‘Theater Camp’ Starring Ben Platt and Noah Galvin Released Its Trailer and It Looks Amazing

June 2, 2023
TOMMY

If you grew up loving Christopher Guest's "mockumentaries" as much as I did (think Best In Show, Waiting for Guffman, etc.) then you're probably as excited about Ben Platt's new film Theater Camp as I am. The trailer for Theater Camp was released and it's giving me so much gay theater nerd joy that I just can't handle it.

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The film, which is directed by co-creators Molly Gordon and Nick Lieberman, is set to star Gordon, Ben Platt, and his fiance Noah Galvin (who also co-wrote the script with Gordon and Lieberman). The premise focuses on a fictional Upstate New York theater camp - AdirondACTS - that is a mecca for young theater nerds. When founder Joan Rubinksy (Amy Sedaris) falls into a coma, her Str8 Bro™ son Troy (Jimmy Tatro) is brought in to run it. Because he doesn't know a scrim from cyc (CAN YOU EVEN IMAGINE?!), Troy teams up with Amos (Platt), Rebecca-Diane (Gordon), and the rest of their eccentric staff and students to save the camp before their next production.

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Though saving a theater camp is the plot, the real story is, as creator Molly Gordon puts it, "about the joy of bringing people together in a room." If you're unfamiliar with the world of a theater camp, it's really no different than any other camp niche you've been to: there are tons of clashing personalities, adults who may take things just a bit too seriously sometimes, and kids who just want to shine and connect with other kids. It does however feature full-grown adults holding up plaster masks dancing around like idiots, and saying things like, "These are the things we can do with masks" with the seriousness of someone saving a life. If you've been in this world, though, you know that for LGBTQ+ youth (and lots of straights, too), these camps can at times be absolutely life-saving.

One of the lines in the trailer that gave me a good belly laugh features Noah Galvin - who is also Platt's real-life fiancé - explaining the difference between a "straight play" and a "musical." "There are musicals and there are straight plays," Galvin's Glenn Wintrop says. "So, then what would be a 'gay play'?" a daft Troy asks. "I guess... a musical." For reference, a "straight play" just references any non-musical since it's a straight-forward play. Nothing to do with sexuality (...technically).

The movie is based on a short film of the same name. It initially had its world premiere at the legendary Sundance Film Festival earlier in 2023, where it received not one, but TWO standing ovations from the audience. It was almost immediately bought by Searchlight Pictures for $8 million.

Here's the trailer!