Kevin Hart's "Let Me Explain" tour stops in Pittsburgh

One of the greatest comedians in the country was in Pittsburgh this weekend. Kevin Hart’s “Let Me Explain” tour made a stop at the Consol Energy Center on Friday.

Hart made a huge entrance to the rumbling bass of the sound system combined with lasers flashing around the arena. He also had fire burst out of the stage, which he bragged about to the crowd. He said that he had seen fire coming from the stage at a Jay-Z and Kanye West concert and decided he would have it too. He made the fire flare up several times at random during the act, which was a funny gimmick.

Hart has a way of controlling the stage even though he is short, which he loves to talk about, he still has a big presence on the stage. He had a fairly large crowd on hand, but he was able to get the crowd quieter than they had been all evening. He even had some fun with a rather intoxicated woman in the first couple of rows. He made fun of another person in the front row by asking him a question and mocking his response.

Hart certainly delivered on Friday. His casual style of story-telling was a big hit with the crowd. He talked a lot about his family, including his ex-wife, whom he calls crazy. She is the inspiration for many of his jokes, including one in which he says that she is in his trunk while he is driving and when he hears her, opens the trunk, she jumps out and runs away.

Another joke he told detailed a code he had with his best friend as to how to avoid entering dangerous conversations while in the presence of his wife. He attempts to use the code, but his friend “Harry” fails to adhere to the code and causes a fight with Hart and his wife. He admits that cheating was the cause of his divorce.

Hart credits reaching the next level in his career to being honest and open on stage. He says that when he was early in his career he would create a character on stage and try to live up to the character, but that when he started being himself audiences were more accepting.

He even made the show personal to Pittsburgh by pointing out the Steelers in the audience and promising to return to the city next year.

Prior to Hart’s set, three comedians warmed up the crowd for him.

Na’im Lynn, whose half-hour special just aired on Comedy Central, was the first supporting comedian. Lynn has a unique take on life, which he shared with audience. He did do a good job of showing that not all black comedians are the same. His jokes are well thought out and intelligent. Oddly enough he was not as funny as the other two.

Will “Spank” Horton was the second comedian; the upgrade in talent was apparent. Horton talked about the differences in men and women and how they interact. He used a lot of facial expressions to make his jokes work.

Host Joey Williams performed first for about fifteen minutes. He did a good job relating to a crowd who was groaning about not having access to their cell phones before talking about relationships.

Hart has another show that will be on TV within a few months. He had a great performance on Friday and showed again why he is the top comedian in the country.