Review: Theater Camp

When an art camp’s founder, Joan (Amy Sedaris), suffers a seizure and goes into a coma, her son, Troy (Jimmy Tatro), must handle the failing camp and bring it back to its former glory. Unfortunately, he knows nothing about the arts. As Troy attempts to learn the difference between musicals and plays, camp counselors Amos (Ben Platt) and Rebecca-Dianne (Molly Gordon) are working to create an original musical the kids can perform to honor their beloved Joan.

Theater Camp is a mockumentary made for theater kids by theater kids. If the cult classics Camp and Drop Dead Gorgeous had a baby, that baby would be Theater Camp. It doesn’t take itself seriously and makes fun of all the tropes about theater kids. Sadly, the only thing missing is an after-show celebration at Denny’s.

The direction and look of the film are intriguing. It almost feels like it’s set in the 90s, but it has millennial and Gen Z humor. The kids in this film are all fantastic talents. The acting and singing are just jaw-dropping. Molly Gordon and Ben Platt were just being Molly Gordon and Ben Platt. If you don’t know anything about the duo, they are long-time friends who are known for creating funny parody songs on social media. The two wrote the film along with Noah Galvin and Nick Lieberman. Gordon and Lieberman also directed the movie. You can tell this is a group of friends who were like, “let’s make a movie about this niche thing, and the ones who get it will love it.”

Noah Galvin steals the spotlight both literally and figuratively. In the movie, he plays a stagehand who longs to be a performer. His character is over-the-top and lovable. When he finally gets his moment, it’s so gratifying.

Theater Camp is laugh-out-loud funny; it has a lot of heart and gets surprisingly emotional. There is abundant talent packed into this small movie, and it has a big impact. You can watch this film repeatedly and find something new every time. If you love theater, you’ll love this movie. Honestly, if you don’t love theater, you’ll probably still enjoy this movie. You just may not understand the references.