UPDATED: Otherworld Theatre Company Will Stage “Puffs,” Featuring a MuggleNet Panel

by · May 10, 2023

A new production of the play Puffs, or: Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic has been announced for Chicago, Illinois, and MuggleNet fans will have an additional opportunity to catch a panel from the site. Puffs, as the play is known, is a parody of the Harry Potter series and first began off-off-Broadway in New York City before becoming available for licensing in 2019.

The upcoming Chicago production of Puffs will be staged by Otherworld Theatre Company from June 15 to July 23 on the Ray Bradbury stage at 3914 N. Clark Street. As noted in the press release below, Otherworld Theatre Company will use its production of Puffs to partner with Howard Brown Health to raise awareness about physical and mental health issues affecting the transgender community.

Otherworld will be donating a percentage of ticket sales to Howard Brown Health’s trans healthcare initiatives and inviting trans healthcare and mental health experts to participate in post-show panel discussions. MuggleNet.com will also host a panel, ‘Reclaiming the Fandom,’ exploring how fans of the source material can move forward while acknowledging the damaging effects of its creator’s toxic views. More details about post-show panel discussions will be announced in the coming weeks.

For more information about Otherworld Theatre Company’s production of Puffs, you can read the official press release. Tickets are available for purchase on Otherworld Theatre Company’s website.

Press Release

OTHERWORLD THEATRE ANNOUNCES “PUFFS, OR, SEVEN INCREASINGLY EVENTFUL YEARS AT A CERTAIN SCHOOL OF MAGIC AND MAGIC”

Unlicensed, Unauthorized Take on [a] Certain Boy Wizard’s Classmates Runs June 15 - July 23; Portion of Ticket Sales Benefit LGBTQ+ Healthcare

CHICAGO, Illinois (May 10, 2023) -- Otherworld Theatre Company, the premier science[-]fiction and fantasy production company in North America, today announced the on-sale of tickets for Matt Cox’s unauthorized, unsanctioned, unlicensed PUFFS, OR, SEVEN INCREASINGLY EVENTFUL YEARS AT A CERTAIN SCHOOL OF MAGIC AND MAGIC, running June 15 - July 23, 2023, on the Ray Bradbury stage at 3914 N. Clark St. Throughout the show’s run, Otherworld Theatre partners with Howard Brown Health on fundraising initiatives and post-show panel discussions.

For seven years, a certain boy wizard went to a certain [w]izard [s]chool and conquered evil. This, however, is not his story. This is the story of the Puffs who just happened to be there too. A tale for anyone who has never been destined to save the world. PUFFS has been performed off-Broadway and in numerous productions around the world since its premier [sic] at the off-off-Broadway People’s Improv Theatre in New York City in 2015 and was nominated for the Off-Broadway Alliance Award for “Best Unique Theatrical Experience” in 2017.

"PUFFS is very near and dear to me, with it being the first show I performed in as a fully out nonbinary actor,” said Vhenan Armitage Strange, Otherworld Theatre’s Artistic Director of LARPs and PUFFS co-director. “With moments of camaraderie, humor, and heartbreaking tragedy this show truly is something magical."

Otherworld will be donating a percentage of ticket sales to Howard Brown Health’s trans healthcare initiatives and inviting trans healthcare and mental health experts to participate in post-show panel discussions. MuggleNet.com will also host a panel, “Reclaiming the Fandom,” exploring how fans of the source material can move forward while acknowledging the damaging effects of its creator’s toxic views. More details about post-show panel discussions will be announced in the coming weeks.

The cast includes Jono Mammel (Wayne), Ginny Weant (Sally Perks), Nick Marino (Ernie Mac), Ben McClymont (Cedric/Voldy), Janice Rumschlag (Leanne), Jenna Sage (Sally Bones/Harry), Jerome Jones (J. Finch), Collin Borisenko (Narrator), Blake Hood (Oliver), Kyra Young (Megan), and Christien Krasch (Hannah/McG).

Otherworld Theatre Artistic Director Tiffany Keane Schaefer co-directs with Vhenan Armitage Strange, and Vic Nelson is [the] set designer. Sam Campos is [the] fight director.

PUFFS, OR, SEVEN INCREASINGLY EVENTFUL YEARS AT A CERTAIN SCHOOL OF MAGIC AND MAGIC runs June 15 - July 23, 2023, and is performed Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m at Otherworld Theatre (3914 N. Clark St.). The show runs approximately 120 minutes with one intermission. Tickets are $30, with some Pay-What-You-Can tickets available for each performance. Tickets are available online at www.otherworldtheatre.org. This show is not authorized, sanctioned, licensed, or endorsed by J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., or any person or company associated with the Harry Potter books, films, or play.

UPDATE (June 15):

The panel after the show on Friday, June 16, will be centered on the subject of accessing trans health care and led by Howard Brown Health navigator Zi’Renae Young. MuggleNet’s panel, “Reclaiming the Fandom,” will take place after the performance on Friday, June 23.