If you have tickets for an upcoming show of Harry Potter & the Cursed Child on Broadway, it’s safe to say you’re excited to see Tom Felton reprise his role as Draco Malfoy! As massive Harry Potter fans, we were SO excited when the news came out and knew we had to see the show. And it was actually
The tickets went on sale last summer while WC and I were on the Camino de Santiago. Fortunately the queue was daytime in the U.S. but evening in Spain and we were able to hop in the queue while eating dinner. About an hour later, our tickets were purchased for just nine days after Tom’s Broadway debut!
This would be our second time seeing the show: the first was shortly after it debuted on London‘s West End back in 2017 while on our honeymoon. But we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see it again with Tom Felton starring as Draco.
We had no idea at the time that we’d also have the opportunity to meet him! Now we want to help you have the best chance to do the same. As a Harry Potter fan, it was an incredible moment.
What? You Can Meet Tom Felton?!
To be honest, even just a week prior to heading to New York City, I had no idea meeting Tom was even a potential. The show had just debuted and I was scrolling Instagram checking out reviews. I came across someone who shared some tips on how to meet Tom Felton after the show and knew we had to try it. Turns out we not only got our photo with Tom, but also got his autograph on a Cursed Child playbill.
So, if you’re heading to NYC for the show, here are our top tips for how to meet Tom Felton after Cursed Child:
Tips for How to Meet Tom Felton After Cursed Child:
Don’t try to meet him on the same night you see the show.
You’ll want to get to the stage door at the Lyric Theatre by around 8:45 pm. Since the show doesn’t let out til around 10:00, you would be unlikely to get a spot once you left the theatre. It gets pretty packed outside after the show! We got to the line around 9:05 pm on a weeknight and got the VERY LAST spot on the rail at the far end from the stage door. This ended up helping us but more on that in a bit…
Secure a front-row spot outside the stage door.
The stage door is located along West 43rd Street and you’ll line up along a rail set up by theatre staff. You’ll want a front row spot for the best chance of a photo or autograph. We went on the night before seeing the show, because unfortunately we were leaving NYC the morning after. The downside to going beforehand is you won’t have a playbill yet. Fortunately, we chatted with one of the amazing staff members and he brought us one but that might not be a guarantee.
A lot of the cast will come out to sign autographs.
Shortly after the show ends, the cast will start coming out to sign. I was worried because we didn’t have a permanent marker with us, but they all bring their own to sign with. We were able to get autographs from a bunch of cast members. Pictured here is Caleb Hafen who plays Cedric Diggory & James Potter.
Tom doesn’t always come out.
We had friends who lined up the night after we did and Tom didn’t come out that night. After some of the other cast finishing signing, the staff made an announcement that Tom wasn’t signing, and the crowd eventually disbursed.
Be ready if he does.
From everything we’ve read and what we experienced, it seems that Tom will either sign for you OR take a photo. I totally get it; if he did both for everyone, he’d be out there all night! That’s where having someone with you certainly helps. I had my phone ready for a photo and WC had our playbill ready for an autograph.
Even if you’re all the way at the end of the rail like we were, you’ll know when he comes out by the roar and applause of the crowd. We thought having a far spot from the door would be a disadvantage but it ended up working out in our favor. Tom ran all the way down to our end and started signing from right in front of us! I was literally starstruck for a minute and almost didn’t get my phone ready in time!
Have your phone out and on the correct settings.
I’m not sure how true this is but the Instagram post I had seen recommended having your phone already on selfie mode with flash OFF. So that’s how my phone was set when he approached and I asked if we could get a selfie. He responded yes, if it was quick and we were ready, so fortunately we were! He took my phone and snapped the photo for us. Next he signed the playbill WC was holding and before we knew it, he was moving down the line and my 15 year old self (wait, who am I kidding, my 40 year old self) was freaking out!
Most of his selfies I’ve seen are wider crowd shots and so was ours but I’ve cropped it below. We did send the photo to some of the people we met while waiting in line so they’d have it to treasure as well.
And that’s our tips for how we met Tom Felton! I hope these tips work for you and would love to hear if it does.
Other Things to Know About Cursed Child
Arrive early to explore the lobby before the show starts.
We got in line to enter the theatre about an hour before curtain. This should give you time to check out the gift shop, get some fun photos, and snag a butterbeer.
Embrace the magic.
I won’t give away any of the show but is seriously pure magic. Take it all in and enjoy.
You can’t take photos during the show, but everyone seems to take photos during the final bow.
I was still following the rule of no photos and didn’t get my phone out in time. But it seemed like the entire theatre had their phones out for the final bow. This is a great chance to get a photo of Tom if you aren’t able to get one using our earlier tips.
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