Harry Potter in 70 Minutes

Photo credit: Carol Rosegg

Potted Potter, a Harry Potter parody in which all 7 books are performed in 70 minutes, is back at the Little Shubert Theatre for the second summer in a row. Full disclosure: I interviewed the creators and stars, Daniel Clarkson and Jefferson Turner, last year, and they are nice and have British accents.

The show is exactly what is advertised: each book about the boy wizard is acted out and discussed in about 10 minutes. Turner plays Harry and Clarkson plays all the other characters. Sometimes the show goes off on silly tangents that don't have much to do with the books and Harry Potter fans like myself will find favorite plot points and characters that could have been included instead. But it is clear that Clarkson and Turner are fans themselves, and make some humorous observations (Why did Dumbledore, the greatest wizard who ever lived, go into teaching?). Those less familiar with the books and movies may miss some of the better jokes. But everyone, whether they read the books or not, will be able to enjoy the game of Quidditch. Kudos to Clarkson, Turner, and director Richard Hurst for figuring out how to stage a game of Quidditch that could get the whole audience involved. That alone is worth the price of admission.