When what you love is also your job, it’s easy to forget to love it.
When life looks stressful and grim, it’s easy to forget that joy resides within community.
Casually Classical is an attempt to remedy both.
I’ve joined forces with the Park District of Oak Park to host a refreshing type of event, bringing together professional classical musicians and music/party lovers for an evening of informal, unrehearsed chamber music-making in the type of settings for which it was intended: two beautiful historic mansions owned and maintained by the PDOP. No stage, no rehearsals, just spontaneous sight-reading and refreshment-fueled merriment, and a chance to build and strengthen a community the way we used to, long ago.
If you’d like to participate as a performer, email me at jeanhatmaker@gmail.com to be added to the roster (sorry pianists; at this time, neither mansion has a piano. We’re working on it!!) If you’d like to attend as a guest, please check the Park District of Oak Park website for registration options.
2025-2026 Season Dates
September 5 (Friday) – Pleasant Home
February 27 (Friday) – Cheney Mansion
Jean Hatmaker 