The magical universe, which in English even has registered rights as Wizarding World, arrives at Port Vell in Barcelona, ??where a large 2,275 m² structure has been set up to recreate it. Visitors will be able to enter some settings from the eight films based on the seven books by J.K. Rowling, starting with Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and developing further with the recent Fantastic Beasts: Dumbledore’s Secrets, but also including the London musical Harry Potter and the Cursed Child or the video games that have been derived from this universe .
This is an immersive exhibition produced by Imagine Exhibitions and Warner Bros., the largest that has been held here so far, and is designed for audiences of all ages, but especially for fans who have grown up with the adventures of the young wizard. The exhibition is traveling, and so far 1.7 million people have seen it since it premiered in 2022 in Philadelphia, it later went to New York, where it continues, while a parallel exhibition, where the one in Barcelona comes from, closed its doors a few weeks ago in Paris with more than half a million visitors.
In addition to the scenarios and interactive games, you can see numerous elements that have been used in the films, among which clothing items stand out, accompanied by texts about their production and the participation of the actors who wore them, such as the tunic that Alan Rickman wore as Severus Snape, and that he himself asked the designer Judianna Makovsky to have tight sleeves and many buttons, to imply that his character “lives within very narrow limits”, to the point that it is the only one whose clothes do not evolve throughout the film series.
Before entering, visitors receive an interactive bracelet to create a digital profile with the residence of the Hogwarts school they want to enroll in: Gryffindor – courage –, Ravenclaw – wit and intellect –, Huffelpuff – work capacity and loyalty – or Slytherin –cunning and ambition–, and choose your favorite wand and the animal of your Patronus spell. Along the route you can cast spells that will add points to each house.
Then, after passing the vault where there are first editions of the book, you enter a room with the Marauder’s Map and the names of the visitors moving through the rooms of the castle, and further on you enter the school residences, the large hall where students eat, the greenhouse, potions, divination or defense of the dark arts classrooms. Further ahead is the forbidden forest and you can enter Hagrid’s hut or play quidditch, the sport of witches and wizards. You can even enter Harry’s room, under the stairs of his uncle’s house on Privet Street. Corners where you can relive the best scenes and take photos to share.
Catalan version, here
