I stopped by Kids Open Mic at the New Deal Cafe and found it a low-key, friendly place for families to gather and do music.   Also, very cute, like these Suzuki violin students.  Or another little girl singing “Itsy Bitsy Spider.”

Kids Open Mic has been a monthly feature at the New Deal for five years now, a supportive showcase for the talents of anyone 17 who shows up and wants to perform, from tiny violists to whole rock bands, according to organizer Jon Gardner below.  It happens the third Sundays of the month,  and for more information, he directs readers to email his partner in the enterprise – wife Anne.  (annegrdnr@yahoo.com).

Performers and their families at Kids Open Mic, with organizer Jon Gardner on the right.

Kids don’t just perform at these events.  They MC them and handle the sound, too.  Pictured here are sound engineer/performer David Gardner and MC Elizabeth Gardner.

No wonder I heard more a parent yell “Thanks, Gardners” when the family left.  Jon and Anne also perform folk music under the name Transatlantic Crossing.

Why they Perform

One mother, whose violin-playing daughter had performed at several Kids Open Mics, credits the experience with her daughter’s increased confidence at school, where she plays with larger groups.

Jon Gardner echoed that common experience and added that several performers have been tapped for inclusion in Greenbelt’s Labor Day Rising Star event as a result of their participation in Kids Open Mic. (And he pointed to Rising Star organizers Scott and Courtney Ritz in the audience checking out the local talent.)

Another parent, sitting with a table of friends and their musical children over a late lunch, told me she enjoyed the chance to see friends, and to have an hour of free entertainment.

Very safe, family-like atmosphere.  But still, getting up on that stage has gotta be scary, no matter your age.  So, props to all the brave young musicians of Open Mic!