Jim Norton, comic known for sharing darkest secrets, coming to Laconia on Feb. 17

LACONIA — The very first show brought to The Colonial Theatre by its current management company was a comedian who tours throughout New England with humor that had many fans in this region. That was in June of last year, and since then the venue has played host to many musical and theater performances. Next week will mark the return of comedy, though it will also be something new — a national headlining comic.

Jim Norton will be performing at The Colonial on Feb. 17. Norton is a New York-based comedian whose career includes several albums, five stand-up specials, both terrestrial and satellite radio shows, podcasts, and acting roles, such as playing a young Don Rickles in the Netflix feature film “The Irishman,” starring Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino.

Norton’s stop in Laconia will be followed by Marc Maron on March 11, and Whitney Cummings on March 19. All three of these comedians share two things in common: they headline venues across the country, and their humor is decidedly not for general audiences. They still draw crowds across the country, though, and local management thinks they'll do so here, too.

“Since opening the Colonial with seven Bob Marley shows last July, it’s been clear there is an audience for comedy in the Lakes Region. We’ve seen a positive response to our upcoming shows with Jim Norton, Marc Maron, and Whitney Cummings. Comedy is a core component to the schedule of theaters and performing arts centers across the country, and we’re looking forward to bringing many more national touring stand-ups to Laconia,” said Colonial Theatre manager Jake Crumb. “Overall, we’re very pleased with how the Spring schedule has come together, as we’ve recently added Three Dog Night, Blue Oyster Cult, and a second performance of Theresa Caputo Live to the calendar, and additional shows will be announced in the coming weeks.”

Those who appreciate his comedy, Norton said in a phone interview, are those who have “a darker sense of humor” and “are sick of they way the culture is going,” regardless of what side of the political spectrum they’re on.

Norton said that he realized early in his stand-up career that his penchant for total honesty, especially about things that most people keep private, could keep an audience’s attention. Especially that of his fellow comedians, he said.

“I just lived that way,” said Norton, whose early life in Bayonne, New Jersey, was rife with challenges. As he freely shares with audiences, his precocious sex life deviated from societal expectations. Alcohol became a problem in his early teenage years, and he dropped out of both high school and community college. He began a sober life in 1986 and started doing stand-up in 1990. His career breakthrough came in 1997, when Andrew Dice Clay hired him as an opening act for three years.

Norton’s stage persona came naturally, he said, self-deprecating for the delight of his audience. “When I got responses from other comics,” he said, he knew he was onto something. “It made me feel good to get those laughs from comedians.”

He mocks himself with such abandon that it seems without shame. That’s not the case, he said. Rather, his relationship with that emotion is different than most. He recognizes, he said, that its a universal human experience to feel discomfort or even disgust with parts of one’s own history or desires.

“I stand in shame, it’s like an odor in the room. It’s always there, but when I’m talking about it, I’m belligerent about it because I know I’m in a room with a crowd that has the same thing. I don’t need the crowd to approve of it. I want that, but I don’t require it,” he said.

Since he became comfortable with baring his darkest secrets, he said he began hearing from others who shared similar secrets — and not just a few.

“Hundreds of people. I can’t tell you (how many), over the years, an overwhelming amount of people,” Norton said. Most of them occupy a position in society that imposes certain expectations as far as behaviors, both professionally and personally. But human nature is more complicated and confusing than polite society would prefer, and that’s something that Norton is at liberty to discuss. “It’s a part of my job. It’s cathartic for me, and it helps other people to open up about it,” he said.

Norton’s current tour marks the end of a 15-month hiatus from performing, and Thursday night will only be the second time he’s performed in New Hampshire. It’s been five years since his previous stand-up special, and he said his current material is completely new. “It’s a new hour,” he said.

In a few months, he might be ready to record a performance for his next stand-up, but for now he’s enjoying the chance to share the material, and experimenting with how best to present it to audiences.

“I am having a good time with it, I’m still flipping the order,” he said.