Last month, Mitty’s performing arts department successfully closed their sold-out eight-show run of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. The performances of the two casts and some ingenious special effects never before seen on Mitty’s stage brought the magic of Hogwarts to life.
Ms. Gillian Ortega, the Performing Arts Manager, directed much of the behind-the-scenes magic as the official scenic designer and the unofficial “designer for magical props.” As this was the school’s first-ever production of the title, there were no previous Mitty performances to draw inspiration from. However, she looked to the Broadway production and other high school productions, as well as a magic guide included with the play.
In the end, she ultimately decided to stray from copying other high school productions, which usually stuck to more abstract ways of representing magic, in favor of more literal effects similar to those of the Broadway production. She explains, “There are many ways to do scenes in a very theatrical way, but figuring out what makes fancy, Broadway-level designs tick; that’s what made me proud.”
The work on this complicated undertaking began in October, and over nearly two months, Mitty’s build crew, supported by professional painters and carpenters, worked meticulously to bring the magic to life.
Through trial and error, a variety of spells were brought to this Muggle world. The man-eating bookshelf contained multiple prop techniques behind its imposing exterior. The talking books were actually hand puppets, and the moving plant were similarly controlled by a human manipulating a trash grabber, allowing actors to swing them open and disappear through them.
Additional set pieces are smaller but no less complicated, supplementing actor performances to make spells more believable. The Polyjuice Potion effect was created through a carbon dioxide cannon hidden in the floor of a custom platform, with actors quickly switching behind the white mist. Even the stage itself was modified, the center fitted with a removable grate, so that actors could move underneath the stage after traveling through the pipes of Hogwarts.
The sorcery of the Wizarding World came with its own set of challenges, however. With enchantments as elaborate as those in this play, limited space—both on and off stage—was the biggest challenge. To prevent overcrowding, the team designed certain set pieces, such as background setups, to be multi-purpose, saving both space and resources for the production.
Given the opportunity to stage the show once more, Ms. Ortega expressed her desire to continue developing the setting of the story. Specifically, the backdrop of the final Godric’s Hollow scene initially contained additional props to enhance the scene’s overall effect. Due to time constraints, however, these pieces were ultimately cut from this year’s production.
Ms. Ortega offered one key takeaway from this production: “Things that seem overly complicated aren’t necessarily so—we just want to sell you that magic.” Through creative solutions and spellbinding leaps of faith, the cast and crew of Harry Potter & The Cursed Child staged an enchanting performance that immersed the audience in a world of true witchcraft and wizardry.