Lamesha Ruddock
Emmanuel Sonubi: Life After Near Death is a powerhouse comedy set that balances sharp humour with raw honesty. It is disarming, daring and deeply entertaining, turning lived experience into punchlines that land with weight, impossible to escape the context of the here and now.
Life After Near Death, from one of the most exciting voices in UK comedy, Emmanuel Sonubi takes the audience on a journey. Rooted in a near-fatal experience that changed his life, Sonubi mixes stories of survival with societal observations that make him one of the most compelling comedians working today. I mean he’s on the telly!
At the end of a Dubai set, Emmanuel found himself hospitalised. What could have ended in tragedy has become the foundation of an unforgettable night of comedy. Life After Near Death weaves together sharp cultural insights oscillating from cracking jokes to tapping into Sonubi’s personal vulnerability. The result is a show that has the audience roaring one second and gasping the next and wolf whistling for the ladies in the back, a true rollercoaster that Emmanuel steers with ease.
It is a request to tell the truth to dismantle generational normalcy. In this room is a microcosm of the world. If enough of us are right then wrong is right. Life After Near Death uses comedy to open up conversations about mortality and how humour can deconstruct the things we are taught to accept.
Emmanuel appears on stage accompanied by the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme and he is about to tell us about how he developed a heart condition. He takes us back to when he was a bouncer, ribbing on how he has the Clark Kent effect with his glasses. Yes he knows his jeans are skinny, but bar the cardiomyopathy, he is in the best shape of his life.
He is a sharpshooter, delivering jokes that make the audience wince. Speaking of crude jokes, he takes us back to the 90s where “your mum” could demolish any comment. Emmanuel lives in the world of jokes, quite literally doing things for show material.
Sonubi languishes into his successful middle class persona, the four-bed house, the Waitrose shopping, the ASOS lifestyle (as seen on screen). He delivers an astute observation that everything is decided in a meeting, reminding me of a poem I’ve written:
“Now all wars ends around a table
When the cannon fodders had its lot
They pass the blunt to who calls the shots.”
It could be a misguided H&M advert or “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans”, we question the bystander effect spiralling us into more unbelievable normalcy which Sonubi tackles with such intention and utter charisma.
Life After Near Death is Emmanuel Sonubi at his sharpest. He takes a near-death experience and spins it into one of the most engaging hour of comedy you will see. Audiences will leave Emmanuel Sonubi: Life After Near Death laughing like they’re having a cardiac arrest savouring those moments of respite to reflect on how we can reshape the way we see our own lives.
You can catch Emmanuel Sonubi: Life After Near Death until Monday 25th at Cabaret Bar at Pleasance Courtyard from 20:10 (60mins). Tickets are available through the EdFringe Online Box Office.
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