Matt Rife’s Intimate Rhode Island Comedy Set Turns Paranormal

Comedy Connection in East Providence isn't where you'd expect to hear ghost stories or watch a mediumship demonstration.

It's also not where you'd expect to see Matt Rife, the comedy megastar who sells out arenas and theaters worldwide.

People got all of the above on a weird Wednesday night in 2024.

"This is going to be a very different show," Rife, 28, promised fans in the cozy, 240-seat venue on April 17.

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You could call that a premonition because it turned out to be true, but even Rife had no idea what he was in for.

The Ohio native tossed his routine aside for four "crowd work" shows at the Rhode Island club, 90-minute performances based entirely on audience interaction. If the night was a dud, he playfully reminded fans at the top of show No. 3, "you're equally at fault."

The night was anything but a dud. Comedy was involved but might not be the right word for it.

Rife prompted his audience to share their wildest dreams. It didn't take long for the discussion to take a hard turn. Within minutes, he was talking to a woman who said she was a therapist and a medium. At Rife's request, and in what may be a first for a comedy club, the woman relayed a couple of messages she said she was getting from Rife's late grandfather.

READ MORE: New Bedford Man's Video Goes Viral Thanks to Joe Rogan and Matt Rife

Rife asked if the medium could detect his grandfather's nickname for him, which proved more difficult. "I've had a few drinks," she responded. Rife thought that reasoning was fair enough.

A second medium in the crowd -- no relation -- kept the afterlife talk going, leading Rife to wonder if it would be hypothetically possible to contact O.J. Simpson, who died earlier in the month. The comic seemed jazzed about the idea of cohosting a podcast with a medium. The guests, he said, would be dead celebrities.

Rife was enjoying himself. He hadn't set out to talk about the paranormal but he seemed happy to do so. He said he believes in ghosts and that New England, with its haunted history, offers plenty of opportunities to explore.

He perked up referencing a previous visit to The Conjuring House in Burrillville, Rhode Island, which he discussed on The Joe Rogan Experience in 2023. He sounded like a kid on Christmas while noting the time he visited Salem on Halloween.

This was comedy meets fun chat with a hyped friend.

While spooky talk dominated the show, Rife said the "scariest" thing was doing the show in the first place. He's "getting a feel" for what it's like to perform without any material in preparation for a larger project.

He thanked his East Providence fans for bravely venturing into the great unknown with him.