For many musicians, playing Madison Square Garden is the pinnacle of success. This colossal, circular Midtown arena, which sits directly over Penn Station, doubles as a home base for New York sports teams. You can usually tell the night’s activity based on the crowds that fill the surrounding bars: Tie-dye? Phish. Bell-bottoms and boas? Harry Styles. Jerseys? Rangers. Billy Joel, who has performed here more than 100 times, has fondly called MSG “the center of the universe.” Enough said.

“Award-winning writer Thomas Page McBee became the first transgender man to ever box at Madison Square Garden in New York City during a charity match in 2016. He wrote about his experiences in his groundbreaking memoir, Amateur: A True Story About What Makes a Man. In it, he not only talks about what it was like to go through training and enter the ring but also explores masculinity, sexism, and male aggression. Through boxing, McBee finds compassion, mentorship, and self-expression.”

NEW YORK<br><br>The Game: Madison Square Garden, Eastern regional, March 23 & 25