborated with director John Tiffany and Jack Thorne on the project, though she did not write the script herself. Casting is underway for all the key roles, including a young Harry and Dudley, Lily and James Potter around 20 years old, Petunia and Vernon Dursley a few years older, and possibly Lupin, Peter Pettigrew and Sirius Black.
More details and ticket information will be announced this July.