Ah, Open Mic Nights. You never know what you’re going to get. When a bar lends the stage to strangers, anything can happen.

The Stones Throw, 304 Eau Claire St., is a prime example of this mysterious experience. ‘What will this girl sing?’ one audience member asks a friend. ‘Think these guys will be any good?’ another onlooker questions.

For some UW-Eau Claire students, performing at the downtown bar Wednesday nights is a great way to do what they love – play music.

The Stones Throw has been doing the Wednesday open stage for about a year now, said Nick Meyer, the club’s promotions and booking manager.

Although most of the people who perform are musicians, Meyer said he likes the idea of having all kinds of entertainment on stage.

“One thing I really like is the idea of having it open to absolutely anyone,” Meyer said. “Once we had a guy on stage breathing fire.”

Sophomore Nate Sahli has played his acoustic guitar for Wednesday’s open mic crowd twice and says it’s The Stones Throw’s sound system that makes the night enjoyable.

“First of all, if you go by the basic stuff, the sound system is great,” Sahli said. “Also, they have a pretty good musical tradition there.”

Sahli, who also has played open mic nights at The Cabin on campus, said the audience The Stones Throw draws helps a lot when performing.

“At The Cabin, it’s a different crowd,” he said. “There’s a lot less traffic than at The Stones Throw.”

Sahli played with junior Adam Hudson on Wednesday night. It was the first time the two ever performed together and their three-song allotted time slot went well, Hudson said. Hudson, who also plays acoustic guitar, said he likes the laid-back environment of open mic nights.

“It is kind of a different thing,” he said. “It is a fun thing to do – you just walk in and sign up.”

The two opened up their set with Tom Petty’s “Learning to Fly” and then proceeded with two original songs. Hudson said that they made up a song together a couple of weeks ago.

Sahli likes playing his own material more than cover songs, but he admits that at open mic nights, “you’ve got to give the crowd a treat with a cover song.”

Another Eau Claire student who played for bar-goers on Wednesday night was sophomore Aaron Jonasen. The experienced jazz musician sees open mic nights as a way to express himself. His form of musical expression is unique, to say the least.

“People look at us like, ‘What are these guys doing?'” Jonasen said. “We play it off like we’re serious.”

The artists Jonasen covered Wednesday included Tiffany, Celine Dion and Patrick Swayze. And to top it all off, he and his playing mate wore matching retro leisure suits.

Much of Jonasen’s wardrobe and musical selections are not for everyone, but like Hudson, he loves the laid-back environment of an open mic night.

“It’s a real easy crowd and open environment,” Jonasen said. “It’s pretty much a way for anyone to express themselves.”

And expression is the name of the game during Wednesday Open Mic Nights, Meyer said. He likes student involvement because of their different angles of looking at entertainment, he said.

“Creative stuff comes out of the students,” Meyer said. “They think out of the box more.”

If you’re in the market for expressing yourself, or for some ‘creative’ entertainment, open mic nights may be something to check out.

You sign up, get a time slot, get a drink and go on stage. Simple as that.

And if you don’t have a guitar, don’t worry. The Stones Throw provides the musical instruments. Meyer said the bar has a house guitar, bass and drum kit.

It’s not just for musicians either.

“My vision for open stage Wednesdays,” Meyer said, “is to have it be anything people can possibly comprehend.”