A Very Potter Sequel Review
Sunday, July 25, 2010
, Posted by Should I See It at 11:57 PM
Show: A Very Potter Sequel
Presented By: Team StarKid
Director: Matt Lang
Starring: Darren Criss, Joey Richter, Bonnie Gruesen, Lauren Lopez, Joe Walker and Brian Holden.
Plot: Lucius Malfoy is up to no good. He turns back time to try and kill Harry Potter during his first year at Hogwarts School and Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Big things have happened to Team StarKid in the year since A Very Potter Musical became an accidental international internet phenomenon. Their other major non-Potter outing, the musical Me and My Dick, was the first student-made musical to hit the Billboard cast recording charts. Over the weekend, their compilation album, A Very StarKid Album, trumped Lady Gaga and Glee on the ITunes album charts.
So it is no wonder that the announcement of A Very Potter Sequel on the first of January this year was greeted with rabid excitement and anticipation. After the live performances in May and its video premiere at Potter convention Infinitus, A Very Potter Sequel finally hit the internet on the 22nd of July.
A Very Potter Sequel doesn’t quite live up to the impossibly high standard set by A Very Potter Musical. The plot doesn’t flow nearly as well; it’s not as streamlined as it was in A Very Potter Musical. Lucius Malfoy’s desire to get rid of Harry Potter begins the show, and we expect it to be the main drive of the plot, but the show gets side-tracked; making it feel like the show lacks a clear focus.
Turning back time sends us back to Harry Potter first goes to Hogwarts, and it feels like a lot of recapping: The returning characters don’t really develop much more. I guess that is part of the dilemma of the time travel scenario: How do you develop characters backwards?
There are a lot of references to A Very Potter Musical: which start out cute, but get old really quickly. A lot of enjoyment of the show relies on a solid knowledge of AVPM, which means A Very Potter Sequel never really invents anything for itself. And for this reason, A Very Potter Sequel never really hits the mark set by A Very Potter Musical.
I remember after watching A Very Potter Musical for the first time I had “Going Back to Hogwarts”, “Granger Danger” and “Ginny” stuck in my head on a constant loop. The score doesn’t have the same sticking power this time around. The line “He’s Harry Freakin’ Potter” from the song of the same name comes closest to being catchy, as does Umbridge’s disco number ‘You Were Never My Lover (Stutter)”. A few other songs create nice theatrical moments: “Those Voices” where Harry sees his parents in the Mirror of Erised is incredibly poignant, and Criss shows his adoration of Disney composers Alan Menken and Howard Ashman (check out his Disney covers on YouTube) in Harry’s solo upon arrival at Hogwarts ‘To Have a Home’.
The choreography by James Tolbert is great! I particularly loved his work in “Harry Freaking Potter” and “You Were Never My Lover (Stutter).” Tolbert also demonstrates great imagination in staging the Quidditch match number “Let the Games Begin.”
A Very Potter Sequel doesn’t quite live up to the impossibly high standard set by A Very Potter Musical. The plot doesn’t flow nearly as well; it’s not as streamlined as it was in A Very Potter Musical. Lucius Malfoy’s desire to get rid of Harry Potter begins the show, and we expect it to be the main drive of the plot, but the show gets side-tracked; making it feel like the show lacks a clear focus.
Turning back time sends us back to Harry Potter first goes to Hogwarts, and it feels like a lot of recapping: The returning characters don’t really develop much more. I guess that is part of the dilemma of the time travel scenario: How do you develop characters backwards?
There are a lot of references to A Very Potter Musical: which start out cute, but get old really quickly. A lot of enjoyment of the show relies on a solid knowledge of AVPM, which means A Very Potter Sequel never really invents anything for itself. And for this reason, A Very Potter Sequel never really hits the mark set by A Very Potter Musical.
I remember after watching A Very Potter Musical for the first time I had “Going Back to Hogwarts”, “Granger Danger” and “Ginny” stuck in my head on a constant loop. The score doesn’t have the same sticking power this time around. The line “He’s Harry Freakin’ Potter” from the song of the same name comes closest to being catchy, as does Umbridge’s disco number ‘You Were Never My Lover (Stutter)”. A few other songs create nice theatrical moments: “Those Voices” where Harry sees his parents in the Mirror of Erised is incredibly poignant, and Criss shows his adoration of Disney composers Alan Menken and Howard Ashman (check out his Disney covers on YouTube) in Harry’s solo upon arrival at Hogwarts ‘To Have a Home’.
The choreography by James Tolbert is great! I particularly loved his work in “Harry Freaking Potter” and “You Were Never My Lover (Stutter).” Tolbert also demonstrates great imagination in staging the Quidditch match number “Let the Games Begin.”
While all of the actors are back, not all of the characters return. Our old favourites Criss, Richter, Gruesen and Lopez are in great form. But for those in new roles, the actors show how talented and versatile they really are. After are five second cameo as Ginny Weasley, Jamie-Lynn Beatty is excellent as Rita Skeeter. Joe Walker as Umbridge is an inspired piece of casting.
Tyler Brunsman, Cedric Diggory in A Very Potter Musical, is in his element as Lucius Malfoy. Not only does he look great in the tight pants and blonde wing, but he prances around the stage with such flair, that he steals every scene he is in (I will never be able to look at Jason Isaacs [Lucius Malfoy in the films] the same way). After this performance, I would love to see him as Cinderella’s Prince in Into the Woods.
Don’t get me wrong, there is fun to be had with A Very Potter Sequel. Matt Lang is proving himself to be an incredibly solid director; the use of puppetry is great; I never knew you could have so much fun opening the door to a train carriage and I will laugh whenever someone asks “did you get my text?”
I will watch anything and everything produced by Team StarKid because they are incredibly talented. I love the fact that they are making things happen for themselves. There’s a reason that they have experienced the success that they have!
Should I See It?
For StarKid fans only. Make sure you have seen A Very Potter Musical first.
All images courtesy of Team StarKid.
