A loud cacophony of voices rings throughout the room as the cast members of this year’s Spring Hill College play, “Puffs,” participate in a warmup game of Pass the Clap.
This year, the production being put on by Spring Hill is “Puffs, or Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic,” a Harry Potter parody that follows a group of students as they experience school, romance, and increasingly hectic situations.
Cast members and the woman in charge of it all, Maria Jaskot-Inclan, gathered at the Arlene Mitchell Theater for a rehearsal after 3:00 p.m. on Thursday afternoon. Jaskot-Inclan said, “This year, we have a lot of people in the cast and crew. Still, actors are playing multiple characters.”
Senior, Kylee Culbertson, who plays Moaning Myrtle and Uncle Dave, said, “All of my friends were joining, and it’s my senior year. I was like, I’ve got to give it one last go. You don’t know when you’ll be able to do it again.”
Brad Silver, who plays Oliver and Victor stated, “The best thing about this production is the energy each individual brings to both their role and the production as a whole.” Milan Hargrove, who is the Narrator, had similar thoughts, “It has mostly been positive. We have a really supportive cast.”
Jaskot-Inclan explained, “There is nothing like this experience, where you can engage in the play’s action and react to live actors and the set.” Chelsea Bosarge, who plays Susie Bones and Harry, said, “I’ve always loved theater. I’ve always thought it was really fun and I’ve been so excited to get back into the theater.”
“I did the school play last year, and I really enjoyed it,” added Messersmith, “I’ve done theater for a lot of my life. So, I just thought to get to continue that is a lot of fun.”
Some actors expressed their appreciation of the source material, explaining that there was pressure to do it justice, especially with characters that were well known, but that overall, they thought the audience would enjoy the performance.
Opening night is March 14 at 7:30. “Puffs” will continue to show at 5:00 p.m. on March 15, 7:30 p.m. on March 16, and 2:00 p.m. on March 17. Tickets are free for Spring Hill College students, faculty, and staff. However, the cost for others is $10.
