Comedians have figured out how to sell-out giant venues, and Tampa’s Amalie Arena is on the forefront of the trend

On a cool night last December, thousands of fans pile into Amalie Arena to see a favorite artist perform. The crowd is excited, and they fill seats in the highest sections while the opening acts are on stage. Finally, the headliner appears to raucous cheers and everybody is ready for a fun, fast-paced show.

It sounds like a typical concert in Tampa, except there are no singers or musicians. It’s stand-up comedy, and the headliner is Sebastian Maniscalco, whose exaggerated cadence and sarcastic look at family life have made him famous. And Amalie, which used to only host the occasional comedy superstar, such as Kevin Hart or Dave Chappelle, is opening its doors to more stand-up acts than ever.

In just the first two months of 2025, comedians such as Jim Gaffigan, Katt Williams, and Jo Koy have already performed there. Nashville comic Nate Bargatze plays the room in November. Next weekend, Shane Gillis—now in Bud Light commercials with Post Malone and infamous for his firing from SNL over past comments about Asians—plays a sold-out show. A facility that used to be reserved for hockey, music and Disney on Ice, and maybe the rare comedy show, is now a regular host for standups who’re dominating their industry.

So what’s going on? According to Kelli Yeloushan, Vice President of Event Management at the Vinik Sports Group, which oversees events at Amalie Arena as well as the Yuengling Center at the University of South Florida, comedy has been growing steadily as a hot-ticket item since the pandemic.

“Since coming out of COVID there’s just been a steady increase, and it doesn’t seem that it’s slowing down at all,” Yeloushan told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay. “I think it’s become more popular over the last few years. It’s doubling almost every year.”
Yeloushan attributes part of that growth to comedians connecting with fans on a variety of internet platforms. Netflix specials, clips on social media, and even the paid video greeting platform Cameo have allowed comedians who might not have the national name recognition of stand-up superstars to reach their audience quickly and increase demand exponentially.

Gillis embodies that theory. If you like the 37-year-old, then you probably helped the arena his March 7 show sell out within hours of it going on sale—a feat he’s accomplished across the continent (last year in Toronto, he topped the rock band U2 for most tickets sold for a live event at Scotiabank Arena).

A traditional comedy layout at Amalie would feature a stage with seats in front of it and accommodate 10,000 -12,000 fans. But Gillis chose an in-the-round layout, where the stage is in the center and fans are seated on all sides, increasing capacity to 17,000-18,000 fans.

Tampa resident James Serrano sat in the lower level of Amalie Arena to see Maniscalco’s in-the-round show late last year. The weather was nice, and he wanted to get out and have a good time. He’s seen all of the comedian’s comedy specials, so making the trip to Amalie Arena was an easy decision.”We felt like doing something fun. We love Sebastian,” he told CL.

It’s not Serrano’s first time seeing stand-up comedy in an arena setting (he’s seen Katt Williams, too), and he acknowledges that it’s a little different than a comedy club. One advantage is the crowd itself. With a large audience, there’s stronger energy and it makes the experience better when everyone is laughing together, he said.As a result, Serrano enjoys the arena setting for comedy, despite the added effort and cost associated with it. “And the $17 beer,” he noted.

Pricey beverages and parking aside, an arena comedy show can offer a different experience than a club. In addition to the cumulative laughter of thousands of people, Yeloushan said that arena comedians do a good job of adjusting from an intimate setting, where a back-and-forth interaction with the audience might be a large part of the act, to a show that will appeal to everyone from the floor to the third level. That adaptation has increased the appeal of stand-up comedy in a larger venue, which helps create more opportunities for those performers.

Bargatze is definitely taking advantage of the format, with shows at Amalie this Nov. 13-14. Coupled with two dates last year, the clean comedian will perform four shows at Amalie in about a year, and that doesn’t count his Aug. 16 date at Orlando’s Kia Center. In May, Amalie will also host the “We Them Ones” comedy tour, featuring comedians such as Mike Epps, Kountry Wayne, Lil Duval and Tony Roberts.

While nothing has been announced yet, Yeloushan said she’s working to add more comedy to the schedule. She’s seen many arena comedy shows herself and expects plenty more to be booked in the future.

“I think comedy is going to continue to grow,” she said. “We’re definitely doing lots of comedy shows, and every time I go to one they’re always good and I’m always impressed to see what kind of talent is out there.”

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This article appears in Feb 20-26, 2025.