Interstate: A New Musical

12/12/2024

Hi, friends! Please support our year-end fundraiser, which will support 3 readings of our new works, and a storytelling workshop. We only have 11 more days to raise $40K to meet our goal! Thank you so much to our friends and family who've already supported us!

Link: https://fundraising.fracturedatlas.org/kit-yan-productions/campaigns/6734

For the past two years, we’ve faced many challenges as artists – the WGA writers strike, limited grant funding for the arts, and strained theater budgets – that left us with very few paid projects and greatly reduced our income. Despite this, we still poured our hearts into creating original works – from musicals like Interstate and MISS STEP to new TV pilots, plays, and even a feature film. These stories represent our communities and explore themes of identity, love, and social justice.

As independent artists, we rely on community support to continue our work. Every contribution, big or small, directly supports our creative process. You can also join our Patreon to offer ongoing support.

Your support means the world to us as we pour our hearts into creating art that matters. Thank you for believing in us and our stories.

07/13/2023

We can’t believe it was two months ago now that we made our reappearance performing together on stage for the first time in over a decade. We are so grateful and honored to have gotten the opportunity to spend five nights performing on the Claire Tow Stage as part of NEXT@LCT3 amongst a lineup of other incredible and talented artists.

During our set, we asked ourselves if, why, and how we wanted to continue our work in the American Theatre. Performing songs from throughout our lives and careers, beginning in childhood and ending in favorites from our musicals Interstate and MISS STEP with friend, mentor, and accompanist Karen Dryer helped clarify our ambitions, dreams and vision for the future. We are so grateful to the team at Lincoln Center, our line producer George Strus, and everyone who came out and joined us for this special event. Thank you to Marc J. Franklin for these incredible photos!

-Kit and Melissa

***rtheatre

07/11/2023

Last month, we were on the Woke AF Daily podcast hosted by Danielle Moodie. We spoke about how we bring q***r joy to the stage while still recognizing and respecting Pride's roots as a riot. We had such a blast recording it and hope you’ll listen to it as a reminder of the work that still needs to be done (and that we’re still doing) even now that Pride Month is over!

Listen anywhere you get your podcasts and direct link here: https://omny.fm/shows/woke-af-daily-1/joy-as-an-act-of-resistance

+ ***rtheatre

Melissa Li and Kit Yan are two award-winning playwrights who bring q***r joy to the stage while still recognizing and respecting Pride's roots as a riot - Danielle spoke to them for a riveting and relevant conversation.

04/13/2023

We’re coming out of retirement for a concert at Lincoln Center Theater for five nights only!

We are so excited to share that we (Kit Yan and Melissa Li) will be doing a concert at Lincoln Center as part of their Next@LCT3 series. Join us for an intimate night of songs from our musicals and maybe even a number from our band's tour days. We can't wait to spend time sharing some personal insights into our body of work with you all.

From Wednesday, May 3 through Sunday, May 7, come see us at the Claire Tow Theater, upstairs at Lincoln Center (150 W 65th St, Manhattan) as part of the NEXT@LCT3 series at Lincoln Center. All shows begin at 7:30pm and all tickets are $33. Availability is extremely limited and the run is selling out fast. Get your tickets now!

Learn more and get your tickets: https://www.lct.org/shows/nextlct3/

Next@LCT3

01/22/2023

Our other musical MISS STEP is getting a beta production at the Village Theatre in Issaquah, WA right outside Seattle, February 11 through February 19. Learn more about the show and how to get tickets in the post below. Be sure to follow and like our new page! 🥳

Hello world! We are Kit Yan and Melissa Li, the writers behind MISS STEP: A New Musical. We set out to write a big joyous dance musical comedy with a cast of lovable q***r and trans characters that’s about finding the remarkable in the ordinary joys of community, healing, family and friendship…with a sprinkle of grit, sparkle, and sweat!

More about MISS STEP: Pam Carter is an unremarkable trans woman, working as a toll collector on the New Jersey turnpike. When a family tragedy uncovers her late father’s secret passion for competitive aerobics, Pam decides to step into her father’s sneakers and vault herself on a remarkable journey. This sweet, fun, 80’s throwback musical is a comedy for family members of all ages and genders. So slap on that spandex, throw on a headband, and get ready to clap your hands for MISS STEP!

