Already over a year in the works, a new chapter to the Harry Potter oeuvre is coming to a theatre probably-not-so-near you.

J.K. Rowling has announced that she is currently working on a new Harry Potter project, one that will take place on the UK stage. A collaboration with noted stage producers Sonia Friedman and Colin Callender, the new Harry Potter play will look at the early years of the boy wizard.

What was it like to be the boy in the cupboard under the stairs? This brand new play, which will be developed for the UK theatre, will explore the previously untold story of Harry’s early years as an orphan and outcast. Featuring some of our favourite characters from the Harry Potter books, this new work will offer a unique insight into the heart and mind of the now legendary young wizard. A seemingly ordinary boy, but one for whom Destiny has plans…

Rowling won’t be writing the play – but she will be “collaborating with the writer.” She will also be a co-producer.

Here’s what Rowling had to say about the project:

“Over the years I have received countless approaches about turning Harry Potter into a theatrical production, but Sonia and Colin’s vision was the only one that really made sense to me, and which had the sensitivity, intensity and intimacy I thought appropriate for bringing Harry’s story to the stage. After a year in gestation it is exciting to see this project moving on to the next phase. I’d like to thank Warner Bros. for their continuing support in this project.”

The play will being development some time next year.

Rowling is one of the richest women in the world and a noted philanthropist. As of now, she holds the title of author to the best-selling book series in history. Last year, Rowling published her first novel since Harry Potter – a novel aimed at an adult audience called The Casual Vacancy.

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