“InTransit” Takes a Ride Through the New York Experience

We all know how important the New York subway system is, as most of us use it to travel the city, including riding to and from Stuyvesant every day. Thousands of passengers board each day from all over, navigating around hundreds of stations across the five boroughs, praying there aren’t any major delays or reroutes that make it harder to reach their destination. “InTransit,” the new Broadway musical at the Circle in the Square Theater, not only uses the subway system as a framing device for its story, but also as the core instrument of the show.

“InTransit” is the first a capella musical on Broadway, relying solely on the voices of the cast—and occasional banging on the set to provide some percussion—to carry the show’s musical numbers. This works incredibly well, since the cast has a fantastic vocal range that creates a captivating harmony.

The set resembles a New York City subway (though not any particular one, as there are signs for multiple stations around the set), with a conveyor belt giving the illusion of a train. Set pieces are moved to replicate other locations like a bar or an apartment. The unique nature of the Circle in the Square Theater, where the audience encircles the stage, provides an immersive experience. No matter where the actors are performing, they are always facing some part of the audience.

A particularly impressive aspect of the show is the sound effects, which are produced by the cast members themselves. The Boxman, for example, is a street performer who opens the show with impressive beatboxing and perfectly imitates sounds necessary for the story, such as the noises of an approaching train. He also monologues about the spirit of the city and helps other characters with their dilemmas, providing a unifying force for the story.

The show follows several different but tangentially related New Yorkers, all dealing with some sort of relatable turmoil common to citydwellers. Jane, for instance, wants to get out of her dead-end office job and become an actress, but struggles to land her dream role. Nick is recently unemployed and has to haggle with a subway booth attendant when his MetroCard runs out of cash. Ali recently got out of a bad breakup and suffers lonely Saturday nights, battling the urge to contact her ex over social media.

Though their stories are separate, they are tied together through distant relationships as their paths cross in the city, leading to developments such as Jane and Nick starting a romance. However, none of these feel contrived and instead accurately portray how despite the city’s busy nature, even if the train being on time is more important to us than a conversation, we can still make some surprising connections with the people we meet.

The most poignant storyline in the show is that of a same-sex couple, Trent and Steven, played by Justin Guarini and Stuyvesant alumnus Telly Leung (‘98), respectively. We see Trent conflicted when he returns to his hometown for a weekend (introducing Steven as a “roommate”) and faces affection from his family, but also has to sit through sermons where a priest condemns his sexuality as “sodomy.” Steven spends most of the story encouraging Trent to come out to his religious, narrow-minded mother, but Trent, understandably, doesn’t want to lose her love. “This is more important than ever!” Steven tells Trent, trying to convince him to marry him to take a stand against bigotry.

That line holds a lot of weight in our current political climate, and the scriptwriters are aware of it. In light of both the 2016 elections and Leung’s recent wedding to his own husband, James Babcock, the script was altered to be as relevant as possible. It doesn’t come across as preachy or overly political, but the tasteful way it addresses both those who are openly gay and those struggling to come out accurately represents New York’s diversity.

The cast is appropriately diverse for an urban setting. Anybody who takes the subway can relate to experiences such as constant train rerouting, people urinating on the walls, and panicking because the MetroCard machine ate your last dollar. Yet it isn’t just the misery of the city that’s explored, but also the glory of its hustle and bustle. One number represents this by blending together the noises of the city (e.g. construction work, deli carts, and MTA officers), featuring an actress in a unique dress made entirely of MetroCards in the center of it all. It’s a small set, but it immerses the audience in the city experience.

“InTransit” is a love letter to New York. Tourists will be able to relate to the characters and enjoy the music, true, but it’s a must-see for anybody who loves the city, even if they hate some things about it. It celebrates how every stranger has a story, and every story needs the city to thrive. The a cappella stylings are a perfect choice for a musical about New York; like the music in this show being made up of the cast’s voices, the mood of the city is defined by the people within it and all of their wild adventures—even when they come face to face with delays and reroutes.