Listen. I loved musicals and theatre. I still love musicals and theaters. This scratched that itch. That sentimental, overwrought sense of belonging that’s not as true as it’s built up to be but that we hold onto anyway. Platt is much more bearable when playing the entitled ass we know him to be now, and Edebiri continues to steal the show. She should’ve had more, but I am always saying that. Her equal in scene stealing is Patti Harrison, who takes what could’ve been a strait laced antagonistic role and imbues it with this quirkiness and longing for connection. She’s a weirdo who’s forced herself into this business mold, and she gets laughs out of the smallest lines just by how she says it and the faces she makes.

Noah Glavin is the returning actor who plays a role most different from the one he had in the short, and who illustrates the differences between them. In here, he’s the heart of it, showcasing his range with a sad puppy energy that makes you wish the best for him. And he ties a bow on it all with a killer performance at the end, that’s not played for laughs at all and let’s him just own it. It was really refreshing in that sense. In the original short he was a selfish dance instructor who back stabbed his friend and co reached to keep his job, and here he’s the one espousing the value of this camp, this family, and saved them all.

Is the former more true to the harshness and selfishness of the business? Sure, probably, and I can get preferring the meaner, perhaps more honest edge of the original short. But this made me laugh more. Dammit, it made me cry. Could they have done a lot more with the mockumentary format, or Edebiri? Also yes. But that final song really harnessed the power of a good, sentimental finale. theater is all about getting lost in the illusion. The fact is, I had fun getting lost in this one for an hour and a half.