Dave Chappelle and John Mayer may sound like an extremely unlikely duo, but they’ve been proving at a series of buzzed-about collaborative performances that they go together better than anyone expected. Chappelle is a stand-up comedian and actor known for following his own eccentric path, from walking away from his Comedy Central series Chappelle’s Show at the height of its popularity, to taking the stage unannounced at small comedy clubs to deliver epic-length sets. Mayer is a singer-songwriter and guitarist known for radio hits like “Waiting on the World to Change” and “Your Body Is a Wonderland,” and for his guitar chops as a member of the Grateful Dead offshoot Dead & Company. They come from different backgrounds and disciplines, but they’ve been close friends ever since Mayer made a guest appearance on Chappelle’s Show in 2004.

They started performing together last year in a joint show called Controlled Danger, and although they’ve since played in a number of cities, Controlled Danger is still a small-scale project, so the opportunity to see the duo in Las Vegas may not be repeated. The show features solo sets from Chappelle and Mayer, with both delivering looser performances than usual, but the real appeal comes from seeing them together, when Chappelle’s comedic skills and Mayer’s musical skills intertwine. They play off of each other in the way that only old friends can, improvising riffs on whatever pops into their heads. “He’s one of the greatest leaders of a room I’ve ever seen,” Mayer told Jimmy Kimmel Live last year about working with Chappelle. “What they’ve developed over that time is a keen sense for how to complement each other,” the Los Angeles Times said of the duo’s LA show in December 2017. That confidence and mutual admiration makes this unlikely duo a surprisingly perfect combination.

MGM Grand, 8 p.m. Dec. 30, starting at $45 plus tax and fee. 800.745.3000 Ticketmaster