Review by Tommy Langra , photos by Ben Fon

The magical world of laughter, this encapsulating play reiterates to us never to judge a book by its cover. A cover, a first appearance leads us to believe that PUFFS is a sole comedic look at the now notorious Hogwarts, less known boarding house Huffle Puff. Mark Cox’s ingenious play actually offers viewers a reflection of growing up in the 80s and 90s.

How magical is Hogwarts and the Gen Y obsession when those slightly older kids remember a time of X Men, Batman, and the late 90s existential Crisisio that affected anyone aged 14+.

Feel free to laugh along with jokes about now partly forgotten movies such as Free Willy and Rambo 2. For those who missed the scent of Teen Spirit from the likes of Butter Beer there are obviously plenty of references to the Potter books themselves, and even the ultimate cosmic evil, Daleks!

For theatre junkies the play was fast paced and tight knit and happily the cast took us back to our high school years. Adding to the sense of the plays timeline. With a brief quip about the age of the main character.

Make sure you don’t rush out of the Alex Theatre before admiring the prop lined walls with humorous spells gone wrong and hessian cobwebs. Sign of the kind of all encompassing event, a real magical romp.