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Dave Chappelle to Perform at Chase Center. This Should be Interesting.

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Dave Chappelle greets fans in Sept. 2018. (Courtesy of John Bauld)

Dave Chappelle has complained about “cancel culture” disrupting the rollout of his “Untitled” documentary, but at least one venue in San Francisco has agreed to host a screening and live performance. 

According to a press release shared Friday, the Chase Center will screen the film and host the comedian for a live performance on Nov. 4, with tickets going on sale Wednesday.

ICYI, Chappelle lit off a whole dumpster fire of backlash after his latest standup special aired Oct. 5 on Netflix. The undisputedly iconic comedian never did shy from diving right into controversial topics, and, if we’re being honest, that was always a huge aspect of his appeal. But his routine in “The Closer” felt markedly different and targeted. 

We won’t give the nastiness any more oxygen by quoting his words — plenty of that is already swirling around. But to sum it up, it seemed as if he was going less for laughs and more for warfare against the transgender community, though he didn’t pull back on white women and the LGBTQ community in general.  

He’s been accused of punching down and serving up hate speech under the guise of comedy, notions he staunchly rejects. Still, he crossed some glaring red lines in his take on the trans community, and it’s unclear if he can, or even wants to, try and smooth things over. The weirdly passive aggressive offer to meet with people from the trans community — under a whole host of conditions — probably won’t help redeem his credibility. 

The criticism and reaction have been pretty intense. Backlash grows as Netflix continues to air the special — hundreds of Netflix employees staged a walkout in protest, the showrunner for “Dear White People” is boycotting the streaming service and countless venues have canceled Chappelle’s appearances and documentary screenings. 

But the Chase Center, in San Francisco of all places, is apparently game to host the comedian and cash in on ticket sales.

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Nik Wojcik - East Bay Editor

Nik Wojcik - East Bay Editor

Journalist, editor, student, single mom to a pack of wolves, foodie, music lover, resident smart ass, and champion of vulgarity and human kindness.