After mostly being away from the stand-up comedy scene the past few years, Dave Chappelle is back.

Chappelle has done a few shows here and there since his departure from Comedy Central and the appearances had some fans wondering if he was making a return.  As it turns out, Chappelle has no plans right now to return to TV, but he is doing a month-long tour for Funny or Die’s “Oddball Comedy and Curiosity Festival,” which starts August 23 in Austin, Texas.

Chappelle’s return to comedy comes as a shock considering how long he has been away and how inconsistent his shows have been.  The festival has thirteen different dates, so this will be the most work Chappelle has had in a while.

The 39-year-old comedian has been on the comedy scene for more than a decade and is best known for “Chappelle’s Show,” which was featured on Comedy Central from 2003 to 2006.  The show was wildly successful, but Chappelle grew tired of it quickly and said at one point, “The show is ruining my life.”  Chappelle later did the unthinkable in turning down a $55 million contract for continuing the show for two more years.

After quitting the show halfway through the third season and turning down the contract, Chappelle left the United States and went on a trip to South Africa.   At the time, there was a lot of speculation that Chappelle quit because of a drug problem and was in rehab, something he said wasn’t true.  Chappelle said he took the trip to spend some time alone and to deal with some issues he had with his celebrity status.

In addition to performing stand-up comedy and doing the sketch show on Comedy Central, Chappelle has also appeared in a few movies.  Chappelle had roles in “Blue Streak,” “You’ve Got Mail” and “The Nutty Professor.”  Aside from appearing in a couple of documentaries after leaving “Chappelle’s Show,” he hasn’t done any acting since his departure.

Over the past few years Chappelle has popped up here and there doing the occasional comedy routine, but has largely been out of the picture.  Back in March, Chappelle did a set with Chris Rock at New York’s Comedy Cellar.  The set was well-received by the crowd, which was a change from some of his other shows where he was heckled.

Tickets for the festival go on sale on June 21.  Since it’s rare to see Chappelle perform these days, those tickets probably won’t last long.