If you live in the Pacific Northwest, come see the beta production of our show at Village Theatre in Issaquah, WA February 11 through February 19. Come see the work of our all-star team, including Connor Gallagher (Director and Co-Choreographer), Laganja Estranja (Co-Choreographer), and Jason Sherwood (Set Designer). Learn more and get your tickets here: https://villagetheatre.org/shows/miss-step/

11/23/2022

ATTENTION TRANS AND NON-BINARY ACTORS! We are STILL accepting submissions for upcoming workshops and productions of MISS STEP! We are accepting submissions for all roles, but we are especially seeking submissions for the roles of Cindy and Pam (character descriptions above). Representation matters, and we believe it is important for trans people to see their experiences portrayed accurately by other trans and gender non-conforming people. Even if you decide not to submit, we ask that you please share this casting call to anyone in your network who might be interested. Please feel free to reach out with any questions- we look forward to receiving your submissions!!
            ***rtheatre  ***rmusical                        ***r    ***r             

10/14/2022

ATTENTION TRANS AND NON-BINARY ACTORS! We are excited to announce that we are launching a nationwide casting search for MISS STEP, a new 80s dance aerobics musical by Melissa Li and Kit Yan featuring an all-trans lead cast. MISS STEP is being developed by the Village Theatre with support from Playwrights Horizons, Musical Theater Factory, and the Bret Adams and Paul Reisch Foundation.
We encourage non-professional actors to submit, and want to make this process as easy and accessible as possible. Please see above graphics for submission requirements, and feel free to reach out at [email protected] with any questions. We are accepting submissions on a rolling basis, however we encourage you to get your materials in by November 1, 2022 if you would like to be considered for December 2022. We look forward to hearing from you!
***rtheatre ***rmusical ***r ***r

07/08/2022

Happy Summer, INTERSTATE friends and family! It’s only been a couple weeks since we closed East West Players’ production of Interstate, but this journey is just beginning! Stay tuned as we share more about the future of INTERSTATE - in the meantime, how could we resist a post with power duo and .le ?!❤️🥟🎉🌈🏳️‍⚧️
📸:
***r ***rtheatre ***rasian ***r ***rmusicaltheatre ***rmusical

06/29/2022

We are so excited to celebrate the release of our song "Who Am I?" for San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus' world premiere recording Songs of the Phoenix! 🎉 With music by Melissa Li and lyrics by Kit Yan and Melissa Li, the song explores a trans person's return home for the first time since their transition and seeing the photos of memorabilia from the person they were before, and how these items help them realize that all of those things made them who they are today. We hope you'll listen on BroadwayRecords.com or the music streaming platform of your choice, and celebrate the incredible talent of the SFGMC as well as all of the other artists who contributed songs. Happy listening and happy pride! 🌈🏳️‍⚧️🎶
***r ***rtheatre

06/27/2022

We can’t believe it’s already the end of this chapter of INTERSTATE. We couldn’t be more grateful for all of you who joined us for the ride, and we wanted to take a second to thank you for your kind words! Stay tuned- even as we kiss this bar goodbye, this is only the beginning 🏳️‍⚧️✡️🚙🌈🎉
***r ***rtheatre ***rasian

06/25/2022

“Interstate takes America’s longest-running Asian-American theater in exciting new directions. It’s a cross-county road trip well worth taking.” - Steven Stanley, Stage Scene LA
Here’s what the LA critics have been saying about INTERSTATE! Celebrate pride by joining us on the Interstate for our closing weekend- we hope to see you there! 🌈🏳️‍⚧️❤️🥟 (Photos by Steven Lam.)
***r ***rtheatre ***rasian

06/22/2022

We’re so excited to share production photos of INTERSTATE at East West Players! () Join us on the INTERSTATE before we close this weekend- we’d love to have you along for the ride! 🌈🏳️‍⚧️🥟🚙 (Photos by Stephen Lam)
***r ***rtheatre ***rasian