Defense against the dark arts

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Graphic by Fani Hsieh
Graphic by Fani Hsieh

I am not excited for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. There, I said it. I donโ€™t know if I will see it, and if I do, itโ€™ll probably be in a few years when it goes off Broadway or goes on tour.

To me, itโ€™s nothing more than a money grab. We learned about supply and demand in grade seven, but I donโ€™t think we ever realized how effective that is until we looked at it closer.

Everyone knows that the Harry Potter franchise is in demand. Hell, the eighth movie was released in 2011 and here in 2016 we have a spinoff series, two plays and yet another theme park opening. The magic hasnโ€™t died yet.

So, this is the perfect way to create the supply by only bringing this story to the stage with a limited amount of seats available. This allows for exorbitant prices for seats to the plays, which people will be willing to pay to see the new stories of the โ€˜Golden Trio.โ€™

The script is also being published in book form. It is being marketed as โ€œThe Eighth Harry Potter Story.โ€ Although nothing about this is false, it is very misleading. It is a story, but itโ€™s not a novel. It comes after the seventh book, but it is not about Harryโ€™s adventures as we know them. Is it just me, or did J.K. Rowling not say a few years ago that she didnโ€™t want a next generation story?

This isnโ€™t a canonical story and it wasnโ€™t even written by her. Itโ€™s essentially โ€˜fan fictionโ€™ with financial backing. Donโ€™t get me wrong, Iโ€™m sure itโ€™s a beautiful, gripping and heartwarming narrative. It got approval from the creator of the universe anyway and Iโ€™m sure she has good taste in regards to her characters.

I guess I just liked the whole โ€œall was wellโ€ conclusion to the Harry Potter series. Apparently, thatโ€™s not the case any more because weโ€™ve got two plays with the word โ€œcursedโ€ in the title.

Thatโ€™s part of the problem. They are plays โ€” more than one. Not only is it an expensive ticket for one play, but itโ€™s in two parts.

Whenโ€™s the last time you saw a play in two parts? But if people are willing to buy two tickets, why not charge them for two tickets?

With a fandom thatโ€™s constantly competing, they wonโ€™t even have to advertise. Weโ€™re constantly competing to prove who the biggest fan is. We race to show our love and knowledge of the series to other fans because thatโ€™s the culture created around them now. The plays havenโ€™t even premiered yet and youโ€™re already a โ€œfake fanโ€ if you donโ€™t have tickets.

Not everyone is lucky enough to be able to afford these luxuries. One seat in the best section for a single part is ยฃ65 (approximately $121 Canadian) plus tax, according to the official website. Thatโ€™s also the price starting for August of this year and I can only assume the premiere performances are more expensive.

To give a little perspective, thatโ€™s also a higher end price for a seat for Wicked on Broadway. For both parts of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, itโ€™ll set you back ยฃ130 ($244 Canadian) plus tax. Add on the costs of travel, food and accommodations and that becomes a small fortune. If you can afford that, I envy you. What I donโ€™t envy are the people who do really want to see these plays and canโ€™t because of the price.

That was one of the greatest things about the books and movies. They were so mass produced and distributed that they were available to everyone. You could even access the magic for free if you had a library card or enough Scene points.

But free doesnโ€™t make millionaires. This book is a marketing tool for the plays. Once you read it, youโ€™re going to want to see it. Otherwise, they wouldnโ€™t be publishing it.

Itโ€™s become about the money, not about the magic. The stories we love and grew up with are gone. Whatโ€™s left is capitalism created in the shadow of the success of the canonical narratives. This is an expansion that I donโ€™t think is necessary, but I seem to be the only one. I know several people that will be attending both parts. Everyone seems like this is the best thing to happen since 2011. In some ways, I wish I could be excited for this. Itโ€™s a new story with the characters we grew up with.

But nothing about this is appealing to me. Maybe Iโ€™m missing the hype or maybe I am a fake fan after all. Or maybe Iโ€™m the only one willing to be seen as a fake fan. If the opportunity comes around for me to see it, yeah, Iโ€™ll go. But Iโ€™m not going to be waiting in line for tickets or for the script.


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Serving the Waterloo campus, The Cord seeks to provide students with relevant, up to date stories. Weโ€™re always interested in having more volunteer writers, photographers and graphic designers.