E-Mail This Article to a Friend Funny bones Catching up with Dave Chappelle BY NICK A. ZAINO III

Dave Chappelle is in the middle of a career hot streak that most comics would kill for. He just re-upped with Comedy Central for another season of Chappelle’s Show, his popular and critically acclaimed sketch-comedy show. His hour-long HBO special, Killin’ Them Softly, has just been released on DVD. "Blackzilla," his last stand-up tour, packed venues across the country, including the Orpheum Theatre last April. His fan base was so rabid, audience members were shouting hecklers down before they had a chance to interrupt the proceedings.

And Chappelle, who’ll play three New England dates this weekend, has unprecedented control over his Comedy Central show. He writes most of it with buddy Neal Brennan, with whom he also wrote the film 1998 Half Baked, his cult-hit tribute to Cheech and Chong. "I didn’t use a writing staff for two reasons," he says. "One was some Evel Knievel shit: I just wanted to show people, ‘Look how prolific I am.’ But it has more to do with just keeping a singular voice to the show. You can do that easier with two people than you can with 20."

He also doesn’t have a permanent ensemble cast to deal with. This allows him to pick and choose his regular contributors — including some of New York City’s best stand-ups, such as Paul Mooney, Mario Cantone, Patrice O’Neal, and Rich Vos — and put them where he thinks they’ll do the most good. That format will remain in place for the new season, which won’t start airing until January. "There’ll be new characters and new sketches, but if it’s not broke, don’t fix it."

Not bad for a show that Chappelle created just to keep himself from stagnating on his farm in Ohio, where he lives with his wife and two young children. "I wanted to do a variety show just so I wouldn’t sit on my farm and rot away, but I hate the genre of television because it’s so phony." When he first pitched the show, it was little more than a rough concept — he wanted to have sketch comedy, some stand-up, and musical acts that he could interact with. "They bought it, man, hook, line and sinker," he laughs. "I gotta say, I’m thinking back to the pitch meeting, it was a terrible pitch, and they bought it."

There is a downside to getting everything you want: Chappelle says he’s not sure how long he can sustain the pace he has created for himself and his partner. "The first season of Chappelle’s Show was a burnout. I’m glad that the two of us wrote it ourselves, but it was an incredible amount of work. You’d be surprised how involved I am in every aspect of it. I’m sure it’s not normal."

His option with Comedy Central is up again at the end of this season, and though he loves everything about the show (he even cites CC’s Standards and Practices department, usually the albatross of an edgy sketch show, as a bright spot), he’s not sure he’ll continue after this year. "The third season, that’s anybody’s guess. I’ll see how it goes this year."

Dave Chappelle performs Friday at the South Shore Music Circus (781-383-9850) in Cohasset; Saturday at the Cape Cod Melody Tent (508-775-9100) in Hyannis; and Sunday at Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom (603-929-4100) in New Hampshire. Tickets are $36 for the Music Circus and Melody Tent performances, $30 and $40 for the Casino.