I originally had believed it would too difficult and impossible to get tickets to Dave Chappelle's tour once I heard they were announced despite being such a huge fan. However, after seeing day after day go by and more and more shows announced, a total of 12 shows altogether I changed my mind. Plus a coworker of mine basically made me so jealous after going Tuesday night that it sealed the deal.
We got tickets to the Friday show on Wednesday at the Pantages Theater in Minneapolis. I've never been to this theatre but I was surprised how small the venue was, pleasantly I might add. It gave it a more intimate atmosphere to spend with one of hardest to find comics in the industry. I was also surprised at the fact that some people hadn't yet bought tickets and that there were some available at the box office when the doors opened, pretty shocked actually. However once the show started I did not see an empty seat anywhere.
The bar was really busy so we had decided to forgo a drink but then Todd ventured downstairs for the bathroom and hit pay-dirt. Low and behold another bar! So we went for it. It was pricey, $21 bucks for a Summit and a double-shot rum and diet, yikes! By the time we paid and went to leave the line the secret was out and the lower floor was packed so we had good timing at least and went to find our seats.
The show started a bit later than advertised, more like 10:30 than 10 and this proved to be a difficult problem for me but I'll get to that later. The first act, Azhar Muhammad Usman was a pretty funny guy. His material jumped around but it was pretty amusing, mostly about his very unusual life where he was born in Kuwait, went to a British private school for awhile and immigrated to the US where he ended up in Houston, Texas as a muslim, Arab child with a British accent. You can't make it up. I enjoyed his material, wasn't fantastic but it was good.
In between sets we had a DJ mixing hits from the 80's and 90's while we waited for Dave. We were warned many times to not take photos or pictures and if we were caught we would be escorted from the premises. This warning didn't hold on a man in front of us and we watched with glee as he was texting openly and seconds later was being told to "Go out to the lobby for a talk" with a very large bouncer. He was gone for awhile and when he came back the phone never was seen again.
Before Dave came out we realized the person who had come out of the backroom, leaning against the wall stage right was none other than Dave's friend, Reg Chapman. Reg is a reporter here at WCCO and in fact sat down with Dave this past Thursday for Dave's first interview in years. You can find the interview here. Reg seemed to be enjoying himself immensely during the entire show.
When Dave entered the stage it was a crazy cacophony of noise and adulation. He does indeed look very different now that he's bulked up. His gangly, lankiness is replaced with a stout build and his walk is much more purposeful. He started off very strong with a lot of crass material about sex which was hilarious and then meandered around featuring Lil Wayne, Paula Deen, the show in Hartford and his own family. One of my favorite parts was regarding Uptown. Dave supposedly had visited there and said he liked it, he liked all the skinny jeans and the men in their twenties with tiny Pringle's can-like moustaches like they were straight out of the civil war. There were very few missteps and moments where I wasn't laughing hysterically. His comedic timing and fast paced cadence when he gets to the punch lines are just the same as you'd remember them from his show.
Previous reviews I've read had stated that they thought there were a lot of hits and misses and that he was trying out new material. Whatever those shows may have been he appears to have sharpened the scope by the time it came to our turn and I have no similar complaints. I thought it only slowed a bit towards the end during the family material which is when I decided I could no longer hold it and made a sprint to the bathroom. By sprint I am being literal, and I wasn't the only one. People were running down the stairs and running back up. I've never seen girls so fast in the bathroom before, not even looking in the mirror-fast. I almost ran into a man who came running out of the men's, no one wanted to miss a thing but the time delay and alcohol mix couldn't be ignored forever. The material picked right back up when I had returned before coming to a close. The close was also probably my favorite part.
Before walking off stage Dave engaged the audience, people were shouting where the after party was. Dave of course, took opportunity to say it was four white, drunk girls who were offering to get him high. He played with the audience and decided it would be a game. He'd throw out a hint that he and his white girlfriend might hang out there, alluding to earlier material about Uptown. He also said that while he doesn't condone drinking that the first person to find him would have to yell "I FOUND YOU, DAVE CHAPPELLE!" That person would then have to show the ticket stub from that show (to thwart the people who'd cheat via tweets about the password) and he'd pose for one picture and buy them one drink.
We didn't go to Uptown, as we were spent and it was nearing 1am. It was a great night and a great show and I highly suggest if you have time to go see him to do so. There's still tickets available for tonight's show at 10pm, the earlier one is sold out and you can find them here. Also if you're willing, there's been scalpers at every showing so there's always a chance of going downtown and looking for a deal on the street.
Now if you have a ticket stub from one of his 12 shows you should also be aware that on Saturday at the Target Center there's a charity event for the Timberwolves and that stub allows you free entry for the first 1,000 fans. Dave Chappelle will be there and pancakes will be served! Check out the information here. The doors open at 11 and the shoot-around game starts at midnight.
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