Potted Potter creator and director Daniel Clarkson says the parody play comes from a place of love for the book series.Colin_Hattersley
There's no quit to Potted Potter: The Unauthorized Harry Experience, but there is quidditch. The family-friendly parody of the famed book series about wizards, wands and wamping willows by J.K. Rowling has returned to the Toronto stage, after its hit run here in 2012. We spoke to Daniel Clarkson, the director and co-creator of a zany two-actor play that mocks and celebrates a beloved fantasy novel franchise.
Potted Potter originally came to Toronto in 2012, you and the play's co-creator Jefferson Turner starred in the production. This time around the show will feature a different cast. Can you vouch for these new guys we'll see?
I would say yeah, very much so. I directed them myself. And as much as it pains me to say, they're new and improved models. Like when you upgrade a car, they're younger and have more energy and are far more attractive.
Now, I don't know a muggle from a molehill. Should I study up on the Harry Potter books before I come to the show?
No. This show is perfect for you. It's all the Harry Potter books in 70 minutes. It will bring you right up to date. I remember once, a father came to thank me because after seeing Potted Potter he could talk to his daughters and not scold them when they said the word "snitch," because it wasn't a curse word in the Harry Potter world and he was able to understand what they were talking about.
How do the diehard fans react to the parody aspect of the show? Are they offended?
For the fans, it's a great jaunt down memory lane, where you get to see your favourite characters in a very different way. For Jefferson and me, the show comes from a place of love. We're fans. I was that fan boy who queued up for the books when they would come out at midnight. It's important that if you're going to parody something, you have to like what you're parodying.
Do the youngest kids even get all the jokes?
Some jokes may go over the younger kids' heads. But, at the same time, there are jokes that will go over the heads of adults. I remember watching a young boy in the front row once. He was about eight years old and he was explaining to his grandmother who Justin Bieber was. So, it's a family show. Everybody gets something out of it.
The Potted Potter show kicked off a series of parody plays for you guys. How many are you up to now?
There are four, including Potted Sherlock, which we're currently premiering here in London. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote four novels and 56 short stories on Sherlock Holmes. We're attempting to do all of them in 80 minutes.
Do you ever run into copyright issues with your parodies?
The great thing with Arthur Conan Doyle, is that the Sherlock Holmes stories are out of copyright, as the 70-year mark has passed. With Harry Potter, we're very much an unauthorized parody, but we do talk to their people. I think they see that it does come from a place of love, and that it's about having fun. But to be honest, for me, I worry more over the fans than I do about the lawyers. The fans are the ones, if you happen to mess up, they all come equipped with wands. And although those wands might be magic, if you put them in the wrong place, it still hurts a lot.
Potted Potter: The Unauthorized Harry Experience – A Parody by Dan and Jeff runs to Jan. 11, $39.95 to $99.95, Panasonic Theatre, 651 Yonge St., 800-461-333 or mirvish.com.
Brad Wheeler