Spring Break
Interview: Comedian Brian Regan gets serious about comedy
Stephanie Madden
Issue date: 9/28/07 Section: Entertainment
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09/28/07 - Comedian Brian Regan's down-to-earth comedy has been making audiences laugh for years. Now he's back in the game with a new 1-hour special on Comedy Central and about to head out on his tour "Comedy Central Presents Brian Regan Live."
His tour will be coming to the Providence Performing Arts Center Oct. 7, and following are a few reasons you should make sure to come out and see him:
Regan is a sensible, intelligent man who takes his comedy career seriously- but not too seriously. When asked where he gets most of his material from, he replied, "Kmart, I just head to the comedy aisle with one of those big baskets and fill up."
But if Kmart is fresh out of humor Regan looks to the oddities from his life and waits for something to "pop-out." Some ways Regan practices his newer jokes is by saying them "out loud looking in a mirror, hopefully not in a public bathroom."
He also tapes the newer jokes he tells in front of audiences and watches for reactions. "It fascinates me how much writing occurs on stage, a joke really evolves on stage. It's a way of getting the fat out of a joke."
When asked if he ever becomes anxious before shows he said, "It depends whether the audience consists of fans, or people who feel they have to endure me for an hour. If it's my fans I feel like a million bucks, but if it's with people who have to 'endure what this man has to say' I feel like 35 cents."
Regan also makes sure his shoes are tied before he goes on stage: "I don't want the audience to think, 'This guy doesn't know how to tie his shoes, what does he know about comedy?'" Sometimes he becomes so paranoid about his shoes that he, "forget[s] to wear a shirt."
If you have seen Regan perform before you already know that he tends to make strange noises to go along with some of his jokes. He explained that he doesn't plan these noises and that his anecdotes aren't like barroom jokes; they're more like "tiny plays that last less than a minute."
His tour will be coming to the Providence Performing Arts Center Oct. 7, and following are a few reasons you should make sure to come out and see him:
Regan is a sensible, intelligent man who takes his comedy career seriously- but not too seriously. When asked where he gets most of his material from, he replied, "Kmart, I just head to the comedy aisle with one of those big baskets and fill up."
But if Kmart is fresh out of humor Regan looks to the oddities from his life and waits for something to "pop-out." Some ways Regan practices his newer jokes is by saying them "out loud looking in a mirror, hopefully not in a public bathroom."
He also tapes the newer jokes he tells in front of audiences and watches for reactions. "It fascinates me how much writing occurs on stage, a joke really evolves on stage. It's a way of getting the fat out of a joke."
When asked if he ever becomes anxious before shows he said, "It depends whether the audience consists of fans, or people who feel they have to endure me for an hour. If it's my fans I feel like a million bucks, but if it's with people who have to 'endure what this man has to say' I feel like 35 cents."
Regan also makes sure his shoes are tied before he goes on stage: "I don't want the audience to think, 'This guy doesn't know how to tie his shoes, what does he know about comedy?'" Sometimes he becomes so paranoid about his shoes that he, "forget[s] to wear a shirt."
If you have seen Regan perform before you already know that he tends to make strange noises to go along with some of his jokes. He explained that he doesn't plan these noises and that his anecdotes aren't like barroom jokes; they're more like "tiny plays that last less than a minute."
