Lady Chops Brought Her Drums to Monroe. The Kids Did Not Want to Leave.

I walked into the Sterlington Memorial Branch not knowing what to expect. The room was already full: kids sitting on the floor, parents along the walls, a drum kit set up in the front, and a sign with six moves written in big black letters. Kick your knees up. Round the chimney. Flap like a birdie.

Then Lady Chops walked in.

She is from Ruston. She has 3,100 followers on Facebook, a packed summer schedule across North Louisiana and Mississippi, and a program she calls Drum Roll Please: a Broadway musical percussion show that works for every age in the room. She was wearing a t-shirt with her name on it. She started talking before she even reached the drums. The room locked in immediately.

It starts with wood blocks and a triangle

The opening is a percussion solo. Wood blocks on the floor, a tambourine, a triangle, drumsticks on a cymbal and a drum machine. She moves between instruments without a break, building the rhythm layer by layer. By the time she finished, every kid in the room was leaning forward. Nobody in the audience spoke.

Then she pulled out a washboard.

She launched into Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious from Mary Poppins, playing the washboard as a percussion instrument while a child from the audience held up large cards with the syllables so everyone could follow along. The kids were already singing before they realized it. That is the trick: she gets participation going before anyone has time to feel shy.

The room stood up for Step in Time

The finale was Step in Time, also from Mary Poppins. A volunteer held a sign with six moves: kick your knees up, round the chimney, flap like a birdie, up on the railing, over the rooftops, link your elbows. Lady Chops marked the rhythm with a wooden train whistle. Every kid in the room was on their feet, jumping, dancing, high-fiving, and linking arms with whoever was next to them.

The parents along the walls were smiling. Some were moving too.

It reminded me of something. My sister and I ran Bilingual Camps here in Monroe for years. That same feeling: a room full of kids moving, laughing, and learning at the same time, in a space that suddenly felt alive. That energy is harder to create than it looks. Lady Chops makes it look easy.

Free, at your library, all summer

This is not a paid program. It was free, at a public library, on a Thursday afternoon in Monroe. A woman in the back was wearing a shirt that said Find me at the library. That felt right.

The Ouachita Parish Public Library summer program runs through July across all branches. If you have a kid between 3 and 12 and you have been looking for something to do that is not a screen, this is the answer. Check the library calendar for upcoming events.

Lady Chops performs across North Louisiana, South Louisiana, and Mississippi throughout the summer at libraries, schools, and community venues. Follow her on Facebook at facebook.com/ladychops to see upcoming dates, or contact her at theladychops@gmail.com to book a show.