This Boxing Day, the Dominion Centre in London will host the MarkAlive Comedy Variety Show, compered by comedian MC Mark.
The night will see standup comedy performances from the likes of Emeka Smith, Akpos, Mr CEE, MC Ojb, Micah Hall, TED Bobo, Gloriaade and Limz Ali. The musical acts will include DOLLY P, DJ Tallest, Bayo Boyz, Glitch and George Wilks.
London-based, Nigerian-born MC Mark will host the event, injecting his charismatic and interactive humour into the evening. The stand-up comedian, emcee, actor and scriptwriter describes his comedy as “clean, corporate, observational and spontaneous”.
He told Conversations About Her: “My comedy focuses on relaxing my audience, edutainment and motivation. I like to summarise it as bringing healing through laughter by being funny for a reason”.
Having already won multiple awards, including a GAB (Gathering of Africa’s Best) award, a Black Enterprise and Youth Empowerment award, and an African Film Award, MC Mark has been praised not only for his comedy, but also his talents in film, business, and for his contributions to the development of upcoming talent.
The MarkAlive Comedy Variety Show has featured in Leeds, Aberdeen, Manchester and Glasgow, and the London edition is on December 26. MC Mark, whose real name is Mark Omotope Afolayan, commented that “a lot of people don’t know what to do with themselves the day after the Christmas buzz”.
With the strapline, “tested positive to laffter”, the family-friendly (9+ years) event hopes to entertain audiences troubled by the post-Christmas blues.
The MarkAlive host said: “The whole atmosphere and vibe is going to be funny, interactive, spontaneous, and family friendly. There will be edutainment, motivation and prize-winning. The entertainment will range from dancers to interactive funny games, to stand up comedy, satire and musical interludes”.
Featuring a diverse line-up, with acts from white British, Asian, Caribbean, Kenyan, and Nigerian backgrounds, the Boxing Day variety show promises to be a successful one.
One of the acts in the line-up is singer-songwriter George Wilks, who was spotted by MC Mark at a gig in Lewisham.
“I have an eye for spotting talents who will be huge before they are”, MC Mark explained. “My instincts guided me to ask George to perform before I had actually seen him play. He was shocked that I had asked him before seeing him play. Then he gave an outstanding performance, and I told him that I had long been in the game and had developed sound instinct”.
As well as providing an evening of entertainment, part of the proceeds for the MarkAlive show will be used to support open-heart surgery for African children with heart disease.
The MarkAlive compere told us: “The MarkAlive show has supported a sickle cell charity, Feet of Grace (a charity providing prosthetic limbs to survivors), a homeless children’s charity in Africa, and this year we are supporting children with heart diseases needing open heart surgery.”
“I chose this charity after speaking with a Doctor friend who explained how scarce it has become for children in Africa to survive heart disease due to lack of experts and advanced technology.”
MC Mark has also supported charities such as Sight Savers, Save the Children, and UNICEF.
Tickets for the Boxing Day MarkAlive Comedy Variety Show are available at www.cokobar.com, www.shoobs.com or by calling 07432 873483 and 07956 102035. Early Bird tickets are £15, and tickets bought later will cost £40 each, or £50 for two.
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