What Nate Bargatze said about religion during a sold-out Salt Lake City show

Aaron Shill
·2 min read
Comedian Nate Bargatze performs in Phoenix. He recently performed three shows at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
Comedian Nate Bargatze performs in Phoenix. He recently performed three shows at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City. | Studio Moderne

Nate Bargatze acknowledged the obvious when he took the stage in a sold-out Delta Center on the evening of Sept. 30.

The comedian, who is enormously popular in the state of Utah, thanked the crowd for sharing conference weekend with him. His third show of the weekend took place right after the third session of the 193rd Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints concluded. Parking lots between the Conference Center and Delta Center were packed.

Bargatze referred to Utah as the “clean comedian’s Hollywood.” He then talked about his religious upbringing.

Nate Bargatze and religion

Bargatze recounted the moment in Salt Lake City on his “Nateland” podcast this week.

“I said this week (in) Utah ... my parents grew up Catholic, but I was raised Baptist,” he said. “So I have all of the Catholic guilt, without any of the fun of Catholic, and then just the strictness of Baptist. Which is the most strict. Not as much now. But when we were growing up, Baptist was the most ... they could get disappointed real fast at you.”

Bargatze occasionally touches on religion in his comedy. During his Amazon special “Hello, World!” he talked about growing up with “’80s and ’90s Christian parents.”

“Well, that’s the most Christian you can ever get,” he said.

He’s also talked about how his faith tradition influenced him to go the “clean comedy” route.

“It’s how I grew up,” he told the Deseret News. “I grew up Southern Christian, and (clean comedy is) all we could watch. It’s just how we were. I knew I would never be dirty. I’ve always been clean.”

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Nate Bargatze in Utah

The Sept. 30 show was the first scheduled for Utah as part of Bargatze’s “Be Funny Tour.” Two more shows were later added.

He previously performed four shows at the Eccles Theater in February 2022.

“Utah, I go there a lot,” he said. “Very special place.”

During his podcast, he reflected on meeting Utah Jazz CEO Danny Ainge and on performing in such a large arena.

“The crowds were so good,” he said. “You have dreams of it happening like this, but every single time it’s overwhelming.”

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