Side Splitters Comedy Club will open at the Sundial in downtown St. Petersburg within six to nine months. Owner Brian Thompson signed a lease last week. The space sits between Forbici Modern Italian and the AMC Theater. It spans 6,000 square feet, and construction began Wednesday.
The Tampa-based club has brought touring comedy acts to Carrollwood for over 32 years. St. Petersburg’s spot will seat around 250 people and pull in the same caliber of talent. The St. Petersburg space is a bit larger than the Tampa club. That venue hosts top-tier comics. Louis C.K., who has won six Emmys and three Grammys, performed at the Tampa spot Thursday night.
“Once you really get to experience it, comedy becomes addictive to people,” Thompson said, per the Catalyst. “Live entertainment is a beautiful thing. It’s been around for a long time, and it’s up to us to keep it alive.”
Thompson pledged to “pull out all the stops” and “open up with a bang.” He has built connections with several well-known comedians over the years. Now he’s thinking about how to build upon what worked in Tampa.
The venue will occupy a second-level space that once housed Locale Market. Mike Connor, CEO of Paradise Ventures and the complex’s co-owner, said it will feature an indoor-outdoor bar.
“This is going to be, I think, much more thought out as far as the design and circulation,” he said. “For us, I think it’s such a great use for the center.”
Thompson said the internet and social media have opened the door for more one-night acts. Many sell out in Tampa. They could now pick up extra bookings in St. Petersburg.
Providing more stage time and increasing ticket sales could also attract bigger names. Pop-up shows are a new trend in comedy and offer “our local guys a place to work.” However, Thompson said a “dedicated club that can bring in world-class talent regularly is something that every city needs.”
“People in St. Pete like to step out: they love their city,” he added. “And bringing that to them is something I believe people are really going to get behind.”
Thompson credits connections and word-of-mouth for the Tampa spot’s success since 1992. While the original venue “works really well for what we do,” he said it’s “stuck in the plaza.”
“Nobody talks more than comics,” Thompson said, and the Sundial and surrounding downtown waterfront will “be such a fun area” for them to come spend a weekend. “The beautiful thing about this is we won’t lose our personal touch.”