“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” will achieve a new landmark. At the 7 p.m. performance on Sept. 1, the 2018 Best Play Tony Award winner will become Broadway’s third-longest-running non-musical play. At that time, the Jack Thorne-penned drama will play its 2,328th performance, surpassing the previous record holder, “Abie’s Irish Rose,” which played 2,327 performances on the Main Stem from 1922 to 1927.
“Cursed Child” only recently moved up two notches on the list of long-running straight plays, becoming the fifth-longest-running play in May 2024, and then the fourth-longest-running play in June 2024. “Life with Father” (3,224 performances) holds the title of longest-running Broadway play, with “Tobacco Road” (3,182 performances) as the second-longest running, respectively.
Additionally, “Cursed Child” is set to break another record in quick succession. At the production’s 2,329th performance on Sept. 3 (the show is dark Sept. 2), “Cursed Child” will surpass the 2,328 performance count of both the 1965 original production of “Man of La Mancha” and 2009’s “Rock of Ages” as the 32nd-longest-running Broadway show (play or musical) of all time.
Based on an original story by J.K. Rowling, Thorne and John Tiffany, “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” follows the characters of the book series of the same name as they enter parenthood. The Tiffany-directed production opened on April 22, 2018 at the Lyric Theatre under the title “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Parts One and Two,” which was presented over two performances. A revised, one-part version reopened post-pandemic on Dec. 7, 2021. An even more truncated version debuted in November 2024.
Read about the journey of the “Cursed Child” producers and creatives to change the show over time here.
“Harry Potter” was nominated for 10 Tony Awards in 2018, winning six, including Best Play. The production recouped its investment in 2022.
A production’s performance count includes opening night and all post-opening performances and is recorded each week with the publishing of its box office grosses. Preview performances and benefit performances are not included in this tally.
A list of Broadway’s record-setting long-runners is available here.
“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is produced by Sonia Friedman Productions, Colin Callender and Harry Potter Theatrical Productions.
