Seth Meyers psyched for stand-up gig at Just for Laughs Chicago

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Seth Meyers is pumped up to be in Chicago for the Just For Laughs festival: “It’s a great town for comedy, I’ve heard.”

Updated: September 15, 2011 12:28AM

It’s a long road from the anchor desk on “Saturday Night Live” to a lone microphone in the spotlight at the Vic Theatre, but that’s just where comedian Seth Meyers will find himself on June 18 thanks to the Just for Laughs Chicago comedy festival. Not exactly a newbie to stand-up, Meyers says he’s totally up for the task.

No he’s not.

That’s not true. He is.

Sorta.

Question: Could you tell if President Obama or other Cabinet members were nervous at the recent White House Correspondents’ Dinner, considering what was transpiring on the other side of the world with the Navy SEALs?

Seth Meyers: However nervous [he and his staff] were in light of what was happening, I still don’t think they were as nervous as I was following the president. Following him stinks.

Q: How are things between you and Donald Trump these days after your skewering of him at that same event?

SM: He did [“SNL”] in 2003 and we did a sketch together about “Donald Trump’s House of Wings,” and I was a chicken coming out of an egg, so I really enjoyed the week he was here. We both work at NBC, and we’ve run into each other a lot. And it was always like “Hi, how are ya?” I would say it’s colder now. I don’t think he’s being disingenuous.

Q: So you weren’t mad that he called you a stutterer?

SM: Not at all. I feel the people he has feuds with are a Mount Rushmore [of comedians] — Cosby, Letterman, Seinfeld. To be an irritation to Trump is an honor.

Q: You’re in Chicago for the Just for Laughs festival, which is all about stand-up. How comfortable are you at doing stand-up versus improv?

SM: I’ve done a lot of college and corporate events doing stand-up. I’m starting to get to know my abilities in that forum.

Q: What’s scarier, stand-up or following the president?

SM: Definitely following the president. But I feel everything I do is really frightening. With that said, I do think I have set up my nerves to handle it. Worse-case scenario, I have an act, so I’m not out there blindly in search of something to say.

Q: What attracted you to this festival?

SM: I love coming back to Chicago. It’s a great town for comedy, I’ve heard. I was mostly just flattered that they asked me.

Q: George Lopez and Louis CK both headline their respective shows at different venues the same time you’ll be on stage at the Vic. If festivalgoers have a choice, who should they see among the three of you?

SM: Louis CK is the best stand-up in the world. He’s my favorite working comedian, and I think most comedians would say that.

If Louis CK is sold out you should make your way over to my show.

Q: You’ve filled in a few times for Regis Philbin on “Live with Regis and Kelly.” Would you consider a full-time gig on the show now that Regis is leaving?

SM: I would love to keep my options open for whatever happens next. Kelly is just so good. Very few people are as good at doing what she does. I mean you go in and the producers run through the segments for that day’s show and then she gets out there and just talks about what she wants to talk about. She’s just really funny being off-the-cuff like that.