SOUNDTRACK

Young street musicians grow closer as they make music throughout New York City in Reynolds’ latest, which was adapted from the 2025 original full-cast audio production.

Stuyvesant Grey learned to love and play the drums from his mother, a former drummer in the Black punk band the Bed-Stuy Magic Dusters. In his senior year, his mom began dating Dom (“Or as I call him, Dummy”). After a confrontation, Stuy moves into his Uncle Lucky’s apartment and meets Dunks Randall, a guitarist who plays a classic Fender Stratocaster and whose wealthy father gave him apartment buildings, making him a landlord at 18. The teens meet a boy called Alexis Brown, who plays the bass, and a girl named Keith Jr., who plays the trumpet. As they spend time together, playing music and learning each other’s stories, they discover a shared dream: recording an album. One night, rain forces them to move out of their usual spot in Union Square; they end up playing underground in the subway, which becomes their “musical home.” Their increasing popularity is disrupted when they must work through complex personal challenges. This compelling story populated by irresistible characters includes surprising twists and descriptions of the sights and sounds that make the text come alive. Stuy’s energetic first-person narration is interspersed with dialogue written in a playscript format.

A rich, atmospheric portrayal of teens who become a family as they share a passion for music.