Russell Peters
When: Monday, 8 p.m.
Where: Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre
Tickets: $67.50-$92.50 (plus service charges) at the Save-on-Foods Memorial box office (1925 Blanshard St.), by phone at 220-7777 or online at selectyourtickets.com
Ontario-raised comic Russell Peters put nearly 7,000 fans into the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre two years ago, which earned him the second-largest attendance to date for a comedy act at the arena.
Dane Cook owns top audience honours where the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre is concerned, thanks to a 2010 gig that topped 9,000 people. But Peters is largely without peer when it comes to money earned from standup tours.
According to a Forbes survey, Peters grossed $21 million US between 2012 and 2013, topping fellow comics Louis C.K., Kevin Hart and more along the way.
When you’re only two spots behind Jerry Seinfeld on an income-earned list, you know you’ve arrived at a happy place.
“Really, if I complain about anything these days, I’d just be complaining for the sake of complaining,” Peters told Postmedia News during a recent interview.
The funnyman turns 44 on Tuesday, the date of his return to the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre. To mark the occasion, he will likely joke about how he feels old and bemoan the state of mobile phones. As for what else Peters will riff on during his Almost Famous world tour, fans can be sure it will be a slightly skewed take on race relations. That is a Peters trademark, and he has made a living for himself as an equal-opportunity offender.
The interesting part, from a live-appearance perspective, is that Peters’ audience is anything but passive. Unwilling or not, ticketholders become active participants in his jokes — the more race-related the better, it would appear.
“Asian guy, how are ya?” Peter said, putting the spotlight on an attendee during his previous Victoria show. “Thanks for making the trip over from Richmond.”
The comic will use patrons up front as recurring jokes, so be warned.
“I use the interaction to take me from bit to bit,” Peters said in a statement. “Some guys go onstage with a script and don’t deviate from it. That’s not my style. I have my set and know what I want to cover. I just use the audience to move me in certain directions. It’s very collaborative and each show is unique.”
Peters is managed by his brother and routinely denies requests for interviews. He also does not allow press photographers to shoot his act, nor does he provide reviewers with official access to tickets. Members of the media are not the only ones prohibited from capturing his likeness. Fans can expect to be greeted with repeated “no cameras” warnings prior to his set, with automatic ejection as the punishment for those who disobey.
He controls his destiny, no doubt. Perhaps that is part of what makes Peters such a success. He has made it to the top on his own terms and for that, he has been rewarded handsomely.