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| Tama Jarman and Adam Brown in "Potted Potter" |
Written by
Daniel Clarkson and Jeff Turner
Produced by
James Seabright - Directed by Daniel Clarkson
Designed by
Simon Scullion – Lighting designed by Tim Mascall
Canberra
Theatre Centre Playhouse – July 13th to 18th.
Reviewed by
Bill Stephens.
Adam Brown and Tama Jarman in "Potted Potter"
This show
could save you months of ploughing through J.K. Rowling’s books. On the other
hand, it could inspire you to dig out those Harry Potter books and actually
read them. However In the event that you actually have read them all, you might
find yourself convulsing in paroxysms of laughter, as was the young man sitting
beside your reviewer who looked hardly old enough to read, but happily confided
at the end that he had read all seven books, and that the show was wonderful,
thereby trumping this review.
This
delightfully silly concoction, the brainchild of British writers, Daniel
Clarkson and Jeff Turner, and directed by Clarkson for this 15th
Anniversary tour, and performed with obvious relish and unflagging enthusiasm
by talented New Zealanders, Adam Brown
and Tama Jarman, takes on the challenge of condensing the storylines of all
seven Harry Potter books into seventy-five minutes.
It’s a tall
order, and only the most devoted Potterphiles (and there seemed to be a lot of
them in the audience) would be able to make head or tail of the madcap antics
of Brown and Jarman as they assumed a myriad of characters utilising an endless
stream of ridiculous costumes and props, references to Broadway musicals and
enthusiastic audience participation as they skated through the convoluted
plots.
The audience
was up for the challenge however and happily split into opposing camps of
Slytherins and Gryffinders for an energetic bout of Quidditch, cheered on Draco
Malfoy and actually recognised Albus Dumbledore and Hermione Granger among the
weird assortment of characters.
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| Tama Jarman and Adam Brown in "Potted Potter" |
Whether you’re
a Harry Potter tragic or simply Potter-curios, you’ll find it hard to resist
this inspired lunacy guaranteed to tickle the fancy from tiny’s to Dumbledore’s
(who are very old indeed).
Photos supplied.
This review also appears in AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW. www.artsreview.com.au.