ORANGE — Grab your butterbeer and rev up your Nimbus 2000, because the four-day Return to Hogwarts is set to turn downtown Orange into a magical experience.

The “Harry Potter”-themed event marks the titular character’s birthday on July 31 and will feature an array of free and paid activities from July 26 to July 30.

Jennifer Sheldon, who owns the White Cloud Diner and organizes the event, said it was her mother’s love of the books that inspired it. Sheldon joked that at first, she didn’t get the books, but after her mother died in 2013 from ovarian cancer, her interest grew and it’s helped her feel closer.

“It just kind of drew me in and it gives me kind of a comfort feeling,” Sheldon said, “because it makes me think of my mother.”

A magical adventure

Each of the 19 participating businesses will have something different to offer. Ken’s Legacy will create Hogsmeade Village at the Orange Municipal Airport with food and live music. Home Fruit Wine will feature a visit from Tintagels Gate for a lesson on how to make a protection potion. There will also be a costume party in the evening. Billy Goat Boats will offer boat rides and rentals on the river, and Kirsten Spencer Photography will be on hand to provide keepsake photos.

The Revival Wheeler Mansion will become the Mansion of Divination to host the Hogwarts Ball and Wizardry Mystery Game. Trailhead Outfitters & General Store will be known as the Forbidden Forest, with a cupcake and cookie decorating workshop, a Harry Potter Paint Night and a pillowcase sewing workshop.

The Orange Community Band will perform Friday evening at the Butterfield Park bandstand with Harry Potter-themed music, while Lock and Key Tattoo will do walk-in appointments to give people the best Hogwarts ink. Sheldon said some businesses are located in the downtown area and within walking distance, while others will require a short vehicle trip.

“I plan it all year,” Sheldon said. “I literally take off the month of August and then I start planning Hogwarts.”

A growing idea

First held in 2019, Return to Hogwarts was intended to be a small celebration at the White Cloud Diner, but Sheldon threw herself into the process and it instead became a full festival.

“And it was a lot of fun,” she said. “And we had a lot of great feedback.”

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced a stop to the Hogwarts event, but it returned bigger than ever in 2021, with more Orange businesses getting involved. Nine businesses joined with the White Cloud Diner for the 2022 celebration, each offering a different game or activity based on the popular book series. Now, the number of businesses has swelled to 19, both in downtown Orange and in the nearby area. Sheldon said over the years, thousands of people have taken part.

“People are now planning their vacations around it,” Sheldon said. “They travel from all over. We have people that fly in. Last year, we had people that flew in from Kentucky, South Carolina, New York — and those are the ones we knew of.”

When asked about the growth of the event, Sheldon said it hasn’t come as a surprise, given the popularity of the books and movies.

“It’s nice that it brings people into the community,” she said. “I think especially after COVID, we have a hard time kind of getting back out there in the world.”

Maps with the location of all of the Return to Hogwarts stops, as well as the calendar of events, can be picked up at the North Quabbin Chamber of Commerce or the White Cloud Diner. During the event, the maps will be available at all the stops. It is also listed on the event’s Facebook page, Return to Hogwarts.

Max Bowen can be reached at 413-930-4074 or mbowen@recorder.com.

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