Laughing Gas Comedy club to open soon in Cape Girardeau

St. Louis native and comedy club entrepreneur Jeff Johnson wants to bring his expertise and big names in comedy to Cape Girardeau through his latest venture, Laughing Gas Comedy and the N20 Lounge.

The venue is set to open by the end of January, he said.

Johnson, who now lives in Jackson and works at Saint Francis Medical Center as a respiratory therapist, said Friday he wants 2106 William St. to become the area�s �happy hour place.�

Part of the reason why �St. Louis guy� Johnson said he chose the 7,000-square-feet location is because it was so visible.

The whole plan outlined by Johnson � with the interior designed by his wife, Kara � was to create an area where people can hang out.

Plans are seen on what will be the bar at 2106 William St., which Jeff Johnson is renovating into a comedy club, Friday in Cape Girardeau.TYLER GRAEF

�There was nothing obstructing the view anywhere,� he said. �When I walked in, I visualized all this.�

And a lot of comics Johnson knows are excited to have another place in the Midwest to go, he said.

Some people wanted the comedy club to be downtown, but Johnson didn�t want to go that route, he said.

�Because of parking; and if it�s raining,� Johnson said. �Who�s going to wait in line?

Johnson said he was first exposed to Cape Girardeau after high school, and attended Southeast Missouri State University. After graduation, Johnson went back home and started working for Funny Bone at Westport Plaza in St. Louis.

�For a good 15 years, I started out as a bouncer and worked my way into upper management,� he said. �All aspects of it. But it�s always been a part-time job.�

He met his wife in 2009 and at the time the couple was commuting back and forth before moving back to Cape Girardeau in 2010. He then officially left Funny Bone.

Johnson has been familiar with Cape Girardeau�s nightlife for quite some time. As a teenager, he bounced at Jeremiah�s in downtown Cape Girardeau.

�I knew Cape had a nightlife, but there were not a lot of options,� he said. �It became real apparent last year on our wedding anniversary when we had sushi and a movie, and that was it.�

He said other entertainment venues within Southeast Missouri are unable to �provide what I�m going to do, which is the intimate part of it,� he said.

Johnson said he is excited to take what he�s learned from his St. Louis experience, come to Cape Girardeau and implement it �in a town that�s obviously starving for adult entertainment.�

�I need to focus on locals; I need to focus on the surrounding 50 miles and give those people an option to not have to go to St. Louis or Memphis,� Johnson said. �Cape�s not just a drive-through zone to stop and get gas.�

The space � still under construction � will include a main lobby for ticket sales; one intimate-seating stage area; an additional lounge area with a stage and a bar; a secluded green room for performers; and restrooms.

He described the lounge area as a cool, chill place where attendees won�t be �over-blasted by something.�

�It�s going to be a smoke-free and stress-free environment,� he said.

Standing in front of what will soon be one of the two stages, Johnson expressed his goal and dream of bringing big names to Cape Girardeau, not just catering to local talent � at least for the time being.

�The local thing isn�t even a thought right now. I have to establish comedy,� Johnson said. �I need to let Cape know what comedy even is, because right now, they don�t even know.�

jhartwig@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3632