Es Soufi wandelde op achttienjarige leeftijd langs een buurtcentrum in Rotterdam-Zuid, toen hij een groep jongens met een glas thee in hun handen aan een tafeltje zag zitten. De nieuwsgierige Rotterdammer stapte op de groep af en ontdekte dat zij een toneelstuk voorbereidden. Es Soufi vroeg of hij mee mocht doen: zo ontstond in Theater aan de Schie de eerste podiumervaring voor de nu 34-jarige cabaretier.
“De energie die je voelt op zo’n podium: een volle zaal en het publiek dat om je grappen lacht, dat is onbeschrijfelijk. Vanaf dat moment droomde ik van een onemanshow zoals die van Jamie Foxx, Martin Lawrence en Eddie Murphy”, zegt Es Soufi tegen NU.nl.
Toch moest die droom flinke tijd wachten: de cabaretier rolde het onderwijs in. Es Soufi werkte jarenlang als docent Nederlands op een middelbare school in zijn geboortestad Rotterdam. Op zijn 23e begon hij met het combineren van zijn passie en zijn werk. Samen met een stel anderen maakte hij onder de naam De Borrelnootjez sketches voor hun YouTube-kanaal.
In 2020, the city of Rotterdam said goodbye to De Borelnotges. He began writing his dream one-man show. Al-Sufi says: “In the beginning, I had to have my own platform, so I created an account on Instagram and issued an appeal. I promised to perform a theatrical performance if the number of my followers reached ten thousand.” He reached this number very quickly. “This way I can look for a place that has the support of my supporters.”
The Sufi tried it at the Zuidplein theatre, but it turned out they were about to demolish the building. “I didn’t know any other theaters,” the comedian admits. “After searching on Google, I contacted Theater Rotterdam. There I could rent the hall for 8,000 euros. I was a teacher, and I did not have that money.”
Good friend and footballer Sofiane Amrabat paid the sum, but it turned out to not really be necessary. Even before receiving the invoice, the hall was completely sold out. It is no longer necessary to rent the room. In fact, the theater immediately wanted to schedule another show.
Director, crew, PR plan, script and professional photos: the Sufi didn’t have it all. “I had to quickly arrange everything for my first show. So I called the photographer who took my wedding photos. We took a photo in a balcony with a brick wall as a background,” the comedian said.
Al-Sufi has now left school and is working full-time on his theatrical career. He is now presenting his fourth theatrical show: CalorieIt is named after a Moroccan soup in which different ingredients are combined. “This is life in the Netherlands,” says Al-Sufi. “Life consists of desire, necessity, and acceptance. That’s all part of it.”
The Moroccan-Dutch comedian’s show features particularly interesting stories of people with the same background. However, Al-Sufi did not write his program for a specific target group. “I think it’s especially important to stay close to myself during the writing process. This includes my identity.”
The comedian notes that his audience is becoming increasingly diverse. “Moroccan-Dutch audiences come to see my shows because of their popularity. The rest of the audience sees my shows as a way to learn more about their compatriots. They see my head in the booklet and are curious.”
Although the Sufi is currently living his dream, there is still a lot to be desired. “My theater show continues until the summer and then for the second year in a row I will be the first Dutch-Moroccan to visit theaters in Morocco. There is more planned: a comedy series that I wrote myself after training in Los Angeles. Angeles and a feature film.”
