The City Reliquary

05/29/2026

Approaching the platform: our next contestant, Alicia Kalsi!

A civil servant, three-time national-title-holding vocalist, and puppeteer, Alicia is a competitor with true civic spirit. She’s devoted to exploration and visited all 62 Brooklyn Public Library branches in a mere three weeks in the Browse the Branches challenge. She is a pinball enthusiast and was instrumental in getting the Red Hook Pinball Museum a permanent home for all to enjoy! Alicia will represent the underrated Franklin Avenue Shuttle because “with connections to eight different train lines across a humble four stops, she reminds me that I can always do more with less.” An admirable approach!

Why is Alicia the next Miss Subways? “The subway is the connective tissue of our beautiful City, and who better to represent it than a civil servant? We come to the subway to laugh, to cry, to adventure, and to hide. I relate to our subway system because I, too, maintain flexibility and find a different path when things aren’t going right.”

Will Alicia hit the Miss Subways jackpot? Find out on Friday, June 5 at Coney Island USA. Tickets: https://pools.events/event/7mxxmkZn/miss-subways-2026/

05/28/2026

Get ready to meet our next contestant: Trudy Carmichael!

A self-described Las Vegas Lounge Legend, Trudy is the sequin-encrusted alter ego of musical improviser Robin Rothman. Born in the neon glow of the Vegas strip, Trudy has found her favorite audiences in the grit and glory of NYC. She will bring her special blend of spontaneous cabaret and vintage glam energy to the platform at Coney Island USA. As “Countess of the C train,” Trudy is proud to represent the line that glides through the heart of the theater district, and its vintage local charm.

Trudy is a devoted fan of the MTA’s Music Under New York (MUNY) program, and is inspired by the incredible buskers who transform concrete station platforms into international stages. As your next Miss Subways, Trudy will be a tireless advocate for the MUNY performers and independent artists who fill our otherwise banal commutes with soul-stirring music.

Catch Trudy’s act at Miss Subways! The magic happens Friday, June 5 at Coney Island USA. Tickets: https://pools.events/event/7mxxmkZn/miss-subways-2026/

05/27/2026

Now entering the station: LuXury Leah! (Leah King)

Leah is a true multi-hyphenate New Yorker: Brooklyn-born and Bronx-raised, she is a mentor, author, hairstylist, cosplayer, wrestler, boxer, armored combat athlete, event host, and social media personality who brings confidence, creativity, and community to everything she does. You may know Leah from Subway Mania, the show that transforms everyday commutes into a spectacle through live wrestling performances! She’ll represent the mighty 4 train, because it reflects her freedom and range: wherever you want to go in NYC, you can get there from the 4.

Leah says: “Just like the subway, I’m accessible, bold, unpredictable, and always moving forward — reminding people that we share this city, this energy, and this ambition. I don’t just want to wear the crown. I want to be the voice that reminds New York that we are the pulse of the subway, and the subway is our heartbeat.”

Root for LuXury Leah at Miss Subways, Friday June 5 at Coney Island USA! Get tickets for this fierce competition at https://pools.events/event/7mxxmkZn/miss-subways-2026/

05/26/2026

The City Reliquary was saddened to learn about the death of New York jazz legend Sonny Rollins, the saxophone colossus. Rollins was born in the Sugar Hill neighborhood of Harlem and began playing the saxophone at an early age. Rollins’s seven decade-long career, during which he recorded more than sixty albums, cemented him as an icon throughout his native Harlem, the wider New York jazz scene, and the Reliquary alike. A part of our permanent exhibition on the history of the Williamsburgh Bridge is a clip from 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘨𝘦, an album Rollins created between 1959 and 1961, when on sabbatical from the public eye. Then a resident of the LES, Rollins used the neighboring Williamsburgh Bridge as a practice space in lieu of a traditional studio.

