Comic Brian Regan brings side-splitting style to Hershey
Brian Regan has been lauded by some of the biggest names in comedy, including Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock and Jimmy Fallon, and will be performing at the Hershey Theatre in Hershey on Sunday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m.
“Comedy is a constant for me,” said Regan, widely respected as the premiere comedian by audiences and professional comedians alike.
The renowned comedian wasn’t always set on cracking jokes.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” said Regan.
After dabbling in accounting in college, the comedian decided to become a communications and theater major, at which point he “started getting excited about things and decided to become a comedian.”
He cited some of his influences as George Carlin, Rodney Dangerfield, Johnny Carson and Steve Martin’s standup.
“A lot of them had different approaches and styles, and that’s what is fascinating to me. Although comedy is one word, it means a thousand different things,” said Regan.
The comedian had a humble start, working as an MC and comedian at various events on his college for his first gigs.
“My dorm said, ‘Hey, would you host a game show in the dorm?’ I was doing things like that and enjoying the heck out of it,” said Regan.
He has since appeared on countless late night spots, including 28 appearances on “The Late Show with David Letterman,” and played a number of sold out shows around the country, including at the veritable Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Denver.
Regan has also released an album of stand-up and four DVD’s, the latest one being a groundbreaking first - Comedy Central’s first live broadcast of a stand-up special.
“They had never done a live comedy special,” said Regan.
The set was performed at Radio City Music Hall, a new venue for the comedian, who called the experience “pretty intense.”
“It was an hour of non-stop laser-like focus. It was exhilarating, but also exhausting,” he said.
Recently, he made an appearance in the Chris Rock film “Top Five,” as well as Jerry Seinfeld’s web series, “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.”
“It was a fun thing. And when I did it, none of them were out yet. I knew nothing but the title,” said Regan of the web series.
The premise is exactly like the title, something which allows the comedian’s personality to shine.
“It was kind of cool having it be that simple,” he said.
The premise draws some parallels to Regan’s writing style, which is observational.
“It’s easier for me to just go through my day the way I normally go through my day,” he said.
At some point, he explained, “You see something in a way you didn’t see it before.” That’s when the joke comes to life.
It’s this clean, yet hilarious approach that attracts such an extensive following of all types.
“I’m honored to have a wide range of ages who seem to like what I do,” he said.
The broad audience allows him to be himself and bring his own personality to the stage.
“I always just revert back to, well, I can’t tell everyone what they want, so I’ll talk about what I want,” said Regan.
The comedian left audiences a little bit of what to expect from him when he comes to town.
“Obviously it’s a treat to the ladies when I come to town. Sometimes I think they’re not even interested in the comedy, they’re just interested in gazing at me,” joked the comedian.
While he explained that’s “not the reason he came to town,” he’s willing to oblige it.
“I just don’t want them to be startled by the fact that people around them are laughing,” Regan said.