February 17-23, 2005

mixpicks

Scot Check

Comedy

Paying 50 bucks for a comedy show is a lot like getting mugged. You lose a lot of money, but if the guy is any good, he'll leave you doubled over, lightheaded and teary-eyed. I'd hate to meet Billy Connolly in a dark alley.

The wild-eyed, wire-haired comedian hits the Zellerbach Theatre Monday and Tuesday for his "Too Old to Die Young" tour. He's been performing comedy for over 30 years, but most young guns only recognize him as Il Duce from The Boondock Saints. His relative anonymity in the States has even worked its way into his act, as he recently explained, "I'm much bigger in Britain than I am there. I'm well-known, but my name's "That Guy' in America. People shout "Hey, I know you! You're that guy.'" But in the U.K., he's that guy who tops many people's list of Britain's greatest living comedians. The controversial Scotsman started his career in a folk band (with the guy who later wrote "Baker Street"), but his banter between songs became so popular that it overshadowed the music, so he started joking solo. Since then his observations have been converted into several comedy albums and books, made even more charming by his rich accent. Appearing most recently in Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events as snake-draped Uncle Montague Montague, he'll be sure to tell you just how much that albino python fancied him.

Billy Connolly, Mon.-Tue., Feb. 21-22, 8 p.m., $50, Annenberg Center, 3680 Walnut St., 215-898-3900, www.pennpresents.org.