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Community is one of our most precious commodities. It takes many forms — from cozy dinners with friends, to neighborhood block parties, to enormous festivals. All of them, in their own way, feed our innate desire to connect with and learn from our fellow human beings. For Stef Klages, that need for community was the wellspring of what would become the Toledo Listening Room.
“I kind of went with the Jim Henson method,” says Klages. “What do you do to save the world? You build up the community. How do you build up the community? You get people to experience one another.” For Klages, the answer was an open mic event that would bring Toledo together to celebrate art, creativity, and human connection: the Toledo Listening Room.
On the second Tuesday of each month the Listening Room takes over Handmade Toledo. From 6:00-9:00 PM, the Adams Street makershop will be alive with music, poetry and art, asking little more from the people of Toledo than a spark of creativity and the bravery to share a gift with the community. Alongside the open mic are food trucks, art tables, and other ways to enjoy the Glass City’s wellspring of creativity. The next two events are on October 14th and November 11th; admission is always free.
But, the Listening Room has you covered even if you’re looking for a smaller experience. After an inaugural event at Black Kite Coffee on September 30th, the coffee house will host Toledo Listening Room events on the fourth Tuesday of each month. The vibe of this incarnation is decidedly more intimate due, in large part, to the cafe’s smaller footprint and proximity to the tight-knit Old West End neighborhood.
At either venue, those who want to brave the bright lights of the stage can sign up via a Google form on the Toledo Listening Room Facebook page, or simply volunteer at the event when the mic is free. Just don’t be too edgy; the Listening Room asks that content and themes be kept, at most, to a “PG-13” level.
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The Toledo Listening Room wasn’t originally intended to be as eclectic as it has become. “We did want to focus on music,” says Klages, “but that didn’t seem fair to Toledo,” After opening up the first Listening Room event in August to artists of all kinds, he and his fellow organizers still weren’t sure if that variety was right for their particular open mic. But then, “right before we ended, we had a food truck driver. He ran inside, he said he’d been writing poetry for 40 years and this was the first time he’d ever read one aloud.” In that moment Klages knew that the group had made the right decision in letting the community decide the kind of art that takes the stage each night.
For Klages and the Toledo Listening Room, the idea of community is central. It was the inspiration for the event, it’s what has driven its evolution over its short life, and it’s what makes both the Handmade Toledo and Black Kite events unique. Ultimately, that speaks to the Listening Room’s purpose — creating and protecting a safe space to share a piece of ourselves with one another and taking the time to get to know our neighbor just a little bit better. Klages put it best by saying: “find a way to go out into the community and meet people around you. That’s really the message at the end of the day. The world needs you right now and your voice needs to be heard.” While Klages, and, for the record, this writer, hope you do that by attending one of the Toledo Listening Room’s events, the form and extent of your participation can be as different as you like. What matters is that you’re building, celebrating, and sharing in your community.
In times like these, that’s the most important thing any of us can do.
Handmade Toledo: Tuesday, Oct. 14th and Tuesday, November 11th. 6PM. [5PM doors]. 1717 Adams St, Toledo, OH, 43604.
Black Kite Coffee: Tuesday, October 28th. 6PM [5:30PM doors]. 2499 Collingwood Blvd,
Toledo, OH 43620.
Free Admission. Those interested in donating to the Toledo Listening Room can do so at: https://ko-fi.com/toledolisteningroom
