ABOUT THE SHOW

Interstate is an Asian-American pop-rock poetry musical that follows Dash, a transgender spoken word performer who becomes internet-famous along with his best friend Adrian, a lesbian singer-songwriter. Fueled by the allure of fame and a desire to connect with their community, the band embarks on a road trip across America for their first national tour. Their fiercely political and deeply personal music touches Henry, a transgender teenage boy living in small-town middle America, and he finds solace in their art as he struggles with his own identity and family. After blogging about the band and documenting his own gender journey, he decides to set out on a quest to meet his heroes in person, hoping to find answers to his own struggles. Interstate is a touching story about how two transgender people at different stages of their journey navigate love, family, masculinity, and finding a community in the era of social media.

development history

Jun 2022 - East West Players Production
Nov 2021 - MCC SongLab and Reading
Jul 2021 - NY Stage and Film Workshop
Mar 2020 - Mixed Blood Theatre production
Dec 2019 - Playwrights Horizons writing residency
Oct 2019 - NAMT Festival presentation
Sep 2019 - Musical Theater Factory MAKER staged reading
Jun 2019 - MacDowell Colony Fellowship
Jan 2019 - Goodspeed Musicals Johnny Mercer Colony residency
Oct 2018 - Dramatists Guild Foundation Fellowship
Jul 2018 - NYMF workshop production
Mar 2018 - Musical Theater Factory Developmental Residency
Apr 2016 - AEA 29-hour industry staged reading
Nov 2013 - Private table reading
Jul 2013 - Dixon Place HOT! Fest staged reading
May 2013 - Private staged reading
Oct 2012 - terraNOVA Collective Groundworks writing residency

the true story behind interstate

Interstate is based on the true story of Good Asian Drivers, a Queer band that was active from 2008-2010.

In the winter of 2007, slam poet Kit Yan approached singer-songwriter Melissa Li backstage at a Queer Asian cabaret in Boston. He wanted to go on tour and needed a partner in crime. By April, they were cruising down the highway in a small Toyota Corolla on their first national tour. Over the next six weeks, they traveled across 32 states, performing at bars, clubs, colleges, festivals, and coffeeshops, amassing friends, supporters, and fans all over the country.

The tour was so successful, they decided to do it again. Armed with a new studio album (Drive Away Home), a new bandmate (drummer Ashley Baier), and even a new car (a Kia SUV), Good Asian Drivers embarked on a second tour in the summer of 2009, but this time, things didn’t go as well as they’d planned. By 2010, the band had fallen apart and Good Asian Drivers had officially broken up.

A few years later, Kit and Melissa reconnected to process the experience of the tour and how the joys of discovering their community and the power of visibility and activism came at the cost of their friendship. The legacy of Good Asian Drivers became the genesis for Interstate.