A Very Potter Musical

A Very Potter Musical (originally titled Harry Potter: The Musical and often shortened to AVPM) is a musical with music and lyrics by Darren Criss and A. J. Holmes and a book by Matt Lang, Nick Lang and Brian Holden. The story is a parody based on several of the Harry Potter novels, particularly Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling, as well as their film counterparts.

A Very Potter Musical tells the story of Harry Potter's return to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, his participation in the House Cup Championship, the trials and tribulations of adolescence, and the return of the dark wizard Lord Voldemort and the Golden Trio's attempts to destroy the Horcruxes.

The musical was performed in April 9–11, 2009 on the University of Michigan campus and is currently available to watch online. It was produced by StarKid Productions and directed by Matt Lang. The musical starred Darren Criss as Harry Potter, Joey Richter as Ron Weasley, Bonnie Gruesen as Hermione Granger, Jaime Lyn Beatty as Ginny Weasley, Lauren Lopez as Draco Malfoy, Brian Rosenthal as Quirinus Quirrell and Joe Walker as Lord Voldemort. In late June 2009, the group put the entire musical up on YouTube and it became a viral video, obtaining millions of views.

Potter

A potter is someone who makes pottery.

Potter may also refer to:

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Draco Malfoy

Draco Abraxas Malfoy is a character in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. He is a student in Harry Potter's year belonging in the Slytherin house. He is frequently accompanied by his two cronies, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, who act as henchmen. Draco is characterised as a cowardly bully who manipulates and hurts people to get what he wants; nevertheless, he is a cunning user of magic. He was played by Tom Felton in the Harry Potter film series.

Character development

Draco serves as a foil to the hero, Harry Potter and is loosely based on bullies Rowling encountered during her school days. Harry first encounters Draco's snobbish bigotry after their initial encounter at Madam Malkin's. (It should also be noted that the character of the school bully is a recurring character in the School story genre, going back to Flashman in "Tom Brown's School Days.) Rowling uses the Malfoys to introduce themes of intolerance and bigotry into a setting where people are often judged solely by their blood lineage rather than their good character or accomplishments. Draco, adhering to his family's beliefs, thinks that Muggle-born witches and wizards, which he and other characters derogatorily describe by the epithet Mudbloods, should be denied a magical education. Harry's first impression that the Wizarding community is a "magical wonderland" is instantly shattered. Says Rowling, "[Harry] found out that many people in power in the wizarding world are just as corrupt and nasty as they are in our world."

StarKid Productions

StarKid Productions, also known as Team StarKid, is a Chicago-based musical theatre company founded in 2009 at the University of Michigan by Darren Criss, Brian Holden, Matt Lang, and Nick Lang. Best known for the musical A Very Potter Musical, a parody of the Harry Potter series, the troupe produces musical-comedies inspired by pop culture, with original scripts, songs, and music. StarKid use social media for theatrical distribution, to make their productions accessible to a worldwide audience.

StarKid's repertoire additionally consists of albums, concerts, web series, sketch comedies, and books. The company's album Me and My Dick, featuring original songs and music, became the first charting student-produced musical recording on Billboard, debuting at #11 on the "Top Cast Albums" chart in 2010; the following year they landed at #1 on the same chart with Starship, another original album.

History

StarKid Productions is composed of actors, writers, directors, composers, choreographers, and designers, most of them originating from the University of Michigan's School of Music, Theater and Dance. The members met while collaborating on original and classic plays through Basement Arts, the university's student-run theater organization.