What a wonderful show we had on May 7! The crowd was standing room only in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf, and the stellar lineup had everyone rapt. Kathryn Kruse led us off with two sad-and-funny short pieces. Next, Jenn Rourke told a story about being a "bad Catholic" who ended up playing a nun in a high school musical. Tracy Harford-Porter took us into the intermission with a beguiling bit of sci-fi fantasy involving mermaids.

We refilled our drinks and talked about what we'd heard, and then Megan Maile Manley read a distressingly funny POV story about parking lot drama, and Jocelyn Geboy closed out the show with a series of lamentations about modern life in the city.

If you missed out, there's another opportunity to see Chicago's favorite eclectic reading series next month. On June 4, we'll feature readings by Bill Savage, Erin Watson, Mare Swallow, Elizabeth Gomez and James Finn Garner. Hope to see you there!

Don't miss our amazing readers: Jocelyn Geboy, Megan Maile Manley, Tracy Harford-Porter, Jenn Rourke, and Kathryn Kruse!

Our readings take place at Hopleaf Bar, 5148 N. Clark St. in Chicago. We get started promptly at 7:30 pm in the upstairs lounge. Arrive early if you want a seat -- but no earlier than 7:00 pm. Our readings are free, but only those 21 and over will be admitted. And check it out -- You can now order food from our bartender! See you there!

Tracy Harford-Porter was born in Brooklyn, NY and now resides in the Chicago suburbs. She has worked for Essence Communications as a photo editor, the Harlem Children's Zone as the managing editor of Harlem Overheard, StoryCorps as a facilitator coordinator, and Goldman Sachs as a long-term administrative temp/secret ethnographer. Tracy is a 2008 graduate of Clarion West and proud alum of Columbia University School of General Studies, majoring in anthropology. She is currently reworking a NaNoWriMo project into a novel and a screenplay because she is a masochist.

Please join Tracy and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, May 7, 2019 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. Please RSVP on Facebook.

Jocelyn Geboy is a freelance writer and performer living in Albany Park. She's the creator of CHIRP Radio's story series The First Time and hopes to get a one woman show on the books by the end of the year. She's performed at a variety of places, including Listen To Your Mother, Resilient, and We Have Questions. You can currently find her at www.threeleftproductions.com, and all over the web @smussyolay.

Please join Jocelyn and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, May 7, 2019 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. Please RSVP on Facebook.

You can hear Jenn Rourke on the air at CHIRP Radio 107.1 FM as DJ Ninja on Fridays from 6-8 p.m. Jenn has been a DJ for 18 years at various community and college stations across Illinois. She currently serves as a CHIRP production director and on the station's programming committee. Jenn most recently performed CHIRP's live lit series First Time show, and has volunteered for that show in various capacities for 8 years, currently as recordist and producer of the podcast. By day, she works at ABC7 Chicago, and in previous lives worked at WGN Radio, Second City, and as a gymnastics instructor. Jenn has twice appeared on the 20x2 Chicago live lit series stage as well. She's also a local leader in the Online News Association's Chicago chapter.

Please join Jenn and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, May 7, 2019 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. Please RSVP on Facebook.

Megan Maile Manley is a writer and director. She's written for The Onion, ClickHole, McSweeney's, UPROXX's daily news comedy show theDESK, and sketch comedy groups The Wheel Show, The Late Live Show, and Drew's Tumbler. She and her friends made a TV pilot called Cowards, which won Best Comedy at the New York Television Festival and led to their IFC webseries, Does Dave Know We're Here.

Please join Megan and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, May 7, 2019 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. Please RSVP on Facebook.

Kathryn Kruse is the Executive Director of Residency on the Farm, an interdisciplinary artists residency. Among other places, her work is forthcoming from or has appeared on the walls of the I Hope You Are Feeling Better Collaborative Art Exhibition, on the stages of the San Francisco Olympians Festival and in the pages of Indian Review, The Manchester Review, Interim and The Adirondack Review. She holds an MFA from UNLV, has received a Disquiet International Literary Program scholarship and is a finalist for the St. Lawrence Book Award. She also teaches quite a lot.

Please join Kathryn and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, May 7, 2019 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. Please RSVP on Facebook.

Hey, it's May! Well, it will be soon -- and your favorite eclectic monthly reading series is back on Tuesday, May 7! Join us in the upstairs lounge at Hopleaf, where we'll feature readings by Jenn Rourke, Tracy Harford-Porter, Jocelyn Geboy, Kathryn Kruse and Megan Manley.

Admission to Tuesday Funk is free, but you must be 21 to attend. Doors open at 7pm sharp (don't be slow if you want a seat!) and the show will start at 7:30pm. Please RSVP on Facebook, and don't forget to like and follow us so you get our announcements right in your stream.

The runoff election was weighing on cohost Andrew Huff ahead of our April show, which happened to fall on election night.

Mayor Preckwinkle
after today's election.
Or Mayor Lightfoot.

Either one will be
Chicago's first black woman
to become mayor.

The question remains:
will she be an improvement
over Rich and Rahm?

Lead in our water.
The City sent a savior:
a filter pitcher.

Tulips break the soil,
their thick green leaves welcoming
the coming of spring.

The April edition of Tuesday Funk was on election night, and we appreciate the folks who elected come out for some live lit! And as April is National Poetry Month, the show was loaded with poets.

Levi Todd got the show started with a collection of poems, followed by Elizabeth Tamny, who shared an essay about her love of Doris Day ahead of her 97th birthday. Stuti Sharma closed out the first half with a combination of poems and stand-up comedy.

We took a break to refill our drinks, and cohost Andrew Huff read a few topical haiku for election day. Next, Amar Taylor delivered some explosive poetry. Last but not least, Nestor "The Boss" Gomez shared a story about helping his mother fix a few things around the house -- with associated mischief.

If you missed it, don't worry. Tuesday Funk will be back in the upstairs lounge of Hopleaf on Tuesday, May 7, when we'll feature readings by Jenn Rourke Elizondo, Jocelyn Geboy, Tracy Harford-Porter, Megan Manley and Kathryn Kruse. Hope to see you there!