‘You Had To Be There’: How a musical about Jesus shaped Jewish comedy
ToI's movie maven and deputy editor delve into the delightful romp that documents the 1972 Toronto production of 'Godspell,' starring a constellation of fledgling Jewish greats
Welcome to The Reel Schmooze with ToI film reviewer Jordan Hoffman and host Amanda Borschel-Dan, where we bring you all the entertainment news and film reviews a Jew can use.
This week, we chew on the new documentary now in theaters, “You Had To Be There: How the Toronto Godspell Ignited the Comedy Revolution, Spread Love & Overalls, and Created a Community That Changed the World (In a Canadian Kind of Way).”
WATCH the full episode here:
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As depicted in the delightful film, if you ever wondered how a whole parcel of comedy greats got their starts, it was in a Canadian production of “Godspell” in 1972 that was a resounding success at Toronto’s Royal Alexandra Theatre.
All stars aligned to bring together the constellation of Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Dave Thomas, Gilda Radner, Victor Garber, Andrea Martin and Jayne Eastwood, with musical director Paul Shaffer. Ironically, the musical depicting Jesus and his disciples was heavily Jewish — sometimes with comical results.
Let’s hear who gave this film an “oy,” “meh” or the prized “not bad” this week on The Reel Schmooze.
The Reel Schmooze is produced by Ari Schlacht and can be found wherever you get your podcasts.