Organized by the nonprofit Forest Park Arts Alliance, the 2024 StoopSessions are underway this summer. StoopSessions, which started in 2019, is a program with live music being performed on the front porches of Forest Park residents.
Arts Alliance President Karen Rozmus says StoopSessions was the first program for the nonprofit.
StoopSessions provides a platform for local musicians to showcase their work to the event’s attendees. When the alliance developed the program, supporting local artists was a top priority for the organization, Rozmus said.
“One of our core beliefs is that artists should be paid,” Rozmus said.
The musical artists who perform in the StoopSessions receive a $100 stipend. The money is budgeted from both the alliance and their sponsor, Rozmus said. For the past three years, State Farm Insurance Agent Mark Hanson has supported the program as the sponsor. A tip jar also is passed around during the StoopSessions to support the performing artists.
An upcoming StoopSession performance features the Marie Alexander ensemble.
“[Alexander] is wonderful,” Rozmus said. “She’s a jazz singer.”
Porches for the StoopSessions are provided by both members of the Arts Alliance and the Forest Park community. Attendance for the program requires a location with plenty of space, Rozmus said.
“We put the word out, ‘Do you have a porch? Do you want to host?’ There are some criteria — you have to have a porch at a parkway big enough,” Rozmus said. “You can’t be on a corner or a busy street. We get 50 to 75 people sitting out in front of a house.”
One of the artists featured in this year’s StoopSessions is Kelvin Grzelak, who has performed several times in previous StoopSessions with Gabe Medina.
“We’ve been watching Kelvin and Gabe – they’ve been playing together for years,” Rozmus said.
The StoopSessions are also introducing new talent this year as well.
“Our August artist – I am so excited to see her. Her name is Rashada Dawan,” Rozmus said.
Dawan is an actress and vocalist who grew up on the South Side of Chicago. After pursing acting full time, she was cast as “Shenzi” in Disney’s The Lion King and joined the Las Vegas cast and Gazelle tour for four years.
Rozmus said that Dawan was scheduled because she participated in a previous alliance event.
“At one of our storytelling nights, [Dawan] was a storyteller,” Rozmus said. “She talked about how she was a singer, and how she got a part in a Broadway play … right after her story, my co-chairman and I ran up to her and asked her if she’d like to do a StoopSession.”
StoopSessions finds growth because of word of mouth in the closely-knit community of local artists who have performed there. Rozmus says that artists who have participated at a StoopSession will introduce it to others.
The FPAA plans the summer StoopSessions at the end of February and aims to expand the program. Rozmus says that Forest Park residents interested in hosting a StoopSession are welcome to participate.
“We always are trying to find more porches to move it around town a little bit,” Rozmus said.
The events are free and open to the public. Guests are invited to bring a blanket or a chair for the three upcoming outdoor concerts. Information regarding upcoming StoopSessions can be found at the FPAA website: https://forestparkarts.org/upcoming-events