The playful world of wizardry and witchcraft takes to the stage at Stockton University with a presentation of the play "Puffs, Or: Seven Increasingly Eventful Years At A Certain School of Magic and Magic." Performances run April 3–5, 2025, at 7:30 PM and April 5–6 at 2 PM in the Experimental Theater below the Performing Arts Center. Written by Matt Cox, who was inspired by books about pubescent youth finding their way at wizarding school, "Puffs" is a humorous and heartwarming story told from the perspective of the often-overlooked members of Puff House at a magical school.
The story follows Wayne Hopkins, an ordinary boy who finds out he is a wizard and is sent to a magic school in England. He lands in the Puff House, excited but uncertain about his future. Throughout the play, Wayne and his new friends — Megan, Oliver, and the rest of the Puffs — navigate their youthful years at magic school, facing challenges and a constant rivalry with a prevalent group of students known as the Braves. The students of Puff House are a group of well-meaning misfits, loyal outsiders who are characterized by Cox as funny, intelligent, silly, a little worn, and slightly ignored, with an unwavering love for badgers. "Badgers are cool."
Stockton University’s production of Puffs, featuring an ensemble of 11 cast members, is the Two Act edition, presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. The suggested audience age is 14 and older. Other versions of the play include an abridged one-act adaptation and toned-down one-act and two-act versions (no curse words or awkward jokes) that are more tailored for high school performances or young wizards.
Stockton University’s edition of "Puffs" is replete with comedic moments, quirky characters, and acts of bravery. There are moments in the play that are familiar to events from a series that shall not be named. But "Puffs" focuses heavily on the friendship between Wayne, Megan, Oliver and the other Puffs, who are often overshadowed by the heroics of the more popular students. The group of Puffs experience adventures, triumphs, magic, and personal growth in their effort to prove that even misfits, those who aren't destined to be "the chosen one" to fight forces of evil, can still make a meaningful difference.
"Puffs" brands itself as a play for "anyone who ever felt like they weren’t the hero in their own story." At its core, "Puffs" is a celebration of the underdogs and unsung heroes in the magical world, notes Antoinette Mozee, who serves as vice president of the Stockton Theater Club and co-director of this production of "Puffs."
"Another big theme of the play is that the Puffs are looked down on by other groups of students at the magic school," adds Alyssa Villalva, president of Stockton Theater Club and the other co-director of this production. "This is a perfect show for Stockton University and our theater department, which is not that big, be we’re still mighty. We can relate to the themes in 'Puffs.'"
In addition to being a show filled with "a lot of laughs, it is very communal. It is very heartfelt. It teaches you about friendship and teamwork," Villalva says. Mozee adds that "it’s also about bringing people together in hard times and learning how to be with friends and make connections with everyone, saying even though we're looked down upon, we can still do this together."
The Stockton Theatre Club is a student-led organization designed to explore all realms of theatre, from improv to musicals to plays as well as the technical side of theatrical production. For both Villalva and Mozee, this is their first time directing a school production.
“Honestly, working with each other, the tech people, and actors has been really fun,” says Mozee, who is a graduating senior. “Being able to do hands-on work as a director for 'Puffs' has been a really great experience. I'm very proud of what we've put together. We can’t wait for the audience to see the (performance).”
Villalva is delighted to have the Stockton Theater Club mount a production of "Puffs," which she recalls seeing for the first time when her high school performed the play. It was that production that ignited her interest in wanting to pursue theater further. "I really liked the story of 'Puffs.' Our ex-president of the Stockton Theater Club did a community theater version of "Puffs" that was really fun. It was such a great experience for her that she thought it would be great to (present) 'Puffs' in a setting like Stockton University," adds Villalva, who is currently a junior.
Lovers of all things Potter will find "Puffs" to be exceedingly enjoyable. "Puffs" playwright Cox, who is an actor, improviser, and comic book fan, knew that he wanted to have a lot of "relatability to pull from," not just from his own life, but also many of the people who would become the "Puffs" audience. "We’ve all felt like background characters who can’t catch a break while someone close by seems to have everything going right," he stated during a chat that was posted on a Concord Theatricals Publication "Breaking Character."
His play was originally called "Puffs: Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," but was eventually changed to Magic and Magic, according to Cox. He also pointed out that "Puffs" began as small show made by friends. It’s been nearly a decade since the play first premiered at a small comedy venue, the People's Improv Theater, in 2015. The show moved to Off-Broadway at New World Stages in 2016, where it broke records.
The general admission ticket price for "Puffs" is $15. Tickets are available on the Stockton University website. Visit https://stockton.universitytickets.com/.
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