York County school wins right to 1st PA performance of 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'
A York County high school will be the first in Pennsylvania to perform "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" this fall after winning a nationwide contest.
The York County School of Technology won Broadway Licensing Global's "Wands at the Ready" contest, which asked schools to describe why their educational institution or community would be the most magical place to produce the play, according to Playbill.
York Tech's video submission highlighted that it attracts students from 14 districts around the county and offers about 25 technical trades. Members of the drama club have "diverse backgrounds and varied dreams but we all find happiness when we turn on the stage lights," it says.
York Tech is one of 29 nationwide to be selected to perform a high school edition of the play that has won numerous Olivier and Tony awards, Billboard says.
Calvin Weary, founder and CEO of Weary Arts Group, which partners with York Tech to produce its plays and musicals, said the students were "ecstatic" when they heard the news, and they automatically went into planning mode.
"They're already trying to figure out 'how do we make this work?'" Weary said in an interview.
For now, they have to prepare for their spring performance, "The SpongeBob Musical," which will be held in April.
Expect an immersive experience with 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'
The plan is to ensure the Harry Potter experience will be immersive for attendees, said Brandon May, teacher and Drama Club adviser.
He and his family saw the show on Broadway a couple of years ago. The draw is not only the culmination of the Harry Potter experience but seeing the magic come to life on the stage, he said. It was amazing more so than in the movies.
"I think that's the real opportunity that we have here," May said. "... I think it's really, really special that we get to do this and kind of set the bar for everybody else, you know, in this area."
The production will involve a total transformation of the theater, Weary said.
In addition, the school plans to do themed desserts through its culinary program for the play, May said. For example, there might be butterbeer-flavored ice creams or drinks or chocolate frogs.
"We're going try to pull out all the stops," he said. "We'll see how it goes."
Theater at York Tech has dramatically grown in recent years
In the past six years, the school's theater program has grown from nothing to a drama club that now boasts more than 140 students. They perform both plays and musicals.
The students come from a variety of shops, including automotive, architecture, welding, engineering and more, Weary said. They can create things, because it's a technical school.
Some students are taking a field trip to Messiah University to see a performance and what their theater program offers in case they are interested in going to college for that, May said.
York Tech has an alumna who came up through the school's program and now is studying theater design at Philadelphia School for the Arts, he said.
Many of the students grew up playing musical instruments or being involved in shows in their home school districts or through organizations, such as DreamWrights Center for Community Arts. It's a natural fit for them to slide into the theater program at York Tech.
Weary said he hopes the Harry Potter production will shine a light on all of York County.
When the magical play will be performed at York Tech
The school has tentatively set the first and second weekend in November as the dates for the performance, Weary said.
York Tech will provide more information about the production closer to the time, spokesman Nick Staab said.
Weary said he expects the ticket prices for the play will be reasonable so that families can attend or theatergoers can see more than one performance.
"We hope it will rekindle or start a fire for seeing real theater," Weary said.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: York Tech the first in PA to perform Broadway's Harry Potter play
