You Had to Be There (film)

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)
Directed byNick Davis
Screenplay byNick Davis
Jane Mendelsohn
Produced byBonnie Comley
Nick Davis
Stewart F. Lane
Tom Powers
Sue Turley
CinematographyPhil Cooper
Wolfgang Held
Edited byDoug Abel
Music byTimo Elliston
Brian Jones
Animation byAce & Son Moving Picture Co., LLC
Production
companies
Open Door
Series of Dreams
XRM Media
Distributed byCreative Artists
United Talent
Release date
  • September 6, 2025 (2025-09-06) (TIFF)
Running time
98 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

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) is a 2025 American documentary film, directed by Nick Davis.

The documentary film centers on a 1972 production of the stage musical Godspell at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto, Ontario, from which many of its cast members would soon go on to have a transformative impact on both Canadian and American comedy through their involvement in projects such as The Second City and Saturday Night Live.

Cast members in the production included Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Dave Thomas, Gilda Radner, Victor Garber, Andrea Martin and Jayne Eastwood, with Paul Shaffer serving as musical director.

At TIFF, the film was second runner-up for the People's Choice Award, Documentary.