Comedian Emmanuel Sonubi to appear at Alnwick Playhouse

The 2022’s Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee will present his latest show – Curriculum Vitae, which takes the audience through a hilarious and heartfelt story that explores all of Emmanuel’s previous jobs, many of which he was wildly unqualified to do, before becoming a comedian and how those experiences helped shape his comedic voice.

From working in IT to the doors of London's nightlife, to musical theatre, Emmanuel has now been seen on QI, Alan Davies As Yet Untitled, Apprentice 'You're Fired', he headlined Live at the Apollo and had a Fringe smash-hit in 2022 with his sell-out show, Emancipated.

Emmanuel said: “I am looking forward to getting back on the road with this new show. Last year was amazing with Emancipated, but this time I’ll be back with a bigger show and a few surprises along the way. Thank you to everyone that came out to see me last year, I can’t wait to see you all again.”

How do you prepare for each show?

“I don't have a talk preparation but I do have a show preparation before I actually get on stage. I listened to a lot of very old school 90s 2000s rap as a vocal warmup to be able to get all of my words out clearly. So it would normally be Dr. Dre and Eminem, that sort of era and I will wrap my little heart out. It's a really good way of having a vocal warmup before you get on stage and start talking million miles an hour."

Do you ever get nervous?

“Every single time, even now. Every single show I'm full of nerves and those nerves stay there until about five minutes before the end of the show.”

"When it's your show, they've come specifically to see you and you really want to justify it. You want them to have a good time because it means more to them. This is their night out.”

Have your life stories built up to this show?

“It's about a lot of the jobs that I did before comedy, and then what those jobs brought to the stage now. There's a lot of transferable skills with all the different jobs that I have done. When I was writing the show, I literally wrote out my entire CV and I had to cut so much out because I've done so many things, but the nice thing is, they’re things that people get to relate to that a lot of us have done.”

Will this tour be your first time in the North East?

“I've been all over the north east from doing the club circuit and supporting other acts. I've got to see a lot of the country and I always find the more northern I go, the more down to earth people become.”

Has comedy helped you overcome struggles?

“I used to have this ethos when I was a kid, that you can't laugh and be scared at the same time. It isn’t 100% true, it's just more of an affirmation that lets you know that some things can be a choice, and it's easier to get through stuff with a smile on your face.”

“That’s the really nice thing about comedy. When I tell a joke, you can see people don't realise that other people would have gone through the same thing, and there is that smile that people give in that moment of realisation when they realise that they're not alone.”

Curriculum Vitae will be performed at the Alnwick Playhouse on April 13. Tickets are available on Emmanuel’s website.