On Thursday Nov. 15, the Live On staff of Wonders Hall will create an experience that they hope will live up to the building’s name. Resident assistants, or RAs, and hall directors have spent the vast majority of the semester organizing an evening that will take residents to the fantasy world of Harry Potter.
Education junior and Wonders Hall RA Zoe Wietfeldt said transforming Wonders Hall into an interactive Harry Potter exhibit will allow participating residents to take a break from their otherwise stressful student schedules.
“(Harry Potter) ties us back to our childhood and (is) an escape … from our classes and reality,” she said. “(It) takes us to a magical world.”
The evening will kick off with a Quidditch game outside of Wonders Hall at 7 p.m., followed by indoor activities at 7:30 p.m.
Graduate student Leah Brand, the assistant community director of Wonders Hall, said she had been inspired to organize the event since West Circle Neighborhood’s Harry Potter Extravaganza, which was held in 2010.
When she had the event approved for Wonders Hall, Brand said she made sure to keep the event unique from the activities featured previously in West Circle.
On Thursday, Brand said the building will mirror J.K. Rowling’s imaginative Diagon Alley and the Hogwart’s Great Hall. Each of the five classrooms included will feature a unique Harry Potter theme, including the Ollivander’s Wand Emporium and Gringotts Wizarding Bank.
After a semester of planning, Brand said she is eager to see the evening come together smoothly.
“We’ve worked really hard on this event,” she said. “I’m just excited to see what we’ve been dreaming of all semester come to life.”
English freshman and Wonders Hall resident Adam Krajkowski said he frequents floor events, but is particularly looking forward to Harry Potter night.
He said the evening will take the usual resident interaction to a new level.
“I think (the Harry Potter evening) will be a little more interesting and hands-on,” Krajkowski said. “We get to create spells — who wouldn’t want that?”
After the extensive publicity and advertising that went into the event, Wietfeldt said she’s hoping the night proves to be popular among residents.
Brand is confident it will be. Each resident received a Hogwarts letter in their mailbox and she said the response was promising.
“We’re getting a lot of positive buzz,” Brand said. “We’re expecting a large crowd.”
If the night is as successful as organizers expect, Wietfeldt said she would like to see the evening become an annual event for Wonders Hall.
“I’m hoping it will be a big event and stay and become a tradition in Wonders (Hall),” she said. “Everyone has put a lot of work into it, so hopefully it will stick around.”
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