“I think it’s a very difficult time to be in comedy right now,” Reginald begins when asked about comedy in the face of adversity. “Nobody knows quite what to say about these times. We live in times that are so politicised that if you take a stand on anything it’s going to piss people off. There seems to be a camp that tries to make sense of what’s happening right now and then you have all the other people who just like to talk about the cute stuff. Most of all I was a little scared about it. I was like what am I gonna say? Cause I’m not gonna do fluffy and cute.”
After this, he discusses his writing process: “I made a commitment to the comedy gods when I first started. I always keep a tape recorder or a notepad or an assistant nearby to jot things down. I remember one time years ago, a punch line had finally hit me for this joke that I had been thinking of for like three years, and it was in the middle of sex. I got up and she was like ‘what are you doing? I can’t believe you’re writing down a joke!’ and I was like ‘baby, if I get this one right we’ll be able to eat of this one for years!’”
So, what can audiences expect in the show? “It’s going to be what I believe. Cause you gotta work out what you believe first. I don’t say stuff that I don’t believe. That’s the fastest way to get bored and to develop self-loathing. So, I have definite views on stuff now that was cloudy to me a month ago. The point is you know when you have to know. I think one of the good things about raising children is it makes you fucking figure out what your true values are, because you have to tell those to somebody that you love. You don’t say ‘some of this, but some of that’ you say ‘no it’s this, and don’t do it again.’ Sometimes we don’t fully see what we believe, there’s some doubt rooms in your head and you don’t want to unlock the door…but I do it, so people can laugh.”
Some People V. Reginald D. Hunter, The Glee Club, Cardiff, Wed 19 Apr. Tickets: £15. Info: 012 1693 2248 / www.glee.co.uk; Pontardawe Arts Centre, Thurs 20 Apr. Tickets: £15. Info: 017 9286 3722 / www.npttheatres.co.uk; Savoy Theatre, Monmouth, Fri 21 Apr. Tickets: sold out. Info: 016 0077 2467 / www.monmouth-savoy.co.uk
words RUTH SEAVERS