Proud parents look on as their tweens sing and play for the patrons of The Roswell Tap. Applause greets a young woman walking to the podium, the first to share her poetry before almost 200 people at the Roswell Historic Cottage. A friendly crowd cheers and whoops for the trio of local musicians at Suburban Tap in Marietta, and a warm introduction beckons a work-in-progress writer to share his stories at a literary gathering housed in a tavern just off the Marietta Square.
It’s open mic night and home-grown talent is given the opportunity to share their original work and hone their potential craft, while providing an entertaining extra for those of us content to sit back and enjoy. We can help further the nurturing process by frequenting the area establishments that provide outlets provide venues.
There are also competitions for local talent, such as Top of the Tap at Suburban Tap and the Singer Songwriter Series at The Roswell Tap that showcase original music and award prizes, including eventual paid gigs.
Many Roswell Tap winners, including artists Alex Guthrie, City Mouse, Poverty Level, and Madie Monroe have gained followings and gone on to become regular performers there and elsewhere.
Always interested in music, Guthrie played bass as a student at Cobb County’s Simpson Middle School, which likely pushed an urge to perform. He was just 17 when he first played The Roswell Tap’s Singer Songwriter Series. “I heard it from a friend, who heard it from a friend, who heard it from another,” he sang when asked how he first learned of the local competitions. That was three years ago, now he’s paid to play there, Suburban Tap, Mellow Mushroom in Kennesaw and Jump Kitchen in Woodstock, and is working to fund his first album, utilizing a new process known as crowd funding, through Indiegogo.
The open mic at The Play Pen isn’t confined merely to musicians, but invites the local literary community to share stories, tales, and poems the first Tuesday of the month. Housed within Johnnie MacCracken’s Pub just off the Marietta Square, participants need only sign up once there, while we, the entertained, are provided a diverse array of offerings, including chapters from novels-to-be, poems, prose, songs and thesis papers. Gabe Pline, a Kennesaw State University student, presented his capstone to us, in lieu of defending his paper to a group of professors.
Meanwhile, right around the corner on the calendar, is Slammin’ in the Suburbs as the Roswell Roots poetry competition returns. Last year’s was packed with locals, but included some national level participants. One performance poem described “stemming,” a part of the poet’s personal adventure living with Asperger’s Syndrome. A special screening of the documentary filmed during this poetry slam, “3-Minute Activists: The Soul of Slam” will be held at the Aurora Cineplex in Roswell next month. Information about the many Roswell Roots upcoming events can be found on the City of Roswell website.
Vicki Griffin has lived in Roswell for 22 years. You can reach her at vlg1230@hotmail.com.
