In the early 90s, comedian Sean Flannery says, he told a really big lie for the first time, impersonating a New Jersey pharmacist to sneak into a Huey Lewis and the News concert at a medical conference in Cleveland. At the afterparty, he drunkenly walked off a roof, breaking his back and shattering his heels. But as other partygoers tried desperately to get ahold of the pharmacist’s wife, they realized Flannery wasn’t actually the person he’d claimed to be. At least, that’s the stand-up’s story, which he followed with a mellow version of the band’s hit “Power of Love” for a recent edition of CHIRP Radio’s storytelling event and podcast The First Time—it remains a favorite of coproducer Julia Mueller.
The First Time‘s latest topic, “First Gig,” asks participants—who include stand-up Rachel McCartney, singer and sketch performer Megan Ensley, writer RJ Eldrigde, and CHIRP DJ Billy Kalb—to talk about the first time they started pursuing the work they truly wanted to do.
Tue 10/11, 8 PM Martyrs’ 3855 N. Lincoln 773-404-9494firsttime.chirpradio.org $10
