Today we’d like to introduce you to Andy Beningo.
Hi Andy, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Growing up, I was a huge fan of comedy movies and comedians. For me, there was nothing better than sitting around the TV with my family watching people like Steve Martin and Robin Williams. I loved hearing new jokes and would often take them to school and tell my friends. When I got to college, I started skipping night classes to perform at open mics around the state of Michigan By the time I graduated, I started working a lot of the local clubs across the state- and had a few headliners that started taking me on the road. I am celebrating 20 professional years of doing stand up and I love it just as much as the day I started
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I am about to publish my very first book entitled, “Awkward Stories from the Road.” It is a collection of bombing stories and awkward things that have happened to me in my 20 years as a professional comedian. I’ve bombed in biker bars, stayed at hotels that had rats, performed with a ventriloquist who talked to his dummy off stage and have had more heart breaks and failures than success. At the end of the day, I truly just like telling jokes and making people laugh- and thats why I continue performing!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am known primarily as a clean stand up comedian. My act is centered on my wife and kids, short lived career as a middle school teacher and my aging parents dealing with technology. I try to write on subjects that are universal and that most people can relate to- and try finding humor in the every day life situations. A lot of people ask me if working clean is intentional- and it’s not really. I just sort of write things that I find funny and have been lucky that most of the audiences can relate to what I’m experiencing.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
Detroit is an amazing city! I love walking around Hockeytown and seeing all the fans, and love hitting some of the local pizza spots around town. I can’t really explain it- but there is an energy in the city that is contagious.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.andybeningo.com
- Instagram: @bingocomedy
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/bingocomedy
- Youtube: @andybeningo
