Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is one of the latest productions to announce a return to Broadway — although the show will look a little different than it did before the pandemic.

“Cursed Child” opened on Broadway in 2018 and is a sequel of sorts to J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” series, according to People. The story takes place 19 years after the original “Harry Potter” series and follows the children of Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione and Draco Malfoy as they embark on studies at Hogwarts, Entertainment Weekly reported.

The production was originally performed in two separate performances, but upon its Nov. 12 reopening, it will be condensed into one play, People reported. The original version will continue to run in London, according to Broadway.com.

“Given the challenges of remounting and running a two-part show in the U.S. on the scale of ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,’ and the commercial challenges faced by the theater and tourism industries emerging from the global shutdowns, we are excited to be able to move forward with a new version of the play that allows audiences to enjoy the complete ‘Cursed Child’ adventure in one sitting eight times a week,” the show’s producers said in a statement, according to Entertainment Weekly.

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The Book of Mormon” musical also recently announced its return to Broadway.

Deadline has reported that “The Book of Mormon” musical will return to Broadway on Nov. 5 — and that there could be some changes to the production. Following Black Lives Matter protests last summer, the musical came under scrutiny for its depiction of Africans.

Last year, Josh Gad — one of the original cast members — said the musical needed to “adjust with the times,” the Deseret News reported.

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In light of Gad’s comments, Cheryl Hystad, a retired attorney who wrote an opinion piece about the musical’s “blatant racism” for The Baltimore Sun, told the Deseret News she believed the pandemic shutdown would be a good time for Broadway producers to “really look critically at the racist aspects of it and try to figure out a way to really counter that narrative.”

“I think the show’s going to die out at some point soon if they don’t do something to kind of address some of these issues,” she told the Deseret News.

According to Deadline, “The Book of Mormon” musical writers resume rehearsals with the cast in the fall and have agreed to possibly adjust parts of the show “deemed racially problematic.” Any changes made would also apply to productions of the musical elsewhere.

Other Broadway updates

Broadway also recently announced that a limited engagement of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s improv-rap musical “Freestyle Love Supreme” will run Oct. 7 through Jan. 2, 2022.

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In early June, Broadway announced that Bruce Springsteen’s autobiographical show, “Springsteen on Broadway,” would officially mark the industry’s return from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The production, which is primarily a solo show by the “Born in the U.S.A.” singer, will now be the first to open on Broadway since the pandemic shut down performances in March 2020, The New York Times has reported.

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“Springsteen on Broadway” intertwines the singer’s hits with stories about how the songs came together. The production, which premiered in 2017, re-opens on June 26 and will have performances through Sept. 4, according to The New York Times.

Audience members are required to show proof of full COVID-19 vaccination, according to Broadway World.

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When is Broadway reopening?

In early May, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Broadway would reopen to full capacity beginning Sept. 14, 2021, according to the New York Theater Guide website.

At the time of reopening, Broadway will have been closed for a year and a half. The closure — which came after a year when Broadway earned $1.8 billion from ticket sales — forced a temporary end to 31 plays and musicals, including popular productions like “Hamilton” and “The Lion King,” the Deseret News reported.

The shutdown also affected the debut of new musicals — 16 openings alone were scheduled between March 12 and April 23, 2020, according to The New York Times.

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“We had such a good year before the shutdown, but now we need the ability to reignite the energy that we were sailing on,” Tom Hulce, a lead producer of the Temptations musical “Ain’t Too Proud,” told The New York Times. “We basically are starting from zero advance, as most shows are, and now we need time to reach out and build back up.”

What Broadway shows are coming back?

Approximately 30 shows are currently planning to resume before the end of 2021, with half opening as soon as September, The New York Times reported.

On May 11, three of Broadway’s biggest shows announced they will be ready for the Sept. 14 curtain rise. Stars from “Hamilton,” “The Lion King” and “Wicked” appeared on “Good Morning America” to announce the return.

  • “That moment already in ‘Circle of Life’ is an iconic moment, and from pride rock I have a different special viewpoint,” “Lion King” performer L. Steven Taylor told “Good Morning America.” “From Rafiki’s opening call, it’s really a call for the community to come together, and I feel like that’s what this is symbolic of, Broadway coming back is it’s really a community coming back and making New York really start to go.”

Below is a breakdown of all the shows hitting Broadway theaters, according to Broadway’s official website. This list will be updated as more information comes in.

  • “Waitress” — Sept. 2
  • “Hadestown” — Sept. 7
  • “Pass Over” — Sept. 12
  • “Hamilton” — Sept. 14
  • “Wicked” — Sept. 14
  • “Lion King” — Sept. 14
  • “Chicago” — Sept. 14
  • David Byrne’s “American Utopia”
  • “Come From Away” — Sept. 21
  • “Six” — Sept. 21
  • “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” — Sept. 24
  • “The Lehman Trilogy” — Sept. 25
  • “Aladdin” — Sept. 28
  • “Lackawanna Blues” — Sept. 28
  • “To Kill a Mockingbird” — Oct. 5
  • “Freestyle Love Supreme” — Oct. 7
  • “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical” — Oct. 8
  • “Chicken & Biscuits” — Oct. 10, 2021-Jan. 2, 2022
  • “Girl From the North Country” — Oct. 13
  • “Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations” — Oct. 16
  • “Mrs. Doubtfire” — Oct. 21
  • “Jagged Little Pill” — Oct. 21
  • “The Phantom of the Opera” — Oct. 22
  • “Thoughts of a Colored Man” — Oct. 31
  • “Diana” — Nov. 2
  • “Clyde’s” — Nov. 3
  • “The Book of Mormon” — Nov. 5
  • “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” — Nov. 12
  • “Trouble in Mind” — Nov. 18
  • “Flying Over Sunset” — Dec. 6
  • “Dear Evan Hansen” — Dec. 11
  • “Company” — Dec. 20
  • “MJ: The Musical” — Feb. 1, 2022
  • “The Music Man” — Feb. 10, 2022
  • “Plaza Suite” — Feb. 25, 2022
  • “Paradise Square” — March 20, 2022
  • “Take Me Out” — April 4, 2022
  • “Birthday Candles” — April 10, 2022
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