ALBANY — The controversial comedian Louis C.K., who for the past year and a half has been attempting to rehabilitate an image and performing career damaged when he was among the men named as part of the #MeToo movement, will perform at The Egg at 8 p.m. Tuesday, March 10.

All tickets for seats in The Egg's 980-seat Hart Theatre cost $50.75. They went on sale Monday, and as of Wednesday morning about 700 had been sold, according to Peter Lesser, executive director of the venue.

Louis C.K.'s most recent Capital Region appearances were a year ago last week, when two shows — at The Funny Bone in Guilderland and The Comedy Works in Saratoga Springs — were each announced on the respective club's websites less than 12 hours before showtime. Both sold out almost immediately. The last-minute announcements seemed designed to limit advance media attention and quickly fill seats with fans and other comedy diehards presumed to be a more receptive audience for the disgraced comedian.

Over the past year, Louis C.K.'s shows have been announced further in advance. The tour that brings him to The Egg so far covers more than 30 dates, running from Friday through May 23.

The event page for the Louis C.K. performance on The Egg's website includes a copyright warning about the material in the show. A first for The Egg, the announcement was required to be put there by Louis C.K.'s management, Lesser said. It says:

Louis CK owns all rights in the content and materials, including any jokes and sketches (the “Materials”), delivered during his performance. The Materials may not be copied, translated, transmitted, displayed, distributed, or reproduced verbatim (the “Use”), in whole or in part, in any form, media, or technology now known or later developed, without the express prior written consent of Louis CK. Any Use of the Materials without the express prior written consent of Louis CK is strictly prohibited and shall be subject to all available legal remedies, whether in equity or at law at the cost of anyone who violates this prohibition.

Directors of other venues in the region said Wednesday they have never had to put such a warning on a specific artist's event page, though some print general copyright announcements in their programs. The arts leaders' consensus was that Louis C.K.'s warning was primarily aimed at keeping audience members from recording video on their smartphones and posting it online.

But, given that The Egg is being required by the comedian to secure patrons' mobile phones in lockable Yondr pouches before entering the theater, that concern is rendered moot. (Attendees keep the pouches with them, and may exit the performing space to use the phone if necessary during the show. The pouches, which are provided by the act requiring them, are unlocked and returned as attendees leave afterward.)

Louis C.K.'s copyright notice could also be interpreted to apply to written versions of his material that report his words verbatim and are posted or published, whether on personal social media or as part of a review by a media organization. Whether the warning is enforceable and would be legally pursued or is meant more as a scare tactic was not clear, local arts leaders said.

"Saturday Night Live" cast member and comedian Pete Davidson was widely mocked last month after ticket buyers for his stand-up shows were required to sign nondisclosure agreements that threatened a $1 million penalty for disclosure of Davidson's material, saying, in part, “the individual shall not give any interviews, offer any opinions or critiques, or otherwise participate by any means or in any form whatsoever (including but not limited to blogs, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, or any other social networking or other websites whether now existing or hereafter created).” The NDA was generally considered unenforceable.

Local arts executives and national experts said they understood the desire of artists, particularly comedians, to keep their work, especially newer material, from being extensively published online. To date, very few local shows have required the use of Yondr pouches, including comedian Chris Rock for his Palace Theatre performance in 2017. Theaters that have used them reported minimal patron dismay or disruption during entry and exit. It is fairly standard in the entertainment industry to ban photography and video or audio recording during performances, whether for comedy, music, theater or dance, but such prohibitions are rarely enforced at big rock concerts, and some artists who perform in smaller venues, including comedian Lewis Black, encourage social-media interaction with fans during shows and welcome the posting of photos and videos.

Also potentially at issue for Louis C.K.'s show at The Egg was the suitability of bringing a controversial figure into a state-owned facility. (The Egg is an independent nonprofit that leases space in the state-owned Empire State Plaza.)

Lesser, who has run the two-theater venue since 2000, said an outside promoter, Upfront Inc. of Maryland, is handling Louis C.K.'s tour and renting the Hart Theater for his Egg performance. Lesser said he does not accept or reject bookings based on the content of the shows — "Where would you draw that line?," he said — and would decline a rental only if there were safety or security concerns for patrons or staff.

Once considered one of the best and edgiest stand-up comics in America, Louis C.K. was a busy performing comedian who also created, wrote, directed, edited, produced and starred in the Emmy Award-winning sitcom "Louie," which ran on FX for five seasons starting in 2010. In 2013, Forbes put him at No. 5 on its list of the highest-earning comedians, with annual income of $16 million, and in 2015 he set a record as the only comic to sell out the 18,000-seat Madison Square Garden three times in the same tour.

Rumors of sexual impropriety by Louis C.K. bubbled up in 2015, ’16 and ’17, including in published comments from comedians Roseanne Barr and Tig Notaro. The stories came into full public view in November 2017, at the beginning of the #MeToo movement, when The New York Times reported accusations by five women comics that Louis C.K. had masturbated in front of them. He admitted to the behavior, saying he "thought it was OK" because he asked the women's permission in advance, and he further acknowledged that as one of comedy's top stars he had abused his power in the industry.

In the immediate aftermath, companies and outlets including FX, Netflix, HBO, TBS and the Disney Channel all canceled projects with him or cut ties completely, leading him to later joke that he "lost $35 million in an hour" after The New York Times story came out.

His attempts to restart his career began in August 2018, nine months after his admission of sexual misconduct, with a surprise appearance at one of his longtime homes, the Comedy Cellar in Manhattan. In December 2018 he performed six soldout shows, announced in advance, at Governors' Comedy Club on Long Island. An audio recording of one of those sets went viral and drew widespread condemnation for material that criticized teen survivors of the Parkland school shootings in Florida.

In the audio, Louis C.K. also mocked people who do not identify as male or female, using a prim, nasal voice when he said, "'You should address me as they/them, because I identify as gender neutral.' Oh, OK. You should address me as 'there,' because I identify as a location. And the location is your mother's (vagina)."

A month later, when he performed at The Funny Bone, he asked how many people were familiar with the recording and said he'd be repeating much of it, but he didn't. According to a Times Union review of the show:

Instead, often taking cues from notes, a reliance he acknowledged and made fun of, Louis C.K. worked through obviously new jokes that offered glimpses of his best material from the past, which at its most honed became cultural meta-commentary that reflected on American society and his own jokes until it refracted into genuine, and genuinely funny, insights.

A rebuttal from a local resident that the Times Union later published criticized the show and those who attended, saying of Louis C.K., "He used the same force that drives his comedy to silence those who had the misfortune of being targeted. The money and attendance he gains from these shows enable his predatory actions, as it signals to him that victims' livelihoods matter less than his career."