The Merboy Next Door

Join us in Queens for the first public concert-style developmental presentation of The Merboy Next Door, a new queer musical by Joel B. New! The Merboy Next Door: A New Musical in Concert is a queer, campy new musical comedy by Joel B. New. When Finn, a guarded foster teen, moves in with his well-meaning new dads near the California coast, he hopes to keep his head down at a new school. But an accidental audition reveals something impossible: his voice has the power to make people listen...whether they want to or not. As Finn is pulled into a splashy high-school musical, a rivalry with the school’s golden boy, and the secrets of a mysterious principal, he must decide whether to use his newfound power to finally belong -- or risk everything to be truly seen. This concert-style developmental performance features a small ensemble of actors and musicians, original pop-infused showtunes, and plenty of theatrical chaos. Following the performance, join us for a brief community conversation about the show and the real-life foster-adoptive parenting journey that inspired it, with invited voices from the foster-care and adoption community. A 2026 Queens Arts Fund (NYFA) grant recipient, The Merboy Next Door is an original work in development about chosen family, identity, transformation, and the dangerous allure of applause. This event is made possible (in part) with public funds from the Queens Arts Fund, a re-grant program supported by New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and administered by New York Foundation for the Arts.