You've been served

Raconteur and Pitch food critic Charles Ferruzza hosts the Tipped Off! writers series, an open-mic showcase of present and former service-sector workers spinning songs and literary accounts of their restaurant experiences. John Hastings, Kaite Stover and The Pitch's Lorna Perry share the bill. "This is kind of a spinoff of a similar program we did at the Writers Place a few years ago," Ferruzza says. "It was an open-mic afternoon. We weren't sure if anyone would actually show up. And the place was packed with former waiters, waitresses, bartenders and fast-food employees, who came in with stories or poems or songs that really reflected their service-industry experience. A lot of them were funny. Some were poignant. A couple were really angry. They really captured the full gamut of the restaurant experience. Kaite Stover attended that first one and was eager to do a new version for the library series." The free show kicks off at 6:30 p.m. at the Kansas City Public Library's Central Branch (14 West 10th Street, 816-701-3400).
Mon., July 14, 6:30 p.m., 2008