Comedian Opening For Jamie Lissow In North Charleston at Wit's End Comedy Lounge

Jeff Walker,  Entertainment Writer 

42 year old stand-up comic Matt Bergman has been honing his craft since he was in college pursuing a degree in criminal justice. As fate would have it, after graduating, he realized he was afraid of criminals and decided being funny on stage was the way to go. 

"I've always been a fan of comedy. In college I had gone to a couple of comedy shows, and that's when I began to get really hooked."

A Buffalo NY native Bergman did what almost every newcomer to stand-up did. "I did the whole open mic night. There was this club in Buffalo called the Comix Cafe. When headliners came through town they'd let me go on and open the show."

He admits initially it was a trial and error period. "For lack of a better term I bombed. I was really just getting my feet wet, and for the most part I didn't know what I was doing. I didn't have that much depth to my comedy. No theme. Thankfully those early gigs were about five minutes long because I'm certain the audience was ready for me to exit the stage."

Bergman's earliest influences were rather different than his contemporaries. "The two I was really obsessed with when I first started out were Jon Stewart (The Daily Show) on Comedy Central and Colin Quinn who had his own show called 'Tough Crowd' (2002-04). I was drawn to their styles of comedy. They're unique but have similarities."

A few more Bergman relates too are Jim Florentine and John Heffron (winner of Last Comic Standing). "Jim does a lot of prank comedy, which I love. And more than a decade ago I was a regular opener for John. Both very funny guys in their own right."

While Bergman appeared in the 2006 direct-to-dvd horror anthology movie 'Dead Teenagers', his 2014 TV debut was rather rare. "It was the AXS Gotham Comedy Live and it was hosted by Gallagher. If you're going to appear on TV for the first time you want no one other than the king of prop comedy to introduce you."

More recently Bergman has been touring with Jamie Lissow, whose own notoriety has increased since being a regular on Gutfeld!, the top rated night time TV show on the Fox News network. "Jamie and I get along so well. It's cool to see this happening for him now. Being on Gutfeld! has completely changed his life."

Bergman goes on to say. "I remember when we'd do shows like in Raleigh NC, and we didn't know if there was going to be more than 17 people in the audience. It took a few months but Jamie gained a much larger fanbase due to Gutfeld!. And within a year they were adding shows. Opening for Jamie has upped my exposure as well. So it's a 'win win'."

Just how does Bergman arrive at his brand of comedy. "Early on it was more observational. Now it's more storytelling. I talk about my life, my family, and what's happening in society. The human mistakes we all make I find funny. At this point in my career my comedy is a good mixture of observation and storytelling."

Although Bergman appreciates a variety of comedic styles he admits he's not that outlandish or overly R-rated. "I'm closer to PG-13. I've done a Dry Bar Comedy Special and have my own special on Amazon Prime (A Little Bit Balder Now). It's nice to see clean comedy that everyone can enjoy." 

He explains further. "I'm not opposed to the occasional curse word, but if you use it too much you lose your steam. I think the F-word can accentuate a joke but if used to often it can become a crutch. Then it's not authentic. In comedy, it's all about timing."

Charleston area stand-up comedy fans can judge for themselves how Bergman's timing is when he and Jamie Lissow appear at the Wit's End Comedy Lounge later this month. The two are out on the road on Lissow's 'better off dad' comedy tour and perform nightly from July 24th through the 27th.

While he is okay playing 1000 seat venues, much like his current touring partner, Matt Bergman prefers the smaller clubs. "The best comedy clubs are generally 200 seats or less. Stand-up comedy was always meant to have an intimate vibe." The Wit's End holds about 100 for a show. "That's perfect."

For more on the North Charleston shows visit https://www.witsendcharleston.com/  and for more on Bergman check out his website at https://www.mattbergmancomedy.com/   Prior to coming to Charleston they will be performing in Wilmington NC. For more on all Lissow's tour schedule check out his site at https://www.jamielissow.com/tour