Comedy Club Has Crowds Laughing Out Loud
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When stand-up comedian Matt Mayle decided to cut back on traveling, that didn’t mean he wanted to quit his night job. He just decided to keep his comedy closer to home.
Mayle and his wife, Tonia, opened Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club in Clayton in February 2008. With shows four nights a week, lunch during the week and a lounge that’s separate from the club itself, the business has been going gangbusters on all fronts, Mayle says.
“Clayton’s growing, so I think we’re on the front of something big here,” Mayle says. “I’ve worked everywhere in the last 10 years, and I know from working in smaller towns that the people are really nice, and they’re appreciative of the acts that are brought to them. That’s the vibe here, and we always have people thanking us after the show for putting all this here. I know most of the people who come here on a first-name basis, and I like that.”
He has had no trouble pulling in top acts to the new club, despite the area’s relatively small size.
“Comics go where the money is, and we book through the Comedy Zone, an agency that’s been around for 30 years,” Mayle says. “All our comics have television credits. They may not be celebrity comics, but they’re all national touring comics. Now we’re looking more at celebrity comics, and seeing how many tickets we can sell. We only have 150 seats, so we don’t compete with the bigger comedy clubs near here.”
With sold-out shows two or more nights a week, there’s no doubt that the Johnston County crowd likes to laugh.
“We are an entertainment venue,” Mayle says. “The comedy club is first and foremost, but we’ve got some nights where people just come into the lounge to watch a game, or they just come in for lunch. People can come in for the show, for dinner, for a drink or all three – we’ve got lots of options. It’s all been very positive so far.”
Story by Joe Morris
Photo by Ian Curcio
