Review: Harry Potter Grows Up

“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, “ Hollywood Pantages Theatre, Los Angeles, February 13 to June 22, 2025

April 12, 2025 | By Bruce R. Feldman

In Brief: Having read the seven Harry Potter books or at least having seen the hit movies will help you enjoy Harry Pottery Potter and the Cursed Child more. Even if you’ve never heard of Quidditch or don’t know the difference between Hogwarts and halva, you will still be entertained by this frequently captivating if protracted theatrical spectacle.

It's not a musical, but there's a lot of music and choreographed movement in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Photo: Mathew Murphy)

It’s unlikely that J.K. Rowling could have imagined the global sensation to come when she published the first Harry Potter novel in 1997, but nearly 30 years later, the story of the boy wizard, his boarding school friends, and their evil nemesis Lord Valdemort continues to enchant legions of devoted fans.

The latest installment in the fantasy series – a lavish stage presentation concocted by the prodigious British screenwriter Jack Thorne (his Adolescence is a Netflix hit now) – debuted in London in 2016, in New York in 2018, and has finally arrived in the backwater that New York impresarios call Los Angeles.

It’s mostly been worth waiting for, certainly more so if you are a Potterhead or come with kids who are, as most of the audience did on the night I attended.

Thorne’s story is difficult for the unversed to follow. It starts some 19 years after the last book ends and  goes something like this: When Harry Potter’s son Albus befriends the son of his fiercest rival, Draco Malfoy, it sparks a magical, perilous new journey to the past to right an old wrong.

Also lavish sets, clever illusions, and spectacular effects

Thorne’s convoluted plot is scarcely the attraction here. The production overflows with extravagant sets by Christine Jones, impressive illusions created by Jamie Harrison, atmospheric lighting by Neil Austin, energetic performances from a 35-member ensemble cast, and plenty of other dazzling stagecraft.

There’s also a great deal of choreographed movement by Steven Hoggett to Imogen Heap’s Cirque du Soleil-type score that mostly involves a lot of cape swishing and swooshing. The charm of that wears thin after the first dozen or so times it’s used.

Credit director Jack Tiffany for corralling all of these elements and keeping the youthful audience on the edge of their seats for the presentation’s two-hour and 50-minute running time.

Frequent theatergoers may find Harry Potter and the Cursed Child a bit tedious and overwrought, though a still rewarding theatrical experience. Potter fans will love every minute.

“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” Hollywood Pantages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028, (323) 468-1700, broadwayinhollywood.com