Mischief Managed in Chestertown, Md.

By Abby Wargo
Elm Staff Writer
There’s no better way to kick off the month of October than with a weekend-long celebration of all things magical — the Chestertown Harry Potter Festival. Taking place from Friday, Sept. 30 to Sunday, Oct. 2, the wildly popular festival returned for a third year of magical adventure.
Witches and wizards of all ages could find something to enjoy; a town wide scavenger hunt, street vendors, herbology and potions classes, street theatre, and Quidditch, to name a few things. Most of the action took place on Saturday.
A new event was added this year: Madame Malkin’s High Tea, at the Occasions Boardroom. The event sold out quickly, but those who got to attend received a souvenir teacup and saucer.
Other ticketed events included the Hogwarts Experience for children ages eight to 13, which took place at the Garfield Theatre. The event allowed children to get sorted into their houses and take classes at Hogwarts. Nearly Headless Nick’s 524th Deathday party on Saturday night was another popular event at the Garfield.
For witches and wizards over 21, the Fish Whistle hosted the Hog’s Head House Party on Saturday night, which included trivia, a dance party, and themed food. Many people came dressed in costume, like Natalie Lane of Chestertown.
Lane moved to Chestertown from Florida around the same time that the festival began, and has been attending since the first year. She came this year decked out in her Ravenclaw house robes, complete with round glasses. “It’s a great festival, and it gets bigger every year. I love that it is for all ages, too,” she said.
Faith Stahl, a first-year student at Washington College, participated in the street theatre. Stahl dressed up as beloved Harry Potter character Gilderoy Lockhart. She felt that the event wasn’t as universal as it could be.
“I enjoyed the festival, it was a great way to get out of school but still stay in town for the weekend, and you could tell that everyone was enjoying themselves…the one problem was that all the events felt catered to children so there wasn’t a lot to do without paying a ton of money for it,” she said.
Stahl had a bit of a different experience, however, since her primary purpose at the festival was to perform in the street theatre. “[Performing] was great because I got to be overly vain and conceited as Lockhart. I was asked to emcee the costume contest (as Lockhart) so I got to make fun of all the costumed people even though I felt bad doing so,” Stahl said.
The festival is not only great for students to volunteer their time at, but it also great for business owners in downtown Chestertown. Katie Dalton and Chris Tighman of She She on High opened their store yesterday just in time for the festival. They said that their opening weekend had been crazy, but also “super terrific.”
They made sure to be involved in the festival, and their shop was on the official festival map as “Expecto Patronum on High.” The festival was a great way to get business and publicity, not just for She She on High, but for all the small businesses located downtown.
Participants at the event were encouraged to partake in the scavenger hunt though “Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley.”  There were clues hidden in the stores that were listed on the map. After collecting each clue, participants returned to Hogwarts (Garfield Center for the Arts) and got to collect a prize: a  small green 2016 Chestertown Harry Potter festival bag and a specialty wristband.Zastrow_HP Fest_Judy Kellar and Lori Batdorf HP Fest- Lockhart_ Maltese_ Student life copy

At the Chestertown Harry Potter Festival, children and adults alike dressed up as their favorite characters from the Harry Potter series. On the left is Judy Kellar and Lori Batdorf dressed up as Professor Sprout and Madame Pomfrey. On Saturday, Professor Sprout demonstrated how to properly re-pot a Mandrake at Profesor Sprout’s Greenhouse (Bloomin’ Wild). In the middle is a little girl in her Hogwarts robe standing in front of Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes (Twigs and Teacups). On the right is five time winner of Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile Award, Gilderoy Lockhart (played by WC senior Kyle Rugletic), signing autographs in Flourish & Blotts (The Bookplate).
At the Chestertown Harry Potter Festival, children and adults alike dressed up as their favorite characters from the Harry Potter series. On the left is Judy Kellar and Lori Batdorf dressed up as Professor Sprout and Madame Pomfrey. On Saturday, Professor Sprout demonstrated how to properly re-pot a Mandrake at Profesor Sprout’s Greenhouse (Bloomin’ Wild). In the middle is a little girl in her Hogwarts robe standing in front of Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes (Twigs and Teacups). On the right is five time winner of Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile Award, Gilderoy Lockhart (played by WC senior Kyle Rugletic), signing autographs in Flourish & Blotts (The Bookplate).

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *