LINWOOD — The Mainland Regional High School Drama Club will be performing its production of “Puffs, or Seven Increasingly Eventful Years At a Certain School of Magic and Magic” this week in the auditorium.
This play is a parody spinoff the J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series.
“Puffs” doesn’t follow the usual story everyone knows, but instead introduces the audience to a different house within the Potter world and is described as “a tale for anyone who has never been destined to save the world.”
“Puffs,” which is ranked among the top 10 plays being performed in high schools around the country, came about at The Peoples Improv Theater in 2015 and later transferred to an off-Broadway production.
Mainland theater director Phil Pallitto said the cast begged him to choose “Puffs” for their fall production, noting he never has seen a cast more excited about a show.
Pallitto managed to license the original set costumes and props for Mainland and through that was able to get in touch with one of the original creators and cast members of the show.
After talking and asking questions about the show, Pallitto got Madeleine Bundy to visit Linwood to meet the cast.
Bundy played the role of Susie Bones and designed all costumes and sets for the off-Broadway productions.
She visited the high school Nov. 2 for the students’ rehearsal and was able to sit down with the cast, answer questions and give them a more in-depth look at the original story.
“I know they’ll have a bunch of questions about the production, so I want to be able to let them ask everything,” Bundy said. “If they have any character questions, I’ll help. Of course I didn’t play every role, but I did witness them all for so long.”
Pallitto said he was excited to host Bundy and noted it was important that the cast could easily relate to her.
“For a lot of them they can’t imagine what life and theater might look like outside of Mainland and our area, so being able to interact with someone who does it professionally, outside of here, is really powerful for them to see that they can pursue this and can make this a career and a living,” Pallitto said.
Junior Mason Naman is playing the lead role of Wayne Hopkins. He said Bundy helped give the cast that original viewpoint and explain the true intent of the lines and set pieces.
After being a part of these productions for three years now, Naman is excited to put more smiles on the audience’s faces with this show.
“I think it’s great that we get to do a show based off a greater piece of fiction because everyone knows about it already and it just allows us to bring more humor and smiles to the story,” Naman said. “I hope to get a lot of people in these seats. I think with this being based off a brand name like Harry Potter and Puffs, it will get more people interested and drum up some real recognition to our program here at Mainland.”
Another junior, Isabela Perez, is also playing a lead role, Megan Jones. She shared that having the original sets and costumes for their production has helped them get more into character and excited about the show.
“It’s a great opportunity for our program, especially since we didn’t even have a fall play last year. Having Maddy come and getting to use the sets is a good way for everyone to learn something from someone who has been so active in the industry and specifically within this production,” Perez said.
This is the first parody type play that Mainland has put on. Pallitto said that in the past, many of the shows were older and dated, so it was harder for the cast to relate to their characters.
“Because it’s set in high school with high school kids and it’s modern, so many of them see themselves in the characters, so it’s relatable to them,” Pallitto said. “It’s just exciting to watch them bring their own experiences into the show and really allow their acting to go up a level.”
Performances are scheduled for 7 p.m. Nov. 16-17 and 1 and 7 p.m. Nov. 18.
By DELANEY CRAWFORD/Special to the Sentinel