05/26/2026

This Miss Subways contestant is also a Miss Subways expert! Jess Joseph is an educator, writer, licensed tour guide, public space advocate, and community manager for worker-owned news site New York Groove, where last year she published an extensive article on the origin and history of the Miss Subways competition. An internationally born Native New Yorker, Jess believes in public space and the power of cities to connect people through novel experiences, undiscovered histories, and personal stories. She is seeking to be the first Indian Miss Subways, and help bring the role to many more populations in light of the original competition’s status as the first racially integrated pageant in the world.

Jess will represent the 2 train. In her words: “It represents my spiritual and city beliefs. Duality, my own identity as an immigrant, being of two places, my belief in the dialectic, my love of the song It Takes Two by Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock.”

Will Jess take a place among the transit pantheon? Find out on Friday, June 5 at Coney Island USA. Tickets: https://pools.events/event/7mxxmkZn/miss-subways-2026/

05/25/2026

Introducing our first contestant for Miss Subways 2026: Abby Fantastic!

An around the way girl from Queens now spreading love the Brooklyn way, Abby has performed all over the world, including the Burlesque Hall of Fame and the Sicily Burlesque Festival, but nothing makes her more proud than being home on an NYC stage. She’s taken the subway her entire life and learned to read the subway map when she was 3 years old. Abby will be proudly representing the A train, in honor of her Harlem-native great-grandmother who considered it her theme song.

Why is Abby the next Miss Subways? “I am a product of the most creative, resilient and sometimes unreal city and being an artist means I've done my best work sitting on the Subway going from point A to B. I'm here to represent the creatives who get around and are the heart of what makes NYC great.”

See Abby’s Fantastic A Train moves at Miss Subways 2026, Friday June 5 at Coney Island USA ! Tickets: https://pools.events/event/7mxxmkZn/miss-subways-2026/

05/11/2026

🗣️ FINAL CALL FOR MISS SUBWAYS APPLICANTS! Apply by TOMORROW, Tuesday, May 12th at 11:59pm to be included in the running. 👑

All gender identities, body types, and ages 18+ are welcome to apply! Represent your subway line of choice through costume, performance (song, dance, puppetry, feats of strength, humorous powerpoints, standup — surprise us!)

Details and application —as well as tickets to the show on FRIDAY, JUNE 5 —at the link in bio! 🎟️

05/10/2026

Last call for contestants! The application for Miss Subways 2026 closes this Tuesday, May 12, at 11:59 PM.

We're seeking subway enthusiasts of all genders, body types, and ages 18+ to represent the subway line of their choice on stage at the Miss Subways event on June 5. Past contestants have had talents and costumes as varied as NYC---cosplayers, opera singers, poets, and animal experts have vied to represent straphangers as Miss Subways.

Complete the application form at the link to be considered: https://forms.gle/xkMCPv2UgBAvhrem7

Miss Subways takes places at Coney Island USA on Friday June 5. Learn more and get tickets to attend the show: https://www.cityreliquary.org/miss-subways-2026/

05/09/2026

👑WHO WILL WIN THE 2026 TRANSIT TIARA ON FRIDAY, JUNE 5TH? 👑

We are seeking the next MISS SUBWAYS, and it could be you! Apply by May 12th to be included in the running.

All gender identities, body types, and ages 18+ are welcome to apply! Represent your subway line of choice through costume and performance (song, dance, puppetry, feats of strength, humorous powerpoints, standup —whatever you’ve got!)

Details and application at the link in bio!

04/15/2026

Tickets for the City Reliquary’s 15th Panorama Challenge are almost SOLD OUT! 🎟️

Join us at this Friday, April 17, for a one-of-a-kind celebration all things NYC. 🗽

Buy online to save and guarantee your spot. Online ticketing closes at 1 AM THIS FRIDAY!

Grab your tickets at the link in our bio and be part of the challenge! 🔥

04/14/2026

Join us at Queens Museum for the 15th Panorama Challenge! Tickets linked in article.

Hosted at the Queens Museum this Friday, the Panorama Challenge tests participants’ knowledge of places and events tied to neighborhoods across the city.