Pouches Up, Dave Chappelle Opens the Comedy Festival at the Garden

Dave Chappelle opens the New York Comedy Festival at Madison Square Garden on Friday, November 6, at 7:30 p.m., and plays the Garden again on Saturday, November 7, to close his fall arena tour.

The festival bills both nights as "Karmageddon." The tour starts tonight in Nashville and works its way to Penn Plaza, where it ends.

Seventeen days out, it is the sharpest date on the New York comedy calendar.

Where and When Is Dave Chappelle Playing in New York?

He plays Madison Square Garden, at 4 Penn Plaza, on Friday, November 6 and Saturday, November 7. Both shows start at 7:30 p.m., per the New York Comedy Festival's page for the venue.

The Garden sits on top of Penn Station, between Seventh and Eighth Avenues and 31st and 33rd Streets. The festival runs from November 6 through November 15 across the five boroughs, and bills itself as 10 days, more than 100 shows and more than 200 comedians. Chappelle is the opener.

Why Does the Tour End in New York?

The New York stand started as a single night. When the fall run was announced in mid September, the Garden show on November 6 was the finale. Two days later, Pollstar reported that a second Garden night on November 7 had been added because of demand, which made Saturday the last stop.

The road there is short and fast. TheGrio lists the arena dates ahead of New York as Nashville on October 20, Charlotte on October 21, Toronto on October 23, Louisville on October 24, Austin on October 26 and Houston on October 28.

TheGrio reports that Caroline Hirsch, the festival's founder, called it "spectacular" that he would close his tour by opening her festival. The run follows a June leg of arena dates in Baltimore, Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago and San Diego, and a sixth edition of his Summer Camp event in Yellow Springs, Ohio, the town where he lives, per the same report.

Nobody films the joke, so nobody films the crowd laughing at it.

What Is the Phone Rule?

Phones do not make it into the room. TheGrio, Hypebeast and TicketNews all report that every date on the fall run is phone-free, with devices locked in Yondr pouches for the length of the show. TicketNews adds that smartwatches go in the pouch too. Those reports came out before the second Garden night was added, so check the rules on your ticket for Saturday.

A Yondr pouch is a small fabric case that locks a phone shut. Guests keep the phone with them but cannot use it until the pouch is unlocked on the way out.

It changes the room. Nobody films the joke, so nobody films the crowd laughing at it. The people on Seventh Avenue after the show will have to describe what they saw.

Who Else Is in the Festival?

Chappelle joins a lineup that, per TheGrio, includes Marc Maron, Ilana Glazer and Daniel Sloss. The Garden is not the only room on the schedule, since the festival plays all five boroughs. For the Chappelle weekend the focus is Penn Plaza.

What to Know Before You Go

The Garden's event pages say bags larger than 22 by 14 by 9 inches are prohibited, and anything you bring should fit under your seat. Have your digital ticket ready before you reach the gate, since the phone goes into a pouch once you are inside.

Presales opened September 15 and general sale followed on September 17, according to TheGrio and Pollstar. Availability now is a question for the festival and the box office. For another night built on a laugh, see Off the Clock, John Oliver and Seth Meyers at the Beacon.

Phones go in the pouch. The lights go down. Seventh Avenue waits outside.