Surprise! Dave Chappelle to host Seattle show

updated 11:15 a.m. ET Feb. 15, 2006

SEATTLE - Dave Chappelle, who walked away from a $50 million contract last year for the third and fourth seasons of his Comedy Central variety show, has scheduled a surprise standup show at the city's Paramount Theatre.

Tickets for Sunday's 7 p.m. show go on sale at 10 a.m. Wednesday, and were priced at $52.50, excluding fees, according to a calendar listing on the Paramount's Web site.

Last May, Chappelle, 32, stunned the entertainment industry by leaving his show in mid-production. He spent two weeks in South Africa before returning home to his farm near Yellow Springs, Ohio, northeast of Cincinnati. Since then, he's resumed performing live standup.

In a recent interview on "The Oprah Winfrey Show," Chappelle said he fled in part because he felt too many people were trying to control him and his show. He denied reports that his mysterious departure stemmed from mental or drug problems.

Comedy Central announced in December that four half-hour episodes of "Chappelle's Show," taped before he took off, will premiere in weekly airings this spring. A full season would have been 10 to 13 episodes.

Chappelle's future on Comedy Central remains in limbo. On Feb. 3, the day of his interview with Winfrey, the cable channel issued a statement that "Dave is a comedic genius whose work we truly value, and the door is always open to him."

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