‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: High School Edition’ licensing now available
Licensing for “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: High School Edition” is now available globally for students to perform the stage play.
License “Cursed Child” at Your High School
“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” which debuted in London in 2016, presents a next-generation Wizarding World tale that takes place 19 years after the original series.
This marks the first roll-out of the production’s licensing rights. The licensing initiative — available to high schools and secondary schools — is a collaboration among Broadway Licensing Group (BLG), Sonia Friedman Productions, Colin Callender, and Harry Potter Theatrical Productions.
“Manageable for Schools of All Sizes”
The original production boasts intricate special effects to pull off its wizardry. The script of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: High School Edition” keeps in mind the scale of school theaters, adjusting story points and shortening the play’s length accordingly.
“From the beginning of this partnership with the ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’ team, our intention was to put educational theater programs first,” said Ted Chapin, interim CEO of BLG, “which meant creating a version of the show that is manageable for schools of all sizes, budgets, and technical capabilities — and is still fun to produce.”
As is, the script for “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: High School Edition” specifies roles for 16 men, 14 women, and four actors of any gender. However, an FAQ section of the play’s licensing website states, “Any student of any gender identity, race, etc. can play any role so long as the roles stay as written.”
How to License “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: High School Edition”
Schools’ faculty can apply for licensing now for students perform the show as early as fall 2024. Upon acceptance, BLG will send schools a production package with: acting editions, director scripts, stage manager scripts, required music, and a media kit containing social media and press release templates.
A perusal script is available as a $20 download for those considering licensing the show but unsure about fully committing (or for those interested in seeing the differences between the original production and the “High School Edition”). The perusal script does not reflect the final “High School Edition” script, which is still being developed.
For now, “Cursed Child” is licensable only to high schools and secondary schools, not community theaters of other kinds.
“Cursed Child” in Orlando
Following a 2023 contest, BLG selected Dr. Phillips High School in Orlando, Fla. as one of the first 31 schools to license “Cursed Child” for their theater department to perform in fall 2024, as reported by the Orlando Sentinel earlier this year.
Dr. Phillips High is located directly across the street from Universal Islands of Adventure. The theme park’s version of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is visible from the high school.
“Cursed Child” Permanent Venues and North American Tour
“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is currently performing in New York City, U.S.; London, England; Hamburg, Germany; and Tokyo, Japan.
A North American tour will launch in September 2024, starting in Chicago, Ill. and continuing in 2025 to Los Angeles, Calif. and Washington, D.C. The touring production will perform in its first three cities for a stretch of several months each. This may or may not mean Harry Potter Theatrical Productions will equip those cities’ host venues with the infrastructure required to mount the auditorium-wide special effects for which the play’s permanent residencies are known.
“Cursed Child” on Broadway is a tour de force of practical theater effects. Read more in our review:
