Liza Hazelwood October 4, 2013 BLUE - Jeral Witches and wizards flocked to the doors of the Sidney Harman

Shakespeare Theatre on September 14 for a special viewing of Potter Potter: the Unauthorized Harry Experience. The show was comprised of two actors: Jeff[erson] Turner and Dan[iel] Clarkson, both English actors and fans of the famous Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. The show was born in 2005 when the duo were commissioned to create a five minute show recapping the first five books for the half-delirious fans waiting on the sixth book to come out in bookstores. Potted Potter summarizes and makes fun of the seven books, even fitting a parody of Gloria Gaynors much celebrated song, I Will Survive into the script. Little staged spats occur on stage, to the amusement of the audience. Jeff and Dan weave Harrys tale as a humorous story of heroes and luck, utilizing PowerPoints, stuffed animals and elaborate smoke screens and sound effects, not to mention a favorite gold outfit. They zip through each book, except the third, where Jeff has a mini-meltdown and Jeff uses his favorite PowerPoint to drag the audience through the story. Dan and Jeff are more like storytellers than actors in their hour long play, as they read the book aloud to the audience and the other runs around a closet in various costumes, portraying the characters. They also have other aspects of their own selves that show throughout the production. Jeff is always concerned with making the entire thing all Harry Potter and sticking to the book, but Dan is more carefree and is faking it, hilariously confusing the series with the Lord of the Ring and Chronicles of Narnia series.

Liza Hazelwood October 4, 2013 BLUE - Jeral Costuming and the set are so cheap, that they were probably bought on eBay, but instead of ruining the mood of the entire play, the closet with no inside and the spray painted beach with do not enter scrawled over the lobster actually add to the hilarity of the production. Jeff, as Harry Potter, walks around the stage with a lightning scar drawn on with a magic marker on set, moments before the lights dimmed for the performance to start. Dan, on the other hand, parades around a closet, exchanging bad wig after bad wig. For Ron Weasley, Dan dons a puffy ginger wig that looks like it was stolen from a Muppet; for Hermione, he wears a wig with two braids; for Voldemort, he is in a red cape and sparkly red devil horns, although he also is in an invisible handlebar moustache, as proclaimed by You Know Who. Nagini, the evil serpent, is reduced to a stuffed plush snake that enjoys kissing Jeff while hes trying to talk. The entire production is fraught with current jokes, such as a debate on who the antagonist of the series is, with answers ranging from Miley Cyrus to Vladimir Putin, although the most laughs were emitted from the game of Quidditch in the front rows of the theatre. Dan was in disdain towards the crowd, proclaiming that no one at all knew what the sport was, when his character knew next to nothing about the series. However, when Jeff emerged from backstage dressed as the golden snitch, the audience erupted in laughter. Dressed in mustard yellow shoes, hat and bulgy spherical outfit must put a serious dent in any mans self-esteem. The Quidditch game forged a connection between the howling children and smirking parents with Dan and Jeff, who were like comical gods. The losing team got sprayed with water and Silly String, but Dans

Liza Hazelwood October 4, 2013 BLUE - Jeral plan was compromised when Jeff adds, hes going to spray all of you guys anyways, you know that, right? Lighting was an important part in presenting Dans stuffed animals. The budget for the production was apparently blown on one single stuffed dragon that also enjoyed flirting and kissing up to Jeff. Spotlights flashing through the smoke created an ominous appeal that the audience ate up, loving Jeffs anticipation for the smoky and flashy dragon, and his despair and almost mental collapse when he realizes that Dan basically lost the entire budget. Also, when Voldemort was presented each time, the entire stage went dark except for one area where a spotlight was trained onto Dans glittering red body. The pounding of drums heightened the awareness of the audience throughout the dance war between Harry Potter and the Dark Lord, which culminated with a stunning performance of I Will Survive Wait the Book Says I Die Oh Crap Curse You, Harry Potter. Dan held different physicalities throughout the production, slipping through a slouching Ron to a slightly timid and straight-backed Hermione to an overpowering and extraordinarily enthusiastic Voldemort fluidly. Jeff paced the stage effectively, showing his characters nervousness, and leaped into a confident Harry Potter and pursued to tell his story with relish. Both of the actors understand how to make people laugh and obviously implement their knowledge into this play because there was not a single person who wasnt laughing throughout the entire thing, having read the magical series or not.

Liza Hazelwood October 4, 2013 BLUE - Jeral