Roosevelt passes the mic BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP Staff Writer Quantum Blues, an acoustic and traditional blues band composed of Tommy Kelly (l-r), Paul Dames and Roosevelt's Mark McCusker, play during the open mic event Jan. 19 at the Roosevelt Municipal Building. ROOSEVELT - Borough residents do not find the stage intimidating. With interests ranging from the blues to slam poetry to revolutionary songs to "micrologues" and the talents to make any of those artistic endeavors interesting to common folk, a baker's dozen of Rooseveltians performed to a packed house during an open mic event at borough hall Jan. 19. Volunteers had transformed themunicipal meeting setting into a welcoming cabaret of tables lined with colorful clothes and adorned with glowing candles. Resident Michael Hamilton served as the host for the evening and started the night off quoting Robert Louis Stevenson's happy thought that "The world is so full of a number of things, I'm sure we should all be as happy as kings," which served to foreshadow the fun to come. "Sit back with open minds and not only enjoy the performers and their performances, but how they make you feel inside," Hamilton said. Resident Maryann Rossi's grandson, Evan, a sixth-grader at Roosevelt School in Westfield, started off the first set rocking out "Paranoid" by Black Sabbath on the guitar. The second performers, Neil Selden and Mary McLane, read a playlet that Selden wrote called "A Forever Roof." A conversation between two homeless individuals ensued about how all people are looking for a world of goodness where "the days hesitate to end" and good "memories linger forever." Next, two bands performed. The first, led by resident Bill Leech, included his son, Jack, 16, on the bongos and resident Jamie Callahan on the drumswith an out-oftowner namedWard on keyboard. The band's blues-based performance started offwith "Tobacco Road" and had some excursions into other styles such as pop and mariachi with "Going to the Country" and "Mexico." ResidentMarkMcCusker's band, QuantumBlues, an acoustic and traditional blues project, consisted of Paul Dames on guitar and vocals, Tommy Kelly on bass and Mc- Cusker on blues harp.As an encore, the trio delved into "Banker's Blues" by Big Bill Broonzy, which warns men to watch their moneywhen slywomen are hanging around. The first set ended with resident Nathaniel Kostar, 22, a senior at Rutgers University inNewBrunswick, and his friend, Ian Khadan, 21, also a student at Rutgers, performing poems they wrote. Kostar performed "Eyes" and "She," and Khadan ended the set with a powerful "Art ofWar." The second set began with resident Michael Ticktin presenting songs of the 48ers, which are pieces one sung by the revolutionaries who fought unsuccessfully for freedom and unity in Germany in 1848-49 and then fought successfully for the same in the United States in 1861-65. Resident Maria Del Piano read poems that she and her children wrote. She called sitting a "meditation in silence"; cleaning houses, climbing, yoga and walking as fast as she can "meditations in movement"; and writing a "meditation in sound." Angel Cloughly sang three songs about love. The resident opened her act with a few jokes including, "Now I'm going to say two short jokes and one long joke. Joke, joke, joookkke." Resident Nikita Bogach played his guitar and sang songs reminiscent of thoseDonavan created in the '60s. Robin Gould's grandson, James Gould, then took to the microphone with a pal who accompanied himon the violin for an untraditional rendering of Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters." Residents Judith and Kevin McNally, Ron Kostar and Judith Goetzman ended the show with a performance of some of Mc- Nally's micrologues. The pieces analyzed many things, from buying items at a yard sale to trying to maintain harmony in one's life, to getting stuck between a real rock and a virtual one to fighting without fighting to transcending the ego. In one of the micrologues, Kostar asked McNally if she would like to go to a dharma talk. McNally quipped, "No, I'm too full of myself." "It always amazes me how many talented people live in town," resident Deidre Sheean said. Sheean, who organized the event sponsored by the Roosevelt Arts Project (RAP), said that late resident Judith Nahmias had suggested that RAP put on an open mic in Roosevelt at least once a year. "It was so successful the first year that it was natural for us to continue it," she said, adding that the event is nowin its third year. Jack Leech said, "The open mic is a real good idea. It's a good way to bring people together." He said playing with a full band in front of an audience for the first time ever didn't make him nervous at all. "It's not that kind of show," he said. "It's nice that you can go up and if you mess up, it's all right.You can just do your own thing." Khadam said it was an honor to be allowed to perform in such of a supportive audience. Daniel Lebar of Metuchen said he thought the event was fantastic. "At open mics you can experience the artistic and crafts-maker side of America," he said. "Going forward, as the United States turns away from big business and larger-scale employment, it's what we're going to be doing for a living." He continued, "The open mic is a harbinger of what's to come."