As if J.K. Rowling doesn’t already have enough on her plate, the author announced on Twitter today that she is writing Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. It will be the first stage play in the wizarding world saga and will debut in London in 2016.
Today was already a special day for Rowling, since it marked the 18th anniversary of the U.K. publication of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (later retitled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in the U.S.). So it was the perfect day to give her first book a special birthday present.
Rowling tweeted that Cursed Child will feature an all-new story written with Jack Thorne, who wrote the stage adaptation of Let The Right One In. Tony winner John Tiffany (Once) will direct with Sonia Friedman producing.
While she didn’t reveal much, Rowling confirmed that it is not a prequel. “To answer one inevitable (and reasonable!) question - why isn't #CursedChild a new novel? I am confident that when audiences see the play they will agree that it was the only proper medium for the story,” the author explained.
In addition to Cursed Child, Rowling is writing the screenplay for Warner Bros.’ Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and is still publishing crime novels under the Robert Galbraith name. She did tease a return to the Harry Potter story, so perhaps Cursed Child was what she meant.
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