Storytelling Norman Jameson June 5, Bob Shoup looked around the oaked and ancient sanctuary of Freemason Street Baptist Church on a hot, spring Sunday afternoon unsure of who might show up to the concert his Norfolk Street Choir was about to present. Members of the Norfolk Street Choir live with uncertain housing. A few have houses and some live under the stars. And their situations likely will be different next month. Shoup teaches them music.
He holds them to a musical grindstone to sharpen their skills. And he infuses dignity. And they love it. At their first practice three years ago, he had them laying on the floor, doing breathing exercises. Still, no one would mistake the Norfolk Street Choir concert for professionals. With this group, rehearsals are in large part the purpose. Performance is a byproduct. Seventeen show up to present this third annual City Voices concert. For all Shoup knew the night before, he might have had a choir of eight.
Or As many as 60 people from a revolving clientele of typically gather for free breakfast each Friday at Freemason Street, the crowd from which Shoup extracts his choir.
Drawn by the breakfast, no strings attached, those who stay for choir practice receive a free all-day city bus pass. Shoup has no way to anticipate the size of the audience either. But by the time the concert starts, the sanctuary of historic Freemason Street church is nearly full. The church, in city center Norfolk, was built in and designed by Thomas Walter, architect for the U.
Capitol dome. The church has a proud tradition of independent thinking, hosting the first public school in Norfolk and opening it to young black children. This summer, it will host a Freedom School, a national six-week intensive program to counteract the typical summer academic drop off. Kendrick Hopkins Jr. Shoup wanted the choir to sing as if performing before an audience. A minute preview of the documentary already has been nominated for a regional Emmy.
