“Say eight!” “Caution, show horses.” “Break down right here.” “Take luck.”
Fans of comedian Brian Regan will smile in recognition of those signature stand-up routines, but those unfamiliar with the comic mastermind who can turn the mundane into laugh-inducing moments can learn why Regan is one of the top comics working today when he brings his “10-Year, Non-Stop Theater Tour” to Segerstrom Center for the Arts on Saturday, Sept. 12.
Earlier this year, Regan made his 28th and final stand-up performance on The Late Show with David Letterman, the most of any comic since the show began on CBS.
“I’ll take all of that guy you got…Very funny man,” Letterman has said of Regan.
Regan will also make his mark on Comedy Central TV on Sept. 26 with the live broadcast of Brian Regan: Live, from Radio City Music Hall, the first live broadcast of a stand-up special in Comedy Central’s history.
“The Comedy Central show came about when I told my manager I was ready to do another one hour show, and suggested a live show, which we pitched to Comedy Central,” explained Regan during a recent phone interview from his home in Las Vegas. “It’s the first live show they’ve ever done, and for a standup comedian it’s a rare thing.”
Regan said the show will be different than anything he’s recorded.
“All the material is distinct. Some of the bits might have been on Letterman,” said Regan. “I was fortune to do the show every nine months. When you walk out, you’re wired to make the studio audience laugh, but the Radio City show is going beyond that. There are no guarantees, the show can go south.”
Regan is being modest. He has released two hour-long TV specials, two CDs and three DVDs, and he’s sold out venues around the country multiple times. The week before his Segerstrom show, Regan returns to the legendary, 8600-seat Red Rocks Amphitheater, and he’s on the road every other weekend performing his shows.
Regan said the Segerstrom show will be his first time in the area, but he enjoys going to new places. No matter the city, he said it all plays the same—he turns the audience into a “thing,” and makes that thing laugh.
“I try not to get geographically specific,” he said. “My comedy comes from every man’s perspective, a guy going through life, noticing things, poking sticks at things. It travels beyond geographical lines. That doesn’t mean that there are not differences. Some audiences have a shorter fuse before they start getting restless, but they all laugh.”
Comedy came to Regan in college, when he switched his major to communications and theater. While taking acting classes, he thought he’s give standup comedy a try.
“The moment I did, the lightbulb went on over my head and my life was filled with passion,” recalled Regan. “That was when I knew I really wanted to do this. There were so many knocks along the way, you need to be able to get up and keep running.”
Regan has been running for years and has not looked back. He’s become so popular that his signature routines have taken on a life of their own.
For example, one of his funny stories involves a stay at a hospital where a nurse asked him how much pain he was in. He reasoned that his pain was about a three on a scale of one to 10, so the nurse left. When she came back later, he said “Eight,” so she immediately gave him strong medication. He started walking the halls telling other patients “Say eight!”
A hospital in the Midwest recently sent Regan a photo of the employees outside the hospital forming the number 8.
“I’m not sure who was taking care of the patients while the employees were taking the photo,” quipped Regan.
For more information on Brian Regan, check out his website at BrianRegan.com.
Tickets to Brian Regan start at $49 and are available online at SCFTA.org or by calling (714) 556-2787.
