It’s been almost 9 years since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released, and Potterheads everywhere have been anxiously waiting for J.K. Rowling to tell us what happens next. Well, that moment is finally here! Writer Jack Thorne and director John Tiffany are teaming up with Rowling to produce a play depicting the Nineteen Years Later epilogue written at the end of Deathly Hallows. This play is titled Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

Harry Potter fans everywhere have been anticipating an 8th book from Rowling for a very long time, and while this isn’t exactly what they were anticipating, I think it will suffice.

There has been some early on press for this play, specifically in regard to the cast. Jamie Parker will play Harry, Paul Thornley will play Ron, and causing most of the buzz, a black actress, Noma Dumezweni, has been cast as Hermione.

The media blew up with comments about how J.K. Rowling never explicitly mentioned Hermione’s skin color as well as people pulling evidence from the books that they believe show that Rowling described Hermione as caucasian.

J.K. Rowling herself fully supports Thorne and Tiffany in their casting, going as far as tweeting herself that she never identified Hermione’s ethnicity.

The Cursed Child also showcases set designs by Tony award-winning Christine Jones, costumes by Katrina Lindsay, whose work includes Bend it Like Beckham and Hamlet at the Barbican, and music by Imogen Heap, a 4-time Grammy nominated composer.

The play is set to premiere in at Palace Theatre in London on July 30th, 2016. Tickets were sold for preview performances in June and special preview performances in late May but these tickets are long since sold out. The script is being released as a book for those who can’t make it to London to see it live. The release of the script is set for July 31st.

Read more:
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
No Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Movie, Says JK Rowling
Pottermore: How to pre-order the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts I & II script book