Gig review from The O2 in London

Dave Chappelle and Chris Rock are more than capable of filling The O2 on their own. Together, this mini ’comedians who were attacked on stage’ tour feels like something special. 

That’s even before you add in a support bill comprising Earthquake, Ali Wong, the now London-based Aziz Ansari and Jeff Ross as MC, roasting some willing audience members before the main event: back-to-back sets from the headliners, not even separated by an interval.

On stage in the capital, both mentioned the incidents that made the headlines: Rock relatively briefly, Chappelle in more depth. The former bought up the Oscars slap meted out by Will ​Smith as part of broader musings about how people increasingly claim to be victims to sate their craving for attention rather than doing anything more worthy of respect. 

Rock refuses to be defined that way, pointing out that he was back at work the day after the Academy Awards. Did it hurt? ‘Goddam right it hurt,’ he joked. ‘The motherfucker played Ali. I played Pookie’ – the crackhead in New Jack City.

Rock’s not one for complaining, saying of overt wokery that ‘anyone who says words hurt has never been punched in the face’ – and he should know. The disdain for false victimhood means he has no time for Meghan Markle getting paid millions to whinge from her gilded Californian mansion that the Royals might be a bit racist, as if that would have been a surprise. 

She’s not the only easy target Rock swiped at – material about Donald Trump recommending bleach to combat Covid seemed especially easy and dated – and there was a bit too much on the Kardashians for those of us who don’t follow the family saga. But Rock can never be accused of underselling his gags. Ironically, he’s very punchy.

He is, of course, stronger when being more contrarian, floating a provocative point of view, then pleading: ‘Hear me out…’ It might not be the done thing to acknowledge that beautiful women have an easier ride in life, but you can’t deny Rock’s thinking. Routines about being back on the dating scene after his divorce - ‘I date women my own age… which means 10 to 15 years younger’ – flirt even more intimately with sexism, though he stays just the right side of the line. However, he does risk assuming that his experiences and attitudes are universal when they are not, and I’m not quite sure what we learned from the horny text exchange he shared.

Wearing all white against a black background brought a dramatic monochrome to the big screens to underscore any serious points. And you can’t doubt his sincerity when he comes to cutting through some of the nonsenses he perceives society getting itself tied up in.

While Rock is declamatory, Chappelle is low-key and conversational. With cigarette in hand and leaning forward on the monitor speakers, his cool baritone makes the vast arena seem as intimate as a local bar.

He spoke about being attacked at the Hollywood Bowl in May – an incident that could have ended badly given the stage invader had a knife and the security crew were armed. As it was, the story has a cast of a decent movie, with Jamie Foxx, Jon Stewart, Puff Daddy and Rock himself all coming to Chappelle’s aid. In the retelling, the comic makes a couple of offhand jokes about his reputation for transphobia – but thankfully avoided getting on his divisive soapbox about the issue for the rest of the set.

Chappelle spends just as long discussing the Oscars slap, primarily because it is a more nuanced situation. Or as nuanced as a wallop in the face can be. He described how Smith had created ‘the impression of a perfect person for 30 years’ before letting the mask slip to ‘show he was as ugly as the rest of us’ – an accidental display of the true man that the stand-up is drawn to. Philosophically, Chappelle added: ‘I see myself in both men.’

The comic certainly takes pride in aspects of his behaviour others might find reprehensible as he speaks happily about cheating on his wife and visits to former boxer Floyd Mayweather’s Las Vegas strip club. Even though Chappelle gets some measure of comeuppance at the end, the story ends with swagger, not remorse.

Retrospectively, some of Chappelle’s stories seem slight, but in the moment, his masterful delivery has thousands of people hooked on his every word. The ovation he – and the whole of tonight’s line-up – receive at the end is testament to that, and to the sense of occasion that bringing such comedy powerhouses together can bring.
 

Review date: 5 Sep 2022
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett