Queer Choir LNK, Star City Chorus to perform Pride-themed songs at Stransky Park concert (2024)

Two Lincoln groups that aim to foster a community for LGBTQ+ singers will perform Thursday as part of the free Stransky Park Concert Series.

Star City Chorus and Queer Choir LNK both originated in 2022, when the founding directors felt that some singers in Lincoln were in need of a group to call their own.

Both groups have grown in the years since and developed their own unique styles.

“It works out perfectly because some people like the style of Star City, some people like the style of Queer Choir, and that's the great thing is there is a place for you,” said Colt Ballou, Star City Chorus founder and director.

The chorus performs more in a traditional style but their music ranges from church hymns to modern pop songs. They've even performed a song by Nebraska composer Donald Callen Freed. At Thursday's event, the group will perform “Songs of a Disney Villain,” “Born This Way,” “Over the Rainbow” and more.

Ballou is an organist and music director at Southview Christian Church and said many Lincoln businesses and churches have been supportive of the group.

“It bridges gaps and helps to heal wounds that are deep in our community,” Ballou said.

Chorus and board member Jenny Pester said Star City Chorus was a "hidden gem" for her. She had been looking to join a choir and this was the one that fit her music style.

“There's just a little bit of everything for everyone to come and enjoy,” Pester said.

Pester joined the group last November to sing, but ended up with many new friends and a community that bonds outside of just their rehearsals and performances.

Queer Choir also performs a wide variety of music, from songs featured on "The Muppet Show" to covers of songs written by Queen, The Beatles and the Cranberries.

At Stransky Park on Thursday, they’re performing a "highlight reel" of Pride songs they’ve performed in the past two years. Founder and director Mia Sabbah said they’ll also perform one song for the first time: “Blackbird” by the Beatles, which was written about schools integrating, specifically the Little Rock Nine.

Because the song was written about civil rights, Sabbah, a woman ofpartial Palestinian descent, said the group is singing it for the people of Palestine.

“It's our love letter to the people in Palestine,” she said.

Sabbah said the group doesn’t only use their voices to sing, but to make change as activists.

Queer Choir LNK was founded under the brand name The Good Treble, which is a nod to a quote by John Lewis, an activist who marched with Martin Luther King Jr.

Sabbah said the reference was about getting into the good kind of trouble in order to better society.

They also plan to perform a cover of Elton John and Rina Sawayama’s “Chosen Family” at Thursday's show. Sabbah said it’s been the group’s theme song as they consider each other their own chosen family.

Sabbah, widely known as Juju, also teaches private voice and piano lessons at Blue Raven Music Studios.

Jeem Newton, a founding member of Queer Choir LNK, said the community has brought together people who otherwise would’ve never crossed paths. Making so many new friends in their 30s was something Newton didn’t expect.

“It's brought generations together,” Newton said.

Alma Cerretta, owner of Mana Games, was glad to find a choir that could fill her ‘me time’ and fulfill her need to sing, since high school choirs are usually where choir careers end. She’s now the administrative coordinator of the group and has found many new friends as a founding member.

Queer Choir LNK usually has three performance seasons: spring, Pride and Halloween, but this show will be their final performance until next Pride season.