Every other week, the editors of American Theatre curate a free-ranging discussion about the lively arts in our Offscript podcast.
Buckle up, everyone, because we’re about to hop on a Hippogriff and take off! This week, editors (and Harry Potter nerds) Suzy Evans, Diep Tran, and Russell Dembin join intern Gabe Cohn to passionately discuss Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the new play created by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany. We’ve only read the script, of course, but that doesn’t stop us from weighing in on the stage directions and dialogue, whether you need to be familiar with Harry Potter to enjoy the play, and (spoiler alert!) why the story makes no sense.
It only gets better from there! This week also includes Suzy’s interview with Joy Meads, literary manager of Center Theatre Group and a Kilroys cofounder. She discusses how the Kilroys were founded, how they take nominations for the List, and if we’re getting closer to gender parity.
Download the episode here. Subscribe via iTunes or RSS.
Recommendations
Playwright Liz Meriwether’s short story for New York Magazine “The Night That Obama and Hillary Founded ISIS” is hilarious.
Hamilton and Hamlet fans should check out this cartoon from Good Tickle Brain that reimagines one of Aaron Burr’s signature songs as it might be sung by the melancholy Dane. Yay Hamlet!
For Shakespeare fans, a report from New York Times‘ Ben Brantley on how Mark Rylance transformed into Olivia from Twelfth Night when he played her on Broadway, the West End, and at the Globe.
Finally, if like Diep you were filled with disappointment after reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, you can cleanse your palette with the now-classic parody A Very Potter Musical from Team Starkid.
