Theater Review: Puffs by Matt Cox Presented by Pasadena Theatre Company

Puffs: Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic written by Matt Cox and Presented by Pasadena Theatre Company June 6-8, 13-15 2025

As Harry Potter fans, we were intrigued to see this performance somewhat near our home. The play is about the Harry Potter Hogwarts saga, but seen from the view of the Hufflepuffs...you know, the nice student house that doesn't really excel at anything. Their most famous member was Cedric Diggory, who came to an unfortunate end in the middle of the saga. As the play is not canonical Harry Potter lore, names have been changed to protect from lawsuits. More importantly, they are changed for comic effect, because this is definitely a light-hearted look at all the shenanigans that went on at a Certain School of Magic and Magic.

The parody is quite fun. The main character here is Wayne, an orphan boy from New Mexico who gets a letter from an owl inviting him to an exclusive British school. Wayne's uncle quickly explains a lot of stuff he hasn't been told. Wayne show up and is sorted by the hat into the Puffs, not the Braves, Smarts, or Snakes. He's okay with this because it is just exciting to be a wizard and to have this fantastic fate. Surely he will be a hero! Another American, Oliver, is a math wiz, which gives him no advantages whatsoever at a school of actual wizardry. Megan is a British girl who insists she has not been properly sorted and should be with the Snakes since her mom is in magical prison for consorting with that guy they can't talk about. The story loosely follows the seven years of school at Hogwarts as this trio has a lot of encounters with Harry, who is a bit full of himself and always robs any glory that might shine on the Puffs, including not coming in last place in the house cup tournament.

The show is not entirely a comedy. The main theme is about how background or seemingly unimportant people have lives and can be significant too. Wayne, Oliver, and Megan all have ambitions (encouraged by a magic mirror that shows them what they desire) that are frustrated but they learn to shift their expectations and grow as characters through the course of the play. This bit of grounding gives the play something more to it than just an extended Saturday Night Live skit. The audience cares about the characters so the big battle at the end, with a lot of deaths, has more to it than comic elements.

My family enjoyed the play a lot. The amateur production is bolstered by the company's longevity (45 years!) and borrowed sets and props from another local production. The actors do well at their jobs though we felt Cedric should have had more presence and charm than the actor delivered. The plot moved along nicely, providing a story while skewering bits of the books and the movies.

Recommended, though obviously it will be hard to see this production if you are not local to Annapolis and are not reading this review in a timely manner. But if a production shows up in your area, give it a try!