Nate Bargatze used his Tonight Show appearance to book a special opener for his upcoming NYC standup dates: Jimmy Fallon.
Bargatze appeared to catch Fallon off-guard during his interview on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last night, springing an invite on the host to join him for three September shows at Madison Square Garden.
The comic is scheduled to bring his Big Dumb Eyes world standup tour to MSG on September 26-27th, performing three shows across those two days. Bargatze is also joined on the tour by comedian Julian McCullough and his father, magician Stephen Bargatze.
“As everybody that has followed my career knows, The Tonight Show has meant a lot to me, because I was just doing standup to now doing it in Madison Square Garden,” Bargatze explained. “So I thought it would be very nice—would you come do the shows with me at Madison Square Garden?”
While the audience approved, Fallon appeared hesitant to take the gig, arguing that he hasn’t performed standup regularly in a decade and doesn’t have an act. But as Bargatze pointed out, Fallon has opened for him before. The Tonight Show host joined the comic on the road for shows in Albany and Syracuse last year.
“You know it works in Syracuse and Albany, so now it’s time to take it to the big top,” Bargatze argued, noting the set would be twenty minutes.
Fallon ultimately accepted, embracing Bargatze for the offer. But still, the host seemed unsure of what he’d bring to the stage at MSG. “What do I do? You want me to do impressions?,” he asked. “I’m exhausted.”
The host then seemed to confirm that he’s game via an Instagram Story post last night, captioning a photo of him and Bargatze, “3 shows at The Garden in September? Hmmm….”
Bargatze has long been vocal about how meaningful Fallon’s Tonight Show has been for him. While the comedian made his standup debut on Late Night with Conan O’Brien in 2008, he has been a frequent guest of Fallon’s. This week’s appearance marked his 15th visit to Fallon’s Tonight Show. He also made two appearances on Fallon’s Late Night.
It’s not the first time Fallon has been surprised with an invite on air. Last year, NBC Sports’ Mike Tirico used his interview time to invite Fallon to co-host the Paris Olympics Closing Ceremony. Fallon took him up on the offer, making it official a month later.
