My Top 10 Favorite Comedy Venues
Being a Comedian for over 20 years, I can honestly say that I have performed in the worst places and the best places in the country. I will focus on the best places because I believe that comedy should be a happy event and not a disappointment. What makes a Comedy Club fun and successful is the right environment. It’s all about the atmosphere, the seating arrangement, and most of all, the intimacy factor. Comedy is an intimate medium that always works best in smaller venues of 400 seats or less. The bigger the venue, the less the crowd is part of the experience. I think comedy clubs and small theaters are the best, especially for a crowd worker like me. With all that said, here is my list:
My Favorite Comedy Spots of All Time 1. The original improvisation(NYC, NY) – This club was the grandfather of all comedy clubs. He was the first and truly the best. It was nice and small, about 100 seats, intimate and had an incredible aura. When you were on that stage, you knew that people like George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Lenny Bruce, and anyone else you can think of in Comedy, had performed there before you. What a great place it was. I miss him so much and the owner, Silver Friedman, was great to me.
two. Rascal’s Comedy Club(Ocean Township, NJ)- This became my home base for many years and was the perfect comedy club. It had around 225 seats comfortably and there wasn’t a bad one in the house. It was a rectangular room with the stage on one of the long walls, so every seat was close to the stage.
3. Rascal’s Comedy Club(West Orange, NJ) – This was a large 400 seat club that was downstairs from an excellent restaurant (I miss the Chicken Francais) and was the flagship of The Rascal chain. We used to do a comedy TV show every Thursday night called ‘Rascal’s Comedy Hour’ and it was so much fun. Being a headliner myself, I can never see other headliners unless we’re all on the same bill making some sort of profit. But with the TV show, I was the music director and writer for the show and I could see everyone who came every week. I really had a great time and the show lasted about 9 years.
Four. the strand theater(Lakewood, NJ) – What a great landmark and a great place to perform since it was renovated about 7 years ago. The acoustics are amazing and it’s just the right size for a theater to put on comedy.
5. Uncle Vinny’s/Ferrara’s(Point Pleasant, NJ) – This is a new club and has only been open for about 1 1/2 years. It reminds me of The Original Improv with its intimacy of only about 100 seats. It’s also a great restaurant and the owners, Dino & Jerry, are a pleasure to work for.
6. Comedy stop at The Trop(Atlantic City, NJ) – What a fantastic place. It’s like a mini theater of around 250 seats with all the aura of a casino showroom where a comedian loves to perform. The room has since moved to the new Quarter Wing upstairs and is slightly larger and even nicer than before. Good atmosphere.
7. Catch a rising star at The Hyatt(Princeton, NJ) Another perfect setting for comedy. Only about 180 seats and nice and close to the stage. All views are unobstructed of any kind and it is in a beautiful hotel.
8. Penn’s Peak(Jim Thorpe, PA) – This is one of the most unique venues I’ve ever performed. It looks like a giant 1800 seat chalet on top of a mountain and that’s basically what it is. I usually don’t like big places like this but they have big screens everywhere so everyone can see they’re not around and their sound system is second to none. Also, there are balconies around the stage. So even though it’s 1,800 seats, 1,000 of them are still pretty close to the stage. Definitely a dream place for artists!
9. long live debris(Syracuse, NY) – I really miss this place. It looked like a small theater bowl of about 200 seats and everyone was close. There were also around 20 seats around the stage. There is no place to hide for those bosses. I also miss the owner, friend of mine and fellow comedian and magician, Joe DeLion. He broke his heart, and the hearts of many comedians, when the Syracuse Hotel was sold and forced to close.
10 Improvisation at Melrose(Hollywood, CA) – A great club with a lot of show business aura. As a sponsor, you never know who’s going to come in and do a set and as an entertainer, you never know who’s going to be in the audience. One of the great comedy clubs of all time.
On my list of honorable mentions are Jokers Wild from New Haven, CT, Catch A Rising Star at Resorts in Atlantic City, NJ, The Brass Rail from Sekonk, MA, East Side Comedy Club from Huntington, NY, Tracy’s Comedy Club at The Bowman’s in Carney, MD, The Comedy Stop at The Tropicana in Las Vegas, NV, Wisecracker’s Comedy Club in Scranton & Wilkes-Barre, PA, Konkoma Komedy in Ronkonkoma, NY, The Music Box Theater at The Borgata in Atlantic City, NJ, Zanies in Chicago, IL and the College from DuPage in ILwhich had the perfect avant-garde theater I have ever seen in a school.
Now there are surely many, many more great places for Comedy, but these are my favorites and if you ever find yourself in those areas and need a laugh, feel free to come in and have a seat. You’re guaranteed to have a good time and if you don’t, it won’t be because the comics didn’t do their best for you. Thanks for reading, from THE TORNADO COMEDY!!
