You Had to Be There: How Toronto Godspell Ignited the Comedy Revolution
Friday, October 9, 2026
6:45 p.m. – 8:31 p.m.
506 Bloor Street West
On June 1, 1972, a hippie musical retelling of the Book of Matthew opened at the Royal Alexandra Theatre. The cast included Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Gilda Radner, Victor Garber, Andrea Martin, Dave Thomas, Jayne Eastwood, and musical director Paul Shaffer. What happened over the next 14 months is the subject of Nick Davis’s high-spirited documentary *You Had to Be There*.
Why this film lands in Toronto
This isn’t a generic showbiz nostalgia trip — it’s a local origin story. The improvisational DNA of that Godspell company fed directly into *Saturday Night Live*, *SCTV*, and decades of Canadian comedy exports. Davis mixes interviews with surviving participants, animated recreations, and whatever archival scraps survived the pre-smartphone era.
Details
- When: Thursday, October 9, 2026
- Where: Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, 506 Bloor St W
- Tickets: General $15; members $10 / $8 / free (+HST)
If you care about how Toronto comedy actually got weird and wonderful, this is required viewing.
