Waiting for Guffman

In Waiting for Guffman, small-town theater director Corky St. Clair pours boundless enthusiasm into a wildly earnest local musical, and the sleepy Missouri community that rallies around him dreams of a one-night change of fate. When word spreads that a Broadway agent named Mort Guffman might attend, the amateur cast—full of quirky egos, shaky talents, and heartfelt ambitions—escalates their production into an increasingly elaborate and absurd spectacle.

Shot in Christopher Guest’s signature mockumentary style and largely improvised, the film skewers small-time showbiz pretension while celebrating the peculiar dignity of its characters. With deadpan performances from an ensemble including Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara, Fred Willard, and Parker Posey, it’s a warm, funny look at hope, delusion, and how theatre can bring a community to life.