It looks like Harry Potter madness will never abate. Tickets for the first-ever Harry Potter story to be staged as a play - Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - sold out in just a few hours, leaving thousands of Harry Potter fans who couldn't grab one utterly miserable.
Almost as soon as the sales were over, tickets began appearing on re-sale websites, priced at more than 1000 pounds sterling. Immediately, the play's official Twitter account warned fans not to use the sites, writing: "Please do not attempt to resell your tickets on alternative platforms, as patrons will not be admitted into the theatre."
BBC reported that nearly 120000 Harry Potter fans swarmed online in a bid to get tickets and their quest to catch the cyber-train to Hogwarts often encountered technical difficulties.
The tickets were on sale for the performances of the play for four months - from 7 June-18 September 2016. It makes its world premiere at the Palace Theatre in London's West End.
The two-part play is based on a short story by J K Rowling, the creator of Harry Potter and his magical world and strange characters. The play is co-written by Jack Thorne and director John Tiffany. It makes its world premiere at the Palace Theatre in London's West End next summer.
Pottermore.com informs us that John Tiffany met Rowling in an Edinburgh cafe before she was famous just before both were to make it big - he in theatre and she in literature. He met her twenty years later and he could work on the play. John chose Thorne to be his co-writer.He had worked with him in 2013 on the theatre adaptation of Let the Right One In.
BBC said tickets for the second round of dates, until January 2017, are now on sale to people who registered for priority booking. A third booking period will be opened up on Friday when seats go on sale to the general public. The chaos that was part of the first round of sales notwithstanding, Harry Potter fans are sure to endure suffering online in order to win the golden fleece of a ticket to watch their favourite hero on stage.
The play has two parts and both are meant to be watched the same day - matinee and evening - or on two consecutive nights. BBC reported that previews begin on 7 June 2016 with the official opening performances of both parts on 30 July.
The story is a sequel, set 19 years after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.The official synopsis for the play was released on 23 October and reads:
It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn't much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children.
While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places.
The play is directed by Tiffany, with choreography by Steven Hoggett, set design by Christine Jones, costume design by Katrina Lindsay, lighting design by Neil Austin,music by Imogen Heap and sound design by Gareth Fry. Special effects will be created by Jeremy Chernick, with illusions by Jamie Harrison and musical supervision by Martin Lowe.
