Director Todd Graff brought a cast of talented young newcomers (see the IMDb page for this film for cast names)to this high-energy story about a summer at "Camp Ovation," a kind of Parris Island for theatre arts and music and dance ingenues and would-be stars. The kids aren't nerds but they're not mainstream youths either. The camp's sports counselor is the loneliest person on deck.<br /><br />Bert, addressed dismissively by one teen as "Rummy," is a has-been musical theatre composer down on his luck and up on his hooch. His role is as predictable as his redemption. <br /><br />Through endless training and rehearsals and shows every two weeks, the teenagers both bond and battle. "Camp" follows their developing skills as well as their personal lives. Issues of sexual identity are explored as is the pain of a first love experience by a slightly overweight but winsome young teen, Ellen. The pain of Michael, a gay youth who tested the envelope by turning up for his junior prom in drag, then being both rejected for admission and beaten badly, is acutely portrayed. Rejected also by his father, the issue of teenage gay emergence isn't exploited, it's treated with sensitivity and compassion.<br /><br />The dance numbers and music of "Camp" are way outside my experience and interests. But I was engrossed by the unfolding and seamless energy of the young cast.<br /><br />A cameo appearance by Stephen Sondheim appears to be for the purpose of saying, "Hey, musical theatre is alive!" Bob Fosse's vivid vitality lives on here, especially in the choreography.<br /><br />To borrow from my teenage son's hip argot, "Camp" is an "uber-upper."<br /><br />8/10.