“Harry Potter” enchants audiences
From March 13-16, the NPHS Theater department transported viewers to the fantastical destination of Hogwarts. Following the children of widely beloved characters such as Harry, Ron and Hermione, “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” begs the question: what if it was possible to turn back time?
Playing the role of Scorpius Malfoy, son of Draco Malfoy, Camden Aschbrenner, sophomore, dedicated countless hours over the span of two months to prepare for this show. Aschbrenner stepped into his role by watching all eight movies and learning how to speak in a British accent, in order to create something never done before on the NPHS stage. “[Harry Potter] has not been done anywhere else. It’s very exciting to see how we are able to create those characters for the first time in this setting with this exact script,” Aschbrenner said.
As a part of the lighting department, Katherine Sarena, sophomore, helps with the technical aspects of many productions. Sarena has been involved with the NPHS theater for two years, both in front and behind the curtain. “Being involved in theater has let me explore so many different opportunities and I’ve learned so much. I’ve also just made the best connections and met some of my best friends through theater,” Sarena said. Working hard throughout all of the challenges, from lighting to sound, that technical theater presents, Sarena enjoys the final product. “I think the most rewarding part of tech is seeing the show finally come together. After all of our hard work [and] prepping to make sure the show will look its best, it’s amazing to see what we ended up being able to pull off,” Sarena said.
Marilyn Strange, theater teacher and “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” director, has been a “Harry Potter” fan since its original release. After taking a chance and applying to put on “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” and then receiving permission, Strange jumped into the wizarding world alongside the actors and crew. Strange noticed themes of parent-child relationships, and time travel. “One of the themes of the show is, even if you do things differently it is going to completely change who you are and where you are in the world that you know it,” Strange said.
Darwin Rowland, junior and assistant director, has been involved in the theater department for many years. He worked to bring his experience as an actor to the table while approaching the directing process. “It’s impossible to be a good director without having been an actor first, because [it allows one to] understand the certain workings of the actor’s mind and how things might feel on a stage. Because, equally as important as how it looks, is how it feels, both to the actor and to the audience,” Rowland said. A “Harry Potter” fan himself, Rowland believes that “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is the perfect extension of Rowling’s work. “This is probably the most humanized, realistic extension of that story, because this story combats troubles between best friends, troubles between parents and sons and children in general,” Rowland said. As assistant director, Rowland helped with blocking and technical aspects, but most of all worked to build a community between all people involved with the show. “It’s not just my show, it’s not just Strange’s show, it’s all of our show. And if we don’t all work together to make it fantastic, like we know it can be, then it won’t be fantastic,” Rowland said.
Hoping to combine elements of bravery, ambition, hard work and wisdom, the cast and crew worked together over two months to form the final product. “When you see [the characters] up close in real life, you have a different sense. And we work really hard to create that magic that you see on screen or that you read in the books on the stage,” Aschbrenner said.
